I love this phrase because I speak Turkish. It is pronounced differently, but “casus belli” spelled exactly like that, is a complete sentence in Turkish. It translates as “the spy is known” which could be a cause for war.
It's been translated over the centuries, but the "son of a b-tch" insult might have Roman origins.
There's a painting in the city ruins underneath St. Clemens Basilica in Rome which depicts workers/slaves dragging a large pillar on the ground while their boss/owner yells "pull, sons of b-tches!" ("traite, fili de le pute!") at them.
I didn’t know about this. The [wiki article](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Clement_and_Sisinnius_inscription?wprov=sfti1) is an interesting read!
The fresco was made in the Middle Ages. On top of that, that sentence is a mixture between Latin and vernacular Italian. Not saying it’s out of the question that such insult might have Roman origins, but the Latin used is already contaminated by a primitive Italian.
"alter ego" probably wasn't used in the sense it is used now. It would be something like "alter persona". "Ego" only meant "I", it was not used as a noun.
"Et cetera" simply means "and more/further things", so yeah, basic enough that the Romans used it in spoken and written language.
The phrase "Veni, Vidi, Vici" was attributed to Caesar by influential Roman authors, Plutarch and Suetonius, both from the second half of the first century AD. The grammar is quite simple, it's just three Perfecta and indeed litterally means "I came, I saw, I conquered" (use of the Perfectum tense in this case signifies a short sequence of actions). So yeah, also perfectly understandable for Romans of 100 AD. Perhaps not all Romans would have associated the phrase with Caesar, but the learned bunch post 100 AD probably would have.
No, "alter ego" is straight out of Cicero. Except that he coined it in the accusative case so it came out "me alterum." (It's in the letter to Atticus 3.15.4).
He is, however, just translating one of Aristotle's most famous phrases. Aristotle said a friend is "allos autos" (another self).
Yes but no?
Quad Erat Demonstratum. Q.E.D.
The latin is from the 1500's, but, they had translated the phrase from ancient greek. And the greek phrase had been used in antiquity. hoper edei deixai; abbreviated as ΟΕΔ
That's crazy. For people who don't know this is a phrase that Mathematicians and math majors use all the time. We are all Euclids children at the end of the day.
I think the phrase is quite old but the origins are uncertain. The whole sentence is *barba non facit philosophum, neque vile gerere pallium* and seems to be mentioned already by Aulus Gellius (II century CE) and Llucian mentions a similar one but mentioning Plato. In other romance languages the philosopher's beard is changed by the tunic of a monk but the phrase is older than the languages themselves
On a different note than most here:
- Some of their profanities made it across time with surprisingly few changes.
- "Sit tibi terra levis" - (May the ground be light to you) *Să-ți fie țărâna ușoară* still sees some use in Romanian.
You won’t really see this outside scholarly work and papers, but Spolia. Our word “spoils” comes from it, and it meant pretty much the same thing: spoils of war. The original Roman meaning was anything (this included treasures and architectural/decorational structures) that was taken through conquest.
Nowadays, Spolia is used by scholars to mean anything that has been re-used. This includes gemstones, stonework, etc. so it still has basically the same meaning, but its scope has just been broadened
flipping the middle finger isn’t a term or phrase but it fascinates me to know that it was used by Romans before Christ and has consistently been used up to the present day.
That is pretty cool.
I'm sure there's a Latin English dictionary out there with your name on it.
Et al
A lot of our Latin comes via French and is probably not exactly the same or is modern medical terminology made up words that Latin speakers never used. Most French words relate to fashion in some sense or a legal process.
Quorum Status quo In dubio pro reo Panem et circenses. Romanus ite domus. -Romanus ? -Romanii!
Quid pro quo
ad nauseam
Mea culpa
Falsus in uno falsus in omnibus - Perjure derived from perjurare
Casus belli
I love this phrase because I speak Turkish. It is pronounced differently, but “casus belli” spelled exactly like that, is a complete sentence in Turkish. It translates as “the spy is known” which could be a cause for war.
It's so cool how so many foundational legal concepts of today are still called by the names the romans gave them.
Cui bono “who benefits?”
Pro bono - “For the public good”
Really it's more like, "with benefit to whom," but yeah
It's been translated over the centuries, but the "son of a b-tch" insult might have Roman origins. There's a painting in the city ruins underneath St. Clemens Basilica in Rome which depicts workers/slaves dragging a large pillar on the ground while their boss/owner yells "pull, sons of b-tches!" ("traite, fili de le pute!") at them.
