Proverbs/Grammar ~ Grammar/Proverbs: Latin Lesson #37: More Third-Declension Genitives

The focus for today's lesson is more third-declension genitives, and what I wanted to show you today is how you can sometimes guess the stem of a third-declension noun based on the English words that are derived from these Latin words.

pax .... pacis .... pac- ..... pacify
nox .... noctis .... noct- ..... nocturnal
mens .... mentis .... ment- ..... mental
mors .... mortis .... mort- ..... mortify
amor .... amoris .... amor- ..... amorous
mater .... matris .... matr- ..... matrilineal
homo .... hominis .... .homin- ..... hominid
lumen .... luminis .... lumin- ..... luminous

And here are today's proverbs:

1. Aestatis hirundo est nuntia.
(The) swallow is (the) messenger of-summer.
aes-TA-tis hi-RUN-do est NUN-tia

The genitive aestatis is from aestas, "summer." The root of the Latin word is aestus, which means "heat." So, summer is "hotness."

The feminine noun hirundo is "swallow," i.e. the bird, which migrates south for the winter, and then returns to Europe.

The feminine noun nuntia, "messenger," gives us English words like "announce." There is a masculine word for messenger, nuntius, but this saying uses the feminine form because the swallow, hirundo, is feminine.

Notice how the genitive phrase aestatis nuntia, "summer's messenger," wraps around the whole sentence! So elegant, and impossible to do in English.

2. Voluptatis soror est tristitia.
Sadness is (the) sister of pleasure.
volup-TA-tis soror est tris-TI-tia

The genitive voluptatis is from voluptas, "pleasure."

The noun soror, "sister," gives us English "sorority."

The noun tristitia, "sadness," is a feminine noun, so that's why "she" is a sister of pleasure, soror voluptatis.

The saying warns that when you are feeling pleasure, be aware that you might soon be feeling sadness: pleasure and sadness are sisters, and you're likely to meet them both. Compare the saying you say about brothers yesterday: Somnus est frater mortis.

3. Speculum mentis est facies.
(The) face is (the) mind's mirror.
SPE-culum mentis est FA-cies

You've seen the noun speculum already: Vinum animi speculum.

The genitive mentis is from mens, "mind," and gives us English "mental."

The noun facies gives us English "face."

The idea is just as the mirror shows you its face when you look into the mirror, when you look at someone's face, you are seeing their mind reflected there, as if the face itself were a mirror.

4. Ratio est radius divini luminis.
Reason is (a) ray of-divine light.
RA-tio est RA-dius di-VI-ni LU-minis

We use the Latin word ratio in English, and "ratio" is one of the meanings of Latin ratio, but it also refers to any kind of calculation or reckoning, along with the faculty of mind that does the reckoning. Just take a look at the dictionary entry for ratio to get a sense of its huge range of meaning in Latin.

We also use the Latin word radius in English, and "radius" is one of the meanings of Latin radius, but it's main meaning is the "spoke of a wheel," and hence "ray," in the sense of something that radiates out from a source.

The neuter adjective divini is from divinum, "divine." The neuter form of the adjective is used here because it agrees with luminis, which is a neuter noun.

The genitive luminis is from lumen, "light, source of light," and we use the word "lumen" as a scientific term in English, and you can also see this root in words like "luminous" and "illuminate."

The idea that reason is a manifestation of the divine is an idea associated with Platonism, and it also because part of the Christian tradition.

5. Tota hominis vita unus est dies.
(A) person's whole life is one day.
tota HO-minis vita unus est dies

You've seen the feminine adjective tota in its masculine form in several sayings already, such as this one: Patria mea totus mundus est. The adjective is feminine because it agrees with vita in the phrase tota vita, "whole life."
The genitive hominis is from homo, and you saw this word in yesterday's saying: Militia est vita hominis.

You've seen the feminine noun vita in several sayings also, such as: Dum vita est, spes est. Notice how the noun phrase, tota vita, wraps around the genitive, hominis, to create the genitive phrase tota hominis vita, "a person's whole life."

You've seen the masculine unus before in this saying: Vir quidem unus, nullus est. The form is masculine because it agrees with dies, a masculine noun you've also seen before in this saying: Nullus dies omnino malus.

Notice how the noun phrase unus dies wraps around the verb: unus est dies.

The idea is that any person's life is both long and short, as short as if it were just a single day.

Here's a recap: