4 ms·

I would also add that Greek was more philosophically sophisticated. The Greeks had a rich philosophical tradition and the resulting terminology was beyond what

I would also add that Greek was more philosophically sophisticated. The Greeks had a rich philosophical tradition and the resulting terminology was beyond what was available in other languages. Even today, following centuries of scholasticism, the Latin translations aren't always adequate enough for the task. Take "logos" and "verbum", for example.

Bayart 5y ago
You can just use Greek words in Latin ! They certainly did often enough that it doesn't carry any prejudice. The declension system is very similar and Latin is by itself highly flexible, I wouldn't go as far as calling Greek particularly more sophisticated (and I'm usually very wary of assigning inherent qualities to languages). But it does carry along a cultural environment that's more focused on philosophy. You could say the same of Latin and law.
- bobthechef 5y ago
  > You can just use Greek words in Latin ! Haha, yes and no. This isn't really a question of the inherent grammatical qualities of languages in this case (though I don't see why certain languages can't perhaps be more suitable for certain kinds of discourse over others, but I digress). There's a received bit of wisdom in poetry that literature, strictly speaking, cannot be translated. This expression gets to the bottom of something very important which is that language is inseparable from culture and tradition (which you gesture toward in your reply). So a word like "logos" simply has no equivalent in Latin and simply using the word "logos" or claiming that "verbum" is now the same as "logos" would require that either the receiver already know the Greek, or that Latin had become sophisticated enough to absorb the Greek meaning and all that it presupposes. Every translation of John 1:1 seems equally as anemic as "verbum" or deficient in some way: word, Wort, słowo, Слово, parole, Verbo, 道. You need a sophisticated philosophical culture to support a word like "logos". Otherwise, there's nothing in your language to translate into.

Bayart 5y ago

You can just use Greek words in Latin ! They certainly did often enough that it doesn't carry any prejudice. The declension system is very similar and Latin is by itself highly flexible, I wouldn't go as far as calling Greek particularly more sophisticated (and I'm usually very wary of assigning inherent qualities to languages). But it does carry along a cultural environment that's more focused on philosophy. You could say the same of Latin and law.

bobthechef 5y ago
> You can just use Greek words in Latin ! Haha, yes and no. This isn't really a question of the inherent grammatical qualities of languages in this case (though I don't see why certain languages can't perhaps be more suitable for certain kinds of discourse over others, but I digress). There's a received bit of wisdom in poetry that literature, strictly speaking, cannot be translated. This expression gets to the bottom of something very important which is that language is inseparable from culture and tradition (which you gesture toward in your reply). So a word like "logos" simply has no equivalent in Latin and simply using the word "logos" or claiming that "verbum" is now the same as "logos" would require that either the receiver already know the Greek, or that Latin had become sophisticated enough to absorb the Greek meaning and all that it presupposes. Every translation of John 1:1 seems equally as anemic as "verbum" or deficient in some way: word, Wort, słowo, Слово, parole, Verbo, 道. You need a sophisticated philosophical culture to support a word like "logos". Otherwise, there's nothing in your language to translate into.