Proverbs/Grammar ~ Grammar/Proverbs: Latin Lesson #71: More -um Accusatives

The focus for today's lesson is more -um accusative nouns from the 2nd declension. Here's a review of the -um accusative words you have seen so far; notice how sometimes the accusative comes before the verb, and sometimes it comes after:

Cura angit animum.
Nemo videt oculum suum.
Lupus agnum vorat.
Vestis virum facit.
Nummus nummum parit.
Caecus caecum ducit.
Lupus lupum non edit.
Asinus asinum fricat.
Asinus asellum culpat.
Endymionis somnum dormit.

As you read through the sayings today, look where the subject and object are: before the verb? after the verb? And remember: this is not random; it's a matter of choice. Sometimes the choice is about emphasis, with the most emphatic words in a sentence (or clause or phrase) being the first word and the last word. Sometimes the choice is about sound, putting similar sounds next to each other. And yet another factor is parallelism: sometimes word order is about creating parallel structures inside a sentence or from sentence to sentence. So, as you read each Latin saying, see if you can identify what factor(s) might explain the Latin word order.

And here is a little slideshow (with cats) of the words you have seen before:

So, here are today's proverbs:

1. Non curat numerum lupus.
(The) wolf doesn't care (about the) number.
non curat NU-merum lupus.

The word numerum is the accusative of numerous which gives us English "number."

The idea is that the shepherd can count his sheep all he wants, but the wolf will still plunder the flock, killing and eating the sheep; the wolf doesn't care about the number of sheep that were counted.

Notice how both the subject and the object come after the verb, with an emphasis on the subject, lupus, in final position.

2. Placat victima parva Deum.
(A) small sacrifice pleases God.
placat VIC-tima parva Deum.

The verb placat, "appeases, pleases, pacifies," and gives us English "placate" and also "implacable."

The feminine noun victima means "sacrifice, sacrifical victim," and gives us English "victim." Because it is a feminine noun, it takes a feminine adjective: parva.

These words are from a neo-Latin poem which reads: Non quantum dederis, sed quanta mente dedisti, / Pensandum est: placat victima parva Deum, "What counts is not how much you might give, but with how much heart you gave: a small sacrifice pleases God.

3. Flos unus non facit hortum.
One flower doesn't make (a) garden.
flos unus non facit hortum.

The word hortum is the accusative of hortus, "garden," which you can see in English "horticulture."

As you can see, this saying is a variation on one you have seen before: Una linea geometram non facit.

4. Habitus non facit monachum.
(A) habit doesn't make (a) monk.
HA-bitus non facit MO-nachum.

The word monachum is the accusative of monachus, "monk," which gives us English "monk." As you can guess from the -ch-, the word is Greek in origin: μονᾰχός (monăkhós), from the root mon- which means "one, one only, alone" (as in English "monotonous").

You've seen the word habitus before, but it has a specific meaning here: the habit of a monk; for more, see the article in Wikipedia: Religious habit.

This saying is the opposite of one you saw before: Vestis virum facit. The idea is that someone can put on a monk's habit, but that does not make him a monk in spirit.

5. Philosophum non facit barba.
(A) beard doesn't make (a) philosopher.
phi-LO-sophum non facit barba.

The noun barba means "beard." Both Latin barba and English "beard" come from the same Indo-European root: bʰardʰéh₂.
The word philosophum is the accusative of philosophus, which gives us English "philosopher." The -ph- in the word is a clue that it is of Greek origin: φίλος (phílos, “loving”) +‎ σοφός (sophós, “wise”), i.e. "lover of wisdom."

This is the philosophical version of the previous saying: just as wearing a monastic habit does not make you a monk, having a beard does not make you a philosopher.

Here's a recap: