Proverbs/Grammar ~ Grammar/Proverbs: Latin Lesson #157: Mixed Datives, -ae and -i

You have now learned several different dative endings: the endings may be different, but the dative meaning is still the same. In today's sayings, you will see some -ae dative endings and some -i endings. The idea is to get used to seeing these different dative endings while understanding that the dative meaning they convey is still the same.

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

So, here are today's proverbs:

1. Civi et rei publicae.
For-the-citizen and for-the-public-thing.
civi et rei PU-blicae.

The word civi is the dative form of the noun civis, meaning "citizen." You can see this Latin root in English "civic."

The word rei is the dative form of the noun res. You've seen this word before, "thing," and here it is used as part of a phrase: res publica, "public thing," which is where we get the word "republic" in English.

The word publicae is the dative form of the adjective publica, which is feminine, agreeing with rei, which is a feminine noun in the dative.

This is the motto of the school where I used to teach, the University of Oklahoma. You can see it in OU seal, where reipublicae is spelled as one word (as in English "republic").

2. Satis est parum naturae, aviditati nihil.
A-little is enough for-nature; nothing (is enough) for-greed.
satis est parum na-TU-rae, avidi-TA-ti nihil.

The word naturae is the dative form of the noun natura.

The word aviditati is the dative from of the noun aviditas, "greed," as in English "avidity." You haven't seen this word before, but you have seen two related adjectives before: avidus and avarus.

This saying combines two ideas that you have seen before in praise of nature and against greed; here are some examples: Dux vivendi natura est and Avarus semper est pauper.

3. Exiguum exiguae nidum decet esse volucri.
(It is) proper (that) the-nest be little for-a-little-bird.
ex-I-guum ex-I-guae nidum decet esse VO-lucri.

The word volucri is the dative form of the noun volucris, which is another word for "bird" in Latin (you've already seen the more usual word, avis). It is a feminine noun, so the adjective that agrees with it is also feminine: exigua volucris is the nominative phrase, and exiguae volucri is the dative phrase.

Do you remember the verb decet? You have seen this verb before, meaning "it is fitting" or "it is proper." You then combine that with an accusative and an infinitive, nidum (the accusative form of nidus) and esse (the infinitive form of est): Exiguum nidum decet esse, "It is proper that the nest be small" (exiguum is the accusative form of the adjective, agreeing with nidum). Then you get the dative: for whom is it fitting that the next be small? For a small bird, exiguae volucri.

With the freedom Latin word order, the word exiguum and exiguae can sit right next to each other at the start of the sentence, even though they play verb different roles in the sentence.

The idea is that small birds need small nests, while (by implication) only big birds need big nests: small birds do not need big nests. Metaphorically, the saying can refer to any sort of mismatch of big and small.

Compare this much simpler version of the same idea: Parva avis, parvus nidus.

4. Aquae non currenti et homini tacenti credere noli.
Don't trust in-water-not-running and in-a-silent-person.
aquae non cur-REN-ti et HO-mini ta-CEN-ti CRE-dere noli.

The word aquae is the dative form of aquae, and the word currenti is the dative form of the participle currens, "running." This is the origin of the English word "current." You haven't seen this word before, but you have seen the verb that it comes from: currit.

The word homini is the dative form of homo, and the word tacenti is the dative form of the participle tacens, "silent, keeping quiet." This is also a new word, but you have seen the verb that it comes from also: tacet.

Do you remember the word noli? It is used with an infinitive to create a negative command: noli credere, "don't trust, don't believe." The verb credere takes a dative complement.

The idea is that when water is not moving, you don't know what is happening down under the water: you don't know how deep the water is, and there could be swift currents that you do not see on the surface. Compare the English saying, "Still waters run deep." The idea, then, is that a silent person is dangerous in the same way: you don't know what they are thinking, and whether those thoughts might pose a danger.

5. Formicae grata est formica, cicada cicadae, accipiter placet accipitri.
Ant is dear to-ant, cricket to-cricket, hawk is pleasing to-hawk.
for-MI-cae grata est for-MI-ca, ci-CA-da ci-CA-dae, ac-CI-piter placet ac-CI-pitri.

In this saying, you get to see the nominative and dative forms of the three different animals: formicae is the dative form of formica, and cicadae is the dative form of cicada, both of which you have seen before, while accipitri is the dative form of accipiter, which means "hawk."
The verb placet means "is pleasing to," which is why it takes a dative complement: accipiter placet accipitri, "hawk is pleasing to hawk," or more simply in English, "hawk pleases hawk." You could also translate as "one hawk pleases another," because Latin likes to repeat the nouns in phrases like this, while English likes to use the pronouns, "one...another."

You've actually seen the first part of this saying before, Formicae grata est formica, cicada cicadae, and now you have another creature added to the mix. Compare the English saying, "Birds of a feather flock together."

Here's a recap: