Good-byes

     Tonight is my last assigned blog for English class, but it is not the last time I will post on this subject. Today I will inform everyone on how the Romans traditionally said their good-byes to a loved one.

     When a loved one passed, they would be laid out on a couch and dressed in their finest clothing. If they had received any awards  in their life time, they were pinned or placed on them as well. Then a coin was put underneath their tongue or on their eyes so they could pay Charon to sail them to the land of the dead in the underworld. They would then lay out for eight days until they are buried.


     Before the burial, they would hold a funeral procession. At the head of the procession are designators holding lictors followed by musicians and mourning women. Then other performers might follow. In front of the corpse, representatives of passed ancestors wearing wax masks would perform, and then the rest of the procession would follow. If the body was being cremated, it would be put on a funeral pyre, and when the fire burned out and the ashes were smothered in wine, the ashes were gathered and put in an urn. the funeral burial was always to be held outside because it was considered a bacteria reducing practice.

Italy and Latin

   

Herculaneum

     This week I am going to continue explaining my trip to Italy and the Latin scripts I encountered while I was there. On the third day, after I went to Pompeii, I went to Herculaneum. The modern day Herculaneum was surprisingly build on top of the Herculaneum that was buried by Mt. Vesuvius. While I was there, I was able to see both of them! As I walked around the ancient excavated ruins, I saw many door frames with the traditional Latin names carved above. Three hours after I left Herculaneum, I arrived in Rome. For the next two days, I was exploring Rome.

Romulus and Remus Bronze Statue

Roman Forum

    Rome really surprised me. I wasn't expecting it to be similar to New York City, New York. My first impression of Rome was not very good because there was a lot of litter everywhere and 

graffiti.When I finally opened my eyes to really see what was there, I was able to see the beauty in the city. In Rome, I visited the classic tourist sights like the Colosseum, the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain, the Capitoline Museum, and the Ancient Roman Forum. I was even able to see the famous Romulus and Remus statue.

Pantheon

 

    On my final day in Italy, I went to the Vatican City, believed to be the holiest of all cities. There I took a tour of the Vatican Museum and saw more 

St. Peter's Basilica

beautiful works of art, and then I went to see the St. Peter's Basilica, where the Pope lives. In the basilica, I was able to see Michelangelo's Pietà and the Pope. I saw him walking in during a procession. To my surprise, the basilica's roof was outlined with a gold strip of Latin, going all the way around. I was sad to leave, but when I got on that plane to come home, I knew that I would eventually come back and visit again.

Latin in Italy

     The Romans had a big influence all over the European continents. Today, everywhere a person goes in Europe, they would see something influenced by the Romans. In Italy, Roman influence is all over. When I went to Italy in April of 2011, I was amazed on how much Latin is all over the place. It seemed like in every corner I looked, there was Latin (and Italian) written on signs and on stone.

The amphitheater

     On my first day, my group went to Capua and saw a amphitheater where Spartacus had fled from. Walking up to the theater, I immediately saw Latin carved into pieces of art that would have decorated the inside of it. 

Latin on a piece of slate

    

Greek temple in Paestum

      My second day was a bit more interesting. We went to Paestum, where I saw Greek influenced temples and Latin inscriptions. I also rode along the Amalfi Coast and saw a statue in the center with Latin written on it in reference to a saint. Then as the night started to fall, my group was able to meet a group of Italian students and I was able to finally meet my Italian pen pal, Leo, for the first time face to face.
 As we had dinner, we were able to show each other the differences in our Latin textbooks. I have to say that I commend any student to study the text similar to what the Italians study. We spoke of Latin that entire night.

Statue in Amalfi

Leo

Mt. Vesuvius, taken in Sorrento

     On my third day, my group went to Pompeii, and we climbed up the side of Mt. Vesuvius. Afterwards, we visited the ruins of Pompeii, and that is where I saw the most legible scripts of Latin.

The view from the top of Mt. Vesuvius

Cave Canem mosaic
(Beware of the dog)

**Next week I will continue the rest of my adventure in Italy and continue telling about the Latin I saw written.

Latin is ALIVE!

     When I think of Latin, I think of  how many people claim it is a dead language. Well, guess what! It's not actually dead! Yes, Latin is not actually spoken in the modern day world as an actual language itself, but it is STILL used in many things we do today. Latin is ALIVE! We just have to open our eyes to see it.

     Today, we use Latin to help us in many situations. In a court case, you may hear Haebeas Corpus, which means "May you have the body." I was once told by a close friend of mine that when she was in court for a traffic violation, she was asked to plea guilty or not guilty. Instead of pleading guilty of the violation, she said "Nolo contendere," I do not wish to fight. the judge was so surprised to hear those words, he let her off completely. Computer technicians use Latin on computer projects. On many occasions I have seen "Lorum Ipsum" on the Microsoft help center's web page. Latin is still somewhat spoken today as well, but we really don't see it because we think of them as normal English words, like benefit. Benefit is actually two Latin words, bene and fit, and means "good happens."

The words on the Pantheon

     Latin is written on many buildings, especially in Italy. All of the artifacts from ancient Rome have Latin on them in some way. The Pantheon, the Colosseum, the Saint Peter's Basilica, and the statues in Italy all have Latin on them, even a lot of the marked tombstones. Most of the time, the Latin tells who made the structure or who it was dedicated to. If it wasn't for Latin, we wouldn't have the fine writings of Julius Caesar, Cicero, Vergil, or Ovid. We wouldn't know of the Trojan War or what it was about. We wouldn't even know where it was written unless we knew of Vergil's Aeneid. 

The Trojan Horse from the war 

     The language of Latin is so elegant and very beautiful! It is the base of many modern languages. It written on many manuscripts from buildings to tombstones to parchment. Latin is ALIVE! It really is... just open your eyes!

Common English Words From Latin

      This weeks post will be a little different than the past posts because this week I have heard a lot of people complain about not understanding some words they see in a doctor's office or even common words and not understand why the words mean what they mean.


     Here are a few common words that derive from Latin...


Recognize and Cognitive- They both have a meaning to think or remember
                                    something , and they both have a similar root of
                                    COGN. They both come from the Latin word
                                    COGNO, COGNERE,which means to think or reflect.

Corpse- This word basically means "a dead body." It comes from the Latin
           word CORPUS, which means body. Corpus is also the basis of many
           other English derivatives, such as 

           corporal, corporation, corps, and
           corpulent.
               Corpus is used in many different
           areas as well, like religion or even
           court. In religious ceremonies
           (typically in Catholic churches), we
           hear Corpus Christi, the body of
           Christ, and "Hoc est corpus," this is
           [my] body. 
               In court, we may hear attorneys
           say habeas corpus, may you 
           have the body (where a person is
           tried in court); corpus delicti, 
           the body of the offence (where a person is convicted of a crime); and
           cepi corpus, I got the body (where a police officer arrests someone
           like a wanted criminal).


Ambulance- Everyone knows this word. It is the vehicle that escorts a person
to the hospital quickly. Ambulance actually comes from the Latin word AMBULARE, which means to walk. Honestly, I still can not figure out why they chose this word for ambulance.   










Music and Museum- They are both forms of entertainment. They come from
              the word MUSE, and the Muses are
              extremely knowledgeable entertainers.
              There are nine muses in all. Calliope is
              the muse of Epic Poetry, Erato is the
              muse of Love Poetry, Euterpe is the muse
              of Elegiac Poetry and Music, Polyhymnia is
              the muse of Hymns, Terpsicore is the
              muse of Dance, Thalia is the muse of
              Comedy Theatre, Melpomene is the muse
              of Tragedy Theatre, and Urania is the
             muse of Astronomy.










*Unfortunately, I am currently running out of topics for my blog. If anyone has any suggestions for a topic, it would greatly be appreciated. Please comment and help me keep this blog alive! Thank you!*

Daedalus and Icarus

    I am going to start off this week with really GREAT news for a change! This week I have been inducted into the Latin branch of the World Language Honor Society!

    This week I am going to tell you all about Daedalus and Icarus. Daedalus was a highly respected and talented Athenian artisan. One day, Daedalus committed a crime against his nephew, Talus, by throwing him off the Acropolis. For this, Daedalus was exiled to Crete. There, he had his son, Icarus. When Daedalus and Icarus were imprisoned, Daedalus, studying the wings of birds, invented wings so they could fly out of there to safety. Before they took off to fly, Daedalus warned Icarus not to fly too low lest his wings touch the waves and get wet and not too high lest the sun melt the wax. Unfortunately, Icarus was too thrilled to be flying and he flew too close to the sun, melting the wax and drowning in the sea. A girl, named Heracles, found him washed up on the shore and recognized him, so she gave him a proper burial.

     The moral of this story is to always follow and listen to instructions because you never know what will happen if you don't follow them.

Romulus and Remus

  Livy is one of the greatest historians of all time. One of his greatest works of literature is when he wrote about the founding of Rome.
   Romulus and Remus were born of the goddess Vesta and god Mars. As young babies, they were placed by the Tiber river. There, they were found by the She-wolf, who raised them as her own. When they grew older, they helped their grandfather, Numitor, regain his position as King of Alba Longa. Then, they tried to name the city by the Tiber river. They decided to go bird watching on two different hills, the Palatine and the Capitoline. Whoever saw the most birds got the city named after them. Remus saw 12 birds and went to tell his brother. At the same time, Romulus saw two flocks of six birds. They argued, and then Romulus was jealous and killed his brother. This is why Rome is called "Rome" after Romulus instead of being called "Reme," or something of that kind, after Remus.

Daphne and Apollo

           In a previous post, I mentioned an author of Latin literature by the name of Ovid and his most recognizable work, Metamorphoses. Within the Metamorphoses, there are more than 250 myths! One on the most artistic inspiring myths is called Daphne and Apollo.

