All of yesterday's sayings featured the genitive Dei, "of God / God's." You will see different genitive forms in today's sayings; here are the genitives that you will see, and this should give you a clue about the sayings themselves:
- oculus mundi: the eye of the world / the world's eye
- caput mundi: the head of the world / the world's head
- imago animi: the picture of the mind / the mind's picture
- animi speculum: the mirror of the mind / the mind's mirror
- eventus proelii: the outcome of a battle / a battle's outcome
Remember, sometimes the genitive comes first in its phrase, and sometimes it comes second. Word order is just a matter of style in Latin!
And now here are today's proverbs:
1. Sol oculus mundi.
(The) sun (is the) eye of-(the)-world.
sol O-culus mundi
The masculine noun sol, "sun," gives us English "solar."
1. Sol oculus mundi.
(The) sun (is the) eye of-(the)-world.
sol O-culus mundi
The masculine noun sol, "sun," gives us English "solar."
You've seen the noun oculus, "eye," already in the saying Ubi amor, ibi oculus.
The genitive mundi comes from mundus, which you have also seen before: Patria mea totus mundus est.
2. Roma caput mundi.
Rome (is the) head of-(the)-world.
Roma caput mundi
You've seen Roma before in the saying Roma aeterna est.
2. Roma caput mundi.
Rome (is the) head of-(the)-world.
Roma caput mundi
You've seen Roma before in the saying Roma aeterna est.
The neuter noun caput, "head," gives us "capital" in English. We also use the Latin phrase per capita in English; capita is the plural of caput.
Although the origin of the name Roma is uncertain, the ancient Romans connected it to the name of their first king: Romulus. You can read more about the legend of Romulus at Wikipedia.
3. Vultus imago animi.
(The) fact (is the) image of-(the)-mind.
vultus i-MA-go A-nimi
The masculine noun vultus means "face, facial expression."
The feminine noun imago gives us English "image" and "imagination."
The genitive animi is from animus, which you've seen before: Incertus animus dimidium est sapientiae.
The idea if you look at the expression on someone's face you can guess what thoughts they have in their mind.
4. Vinum animi speculum.
Wine (is the) mirror of-(the)-mind.
vinum A-nimi SPE-culum
The neuter noun vinum is the origin of English "wine."
4. Vinum animi speculum.
Wine (is the) mirror of-(the)-mind.
vinum A-nimi SPE-culum
The neuter noun vinum is the origin of English "wine."
The noun speculum, "mirror," is related to the verb specere, "to see, look at." English has borrowed the word "speculum" as the name of a medical instrument, and from this same root we get words like "inspect" and "speculate."
In the ancient world, mirrors were made of bronze, not of glass; you can read about bronze mirrors at Wikipedia.
The idea is that when you drink wine, especially if you drink too much wine, you will speak your mind more fully than when you are sober.
5. Varius eventus est proelii.
(A) battle's outcome is fickle.
VA-rius e-VEN-tus est PROE-lii
The masculine adjective varius, "various, diverse, fickle," and gives us English "various."
The noun eventus, "outcome," is from the verb evenire, "to come out," a compound of ex-, "out," and venire, "to come." From this Latin word, we get English "event."
The genitive proelii is from proelium, "battle." Notice that the genitive form has two i's: the stem of this noun is proeli- and when you add the genitive -i ending, you get proelii, 3 syllables: proe-li-i.
Notice how the genitive phrase, eventus proelii, wraps around the verb: eventus est proelii.
The idea here is that you can never be certain what the outcome of a battle, or any kind of contest, will be until it is over.
Here's a recap:
And here is today's audio:
Plus the LOLCats!
Here's a recap:
- Sol oculus mundi.
- Roma caput mundi.
- Vultus imago animi.
- Vinum animi speculum.
- Varius eventus est proelii.
Plus the LOLCats!
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