2 ms·

Where would one learn Latin short of going back to uni? I’m fascinated by the language and there doesn’t seem to be many non-lawyerly resources available

ImprovedSilence 5y ago
I don’t think Italian is too far off. The word endings changed, but roots are mostly (all?) the same. If you can read one I think you can pick up the other usually…? Or I guess seminary school will teach you if law isn’t your thing…..
- jaclaz 5y ago
  Said by an Italian (old enough to have studied Latin) it is not that easy. Sure most roots are the same (so you can recognize most words, if taken singularly) but the construction and use of cases and the various declinations makes it tough to read a whole sentence and translate it correctly, also because there may be "false friends". On the other hand, with some (possibly better than the ones I did) Latin studies, a whole number of Latin derived languages (Italian, Spanish, French, Portuguese and Romanian) become more accessible, at least in written form, because they all use the same (but somnetimes different) Latin roots, i.e. two different Latin words (meaning the same thing or even the same word in a different case/declination) may have become used in different languages, so knowing the "common ancestor" helps.
abecedarius 5y ago
Lingua Latina Per Se Illustrata seems the best bet for non-lawyerly.
- FredPret 5y ago
  Thank you!
telchar 5y ago
There are a number of textbooks available, if you were interested in serious self-study. I don’t know of specific names off-hand. A dictionary would be important as well to have as a reference. You could start with a beginning textbook to get basic grammar and vocabulary, then eventually move up to advanced grammar and then actual ancient texts. These would probably be transcribed to a familiar font with hints to help through things like common abbreviations. There are some conventions to learn before being able to read actual artifacts - when you’re paying to have stone carved by the letter, abbreviations are going to be frequent.

ImprovedSilence 5y ago

I don’t think Italian is too far off. The word endings changed, but roots are mostly (all?) the same. If you can read one I think you can pick up the other usually…? Or I guess seminary school will teach you if law isn’t your thing…..

jaclaz 5y ago
Said by an Italian (old enough to have studied Latin) it is not that easy. Sure most roots are the same (so you can recognize most words, if taken singularly) but the construction and use of cases and the various declinations makes it tough to read a whole sentence and translate it correctly, also because there may be "false friends". On the other hand, with some (possibly better than the ones I did) Latin studies, a whole number of Latin derived languages (Italian, Spanish, French, Portuguese and Romanian) become more accessible, at least in written form, because they all use the same (but somnetimes different) Latin roots, i.e. two different Latin words (meaning the same thing or even the same word in a different case/declination) may have become used in different languages, so knowing the "common ancestor" helps.

abecedarius 5y ago

Lingua Latina Per Se Illustrata seems the best bet for non-lawyerly.

FredPret 5y ago
Thank you!

telchar 5y ago

There are a number of textbooks available, if you were interested in serious self-study. I don’t know of specific names off-hand. A dictionary would be important as well to have as a reference. You could start with a beginning textbook to get basic grammar and vocabulary, then eventually move up to advanced grammar and then actual ancient texts. These would probably be transcribed to a familiar font with hints to help through things like common abbreviations. There are some conventions to learn before being able to read actual artifacts - when you’re paying to have stone carved by the letter, abbreviations are going to be frequent.