Daphne and Apollo statue at the
 Borghese Museum

        Apollo was the god of light and poetry, and one day he ran into Eros (Cupid). Eros was messing around with his bow and was striking people into love. Apollo insulted him in a way, so Eros went up to a rock on Mt. Parnassus and shot him with a sharp, golden tipped arrow to make him fall in love with Daphne, a beautiful nymph. At the same time, Eros shot Daphne with a blunt, lead tipped arrow to make her stray away from love and not want it. No matter how much Apollo had pleaded for her to love him, she wouldn't. Daphne was the daughter of the river god, Peneus, and one day as she was escaping from Apollo, she cried out to her father to let the Earth take her. Her father then turned her into a tree. Her arms became branches. Her hair became leaves, and she ran until her legs were rooted into the ground. Heartbroken, Apollo vowed that he would tend to the tree that once was his love and passion, but no matter how much he cared for the tree, the tree detested him and the leaves were made sharp. Daphne was turned into a bay laurel tree, and that is to be believed why the bay leaf is sharp, cutting the back of their throat when they swallow it.

The Borghese Museum 

       When I was in Italy in April of 2011, I was able to visit the Borghese Museum. The Borghese is the museum in Italy that houses the famous life-size marble statue of Daphne and Apollo. The leaves carved out of the marble are so thin that a person can see the light from a flashlight shine through them! 

Vergil's Aeneid

     Last week, I received a comment asking why the myth of Pyramus and Thisbe was not as well known as Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. My answer to that question is simply this...  In the world Latin scholars, studying Latin literature such as Ovid, Pyramus and Thisbe is a well known story/myth. For the common person in these days, they don't here about it because they study English literature instead of Latin literature (which in my opinion, is much more interesting than English literature).

     This week, I am going to write about Vergil. Vergil is the author of the Aeneid. The Aeneid is one of the most famous works in Latin. It is categorized as a literary epic. Inside the Aeneid, there are many myths, but one, in particular, stands out above the rest. It is the story between Aeneas and Dido.

     Aeneas in the hero of the Trojan war, and when the city of Troy fell, he left with seven ships. Nearing Africa, he became shipwrecked on the coast of Carthage. There he met Dido, the Queen of Carthage. At that moment, the most tragic love story began. Dido and Aeneas fell deeply in love, but that did not last long because the gods pulled Aeneas away to finish his quest in Italy, to establish something that had not existed before. Dido was heartbroken and depressed. Before she committed suicide, she had declared to Aeneas that their countries, Rome and Carthage, will never be at peace. Thus the reason for the three Punic Wars.

Latin and the Roman Theater

        Livy, an ancient Roman historian, claimed in his book that Romans first experienced theatre in the 4th century BC. It was originally new forms of dances with musical accompaniment. Classic dramas were usually written in a poetic meter, and they were performed by all-male actors wearing masks.

       Many English playwrights, such as William Shakespeare, had their writing influenced by Roman writers and poets. One of Shakespeare's most famous plays, Romeo and Juliet, was actually based on a Greek myth that was written down by a Roman poet, Ovid, in his book, Metamorphoses. That myth is Pyramus and Thisbe. 

       Pyramus and Thisbe is a story of two lovers in a city named Babylon. Their houses were connected, and as the years went on, the two kids started to fall in love. A wall was built between the houses, because of the parents' rivalry, to prevent them from seeing each other, but that did not fully work because there was a crack in it and that allowed them to still talk to each other. One night, they decided to run off and meet up together at a tomb under a mulberry tree. 

Thisbe was the first to arrive, but as she was waiting, she saw a lion with a bloody mouth. She was scared, so she ran away, leaving behind her veil. The veil was then tarnished with blood by the lion, and as Pyramus arrived, he saw the veil and immediately thought that the lion killed his love. Disheartened by that thought, he killed himself. Thisbe returned to find her love on the ground in a puddle of his own blood. She was mortified and returned the favor by taking his blood-stained sword and plunging it into her own heart. After that event happened, it was believed that the gods heard Thisbe's cry and permanently changed the color of the mulberry to red instead of its original white color in remembrance of the two lovers' sacrifice for each other.

       If this story was not written down, in Latin, by Ovid, Shakespeare would not of known about this story to create one of  his most popular works. 

Coming up next week... more mythology!

Latin: BENEficial and Educational

Many people would say that Latin is an educational and beneficial language to learn, but do they actually tell you a reason that doesn't involve the SAT's or school in any way? We all know that Latin helps us obtain a better grasp on the English language and help us with the SAT's and tests of the same, but how would learning Latin be beneficial to our actual lives?

Besides the fact that it strengthens our vocabulary, it also opens our eyes up to many different cultures and events from the past. Latin is the basis of most Romance languages, such as Spanish, Italian, French, and Portuguese, and heavily influences English even though it is a Germanic language. When I romance, I don't mean romance as in love and passion; I mean romantic as in ROME-ance. Latin inscriptions were first discovered in the 6th century BC using an adapted alphabet from the Etruscans. In the 5th century, Latin was spoken in Latium (modern Lazio, Italy), and Rome was a town in Latium.

Latin helps our everyday lives because Latin terminology is used extensively by biologists, paleontologists, and other scientists to name species and specimens, and also by doctors and lawyers. Latin is also used in the Catholic Church and is the official church language in the Vatican. Having Latin on a job resume is another huge credential that employers are impressed by, and so much more can be said and will be said in the next posting! :)