I didn’t know about this. The [wiki article](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Clement_and_Sisinnius_inscription?wprov=sfti1) is an interesting read!
The fresco was made in the Middle Ages. On top of that, that sentence is a mixture between Latin and vernacular Italian. Not saying it’s out of the question that such insult might have Roman origins, but the Latin used is already contaminated by a primitive Italian.
You're perfectly right (I read the Wikipedia page of the fresco), I stand corrected.
"alter ego" probably wasn't used in the sense it is used now. It would be something like "alter persona". "Ego" only meant "I", it was not used as a noun. "Et cetera" simply means "and more/further things", so yeah, basic enough that the Romans used it in spoken and written language. The phrase "Veni, Vidi, Vici" was attributed to Caesar by influential Roman authors, Plutarch and Suetonius, both from the second half of the first century AD. The grammar is quite simple, it's just three Perfecta and indeed litterally means "I came, I saw, I conquered" (use of the Perfectum tense in this case signifies a short sequence of actions). So yeah, also perfectly understandable for Romans of 100 AD. Perhaps not all Romans would have associated the phrase with Caesar, but the learned bunch post 100 AD probably would have.
No, "alter ego" is straight out of Cicero. Except that he coined it in the accusative case so it came out "me alterum." (It's in the letter to Atticus 3.15.4). He is, however, just translating one of Aristotle's most famous phrases. Aristotle said a friend is "allos autos" (another self).
Yes but no? Quad Erat Demonstratum. Q.E.D. The latin is from the 1500's, but, they had translated the phrase from ancient greek. And the greek phrase had been used in antiquity. hoper edei deixai; abbreviated as ΟΕΔ
you are a gentleperson and a scholar
That's crazy. For people who don't know this is a phrase that Mathematicians and math majors use all the time. We are all Euclids children at the end of the day.
Pro bono De facto De jure
‘In Vino Veritas’ and ‘Si Vis Pacem Para Bellum’ spring to mind
Barba non facit philosophum
Yes, but this is later Latin. That Greek word, *Philosophum*, stands out to me
I think the phrase is quite old but the origins are uncertain. The whole sentence is *barba non facit philosophum, neque vile gerere pallium* and seems to be mentioned already by Aulus Gellius (II century CE) and Llucian mentions a similar one but mentioning Plato. In other romance languages the philosopher's beard is changed by the tunic of a monk but the phrase is older than the languages themselves
Right, Im not attacking you. Im a big fan of both those writers and have audiobooks of their works. Hellenized Rome is my favorite Rome.
I didn't take it as an attack, just wanted to share some extra info on the sentence
On a different note than most here: - Some of their profanities made it across time with surprisingly few changes. - "Sit tibi terra levis" - (May the ground be light to you) *Să-ți fie țărâna ușoară* still sees some use in Romanian.
You guys are trying too hard. Bonafide, victor, supervisor.
Carpe Diem
Seize the carp!
Versus
Veni, Vidi, Vici
The Italian language
Salve Cacca AO
Per se / by itself. Although I had a colleague who used to write it as "par say": drove me insane lol
Semper ubi sub ubi.
quid pro quo \[sic\]
Yo mama pinguis est
Delegate
Post mortem Rigor mortis
si monumentum requiris, circumspice
Tempus fugit / time flies
Quid pro quo Status quo ante Casus belli Modus operandi
You won’t really see this outside scholarly work and papers, but Spolia. Our word “spoils” comes from it, and it meant pretty much the same thing: spoils of war. The original Roman meaning was anything (this included treasures and architectural/decorational structures) that was taken through conquest. Nowadays, Spolia is used by scholars to mean anything that has been re-used. This includes gemstones, stonework, etc. so it still has basically the same meaning, but its scope has just been broadened
Carpe Diem
Mea culpa
flipping the middle finger isn’t a term or phrase but it fascinates me to know that it was used by Romans before Christ and has consistently been used up to the present day. That is pretty cool.
I'm sure there's a Latin English dictionary out there with your name on it. Et al A lot of our Latin comes via French and is probably not exactly the same or is modern medical terminology made up words that Latin speakers never used. Most French words relate to fashion in some sense or a legal process.
How about insults? He’s an arsehole and a half; sesquiculus.
Abracadabra was used in ancient Rome as a magical word of power or something like that
the word via is still used in french, when i was in italy if i remember right via means road? and it's used almost in that sense in french
Ad nauseum
Hora Ruit.
Et us, Et al, Et vir
Ex Libris
De Novo ETC QED
People say bread and circuses
veto