You might know that from the famous saying Cogito ergo sum, which you will have later this week. You're going to start off this week with a palindrome: Sum summus mus. It reads the same both backwards and forwards! You can find some more Latin palindromes at the Wiktionary.
And here is the slideshow (with cats) of the words you have seen before:
And here are today's proverbs:
1. Sum summus mus.
I-am (the) mightiest mouse.
sum summus mus.
The word summus means "highest" or "mightiest." It is the superlative form of the adjective superus.
And here is the slideshow (with cats) of the words you have seen before:
1. Sum summus mus.
I-am (the) mightiest mouse.
sum summus mus.
The word summus means "highest" or "mightiest." It is the superlative form of the adjective superus.
You can see how this palindrome works: the word summus is a palindrome word by itself, and it is made up of the two other words you need: sum...mus, "I am (the) mouse."
Another famous Latin palindrome from the Middle Ages is Ave, Eva! "Hail, Eve!" It's a play on the famous Ave Maria, "Hail, Mary!" spoken by the angel to Mary, announcing the birth of Jesus.
2. Meo contentus sum.
I-am content with-my-own.
meo con-TEN-tus sum.
The word meo is the ablative form of the neuter adjective meum, "my, mine," which is being used substantively here, "my thing, what is mine," etc. You haven't seen this form before, but you have seen the masculine form of this adjective: meus.
The ablative case here is being used to complement contentus: being content "with" something, or satisfied "by" something. In English, we use a prepositional phrase, but in Latin, the ablative can be used by itself to express the same idea.
2. Meo contentus sum.
I-am content with-my-own.
meo con-TEN-tus sum.
The word meo is the ablative form of the neuter adjective meum, "my, mine," which is being used substantively here, "my thing, what is mine," etc. You haven't seen this form before, but you have seen the masculine form of this adjective: meus.
The ablative case here is being used to complement contentus: being content "with" something, or satisfied "by" something. In English, we use a prepositional phrase, but in Latin, the ablative can be used by itself to express the same idea.
The idea is that it's good to be satisfied with what you have instead of being jealous of what others have.
3. Faber sum meae fortunae.
I-am (the) maker of-my fortune.
faber sum meae for-TU-nae.
The word fortunae is the genitive form of fortuna, and the word meae is also genitive, agreeing with fortuna in gender: feminine.
3. Faber sum meae fortunae.
I-am (the) maker of-my fortune.
faber sum meae for-TU-nae.
The word fortunae is the genitive form of fortuna, and the word meae is also genitive, agreeing with fortuna in gender: feminine.
The genitive is being used here to complement the word faber: the maker OF my own fortune or fate.
This saying protests the traditional role of Fortuna, often understood as a force so powerful that even the gods could not escape her sway.
4. Primus non sum nec imus.
I-am not first nor last.
primus non sum nec imus.
The word imus means "last" or "lowest," and you can tell this is a medieval proverb, playing with the rhyme between primus and imus.
4. Primus non sum nec imus.
I-am not first nor last.
primus non sum nec imus.
The word imus means "last" or "lowest," and you can tell this is a medieval proverb, playing with the rhyme between primus and imus.
It's been a while since you have seen the word nec, so remember it is a shortened form of neque, meaning "and not," just as if the saying said et non, like this: Primus non sum, et non (sum) imus.
This is another one of the many Latin sayings in praise of the Golden Mean, not too much, not too little. Here are some of the other "happy medium" sayings you've seen before: Mediocritas optima est, In medio stat virtus, and Locus medius tutus est, just to choose a few.
5. Num custos fratris mei sum?
Am-I my brother's keeper?
num custos fratris mei sum?
The word num is what's called a particle: it doesn't have a real meaning of its own, but it tells you how to interpret the other words; specifically, num is used to indicate a question, usually implying that the answer should be negative.
5. Num custos fratris mei sum?
Am-I my brother's keeper?
num custos fratris mei sum?
The word num is what's called a particle: it doesn't have a real meaning of its own, but it tells you how to interpret the other words; specifically, num is used to indicate a question, usually implying that the answer should be negative.
You can see that the expected answer is "no" from the context of this famous saying: these words are spoken by Cain to God when God asks Cain what happened to his brother Abel. Cain has killed his brother Abel, but he does not want to admit it, so when God asks Cain where Abel is, Cain answers with a non-answer, implying that he is not his brother's keeper. And indeed, he was not! Just the opposite. You can read this Biblical scene in Latin here: Genesis:
Et ait Dominus ad Cain: / And God said to Cain:
Ubi est Abel frater tuus? / Where is Abel your brother?
Qui respondit: / Who answered:
Nescio: / I don't know:
num custos fratris mei sum ego? / am I my brother's keeper?
Here's a recap:
Plus the LOLCats!
Here's a recap:
- Sum summus mus.
- Meo contentus sum.
- Faber sum meae fortunae.
- Primus non sum nec imus.
- Num custos fratris mei sum?
Plus the LOLCats!
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