Showing posts with label LatinVocabulary. Show all posts
Showing posts with label LatinVocabulary. Show all posts
Monday, September 5, 2011
Bogart: Latin Vocabulary (Caesar's Gallic War)
Latin Vocabulary for the First Two Years by Elmer Ellsworth Bogart (1918)
The book is divided into three sections, which the author describes as follows: "The words are listed twice, once in Part I alphabetically, with meanings and inflectional data, and once in Part II in groups arranged i order of frequency of occurrence in the first five boks of Caesar's Gallic War. Part III contains certain groups of words arranged according to type." The frequency lists for Caesar might be useful for someone working on that text, but the focus on Caesar seriously limits the usefulness of this book.
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Sunday, September 4, 2011
Hoare: English Words Derived from Latin Roots
Exotics: or, English Words Derived from Latin Roots by Edward Newenham Hoare (1863)
This book consists of ten lectures on the Latin content of the English vocabulary, and constitutes a follow-up to the author's earlier lectures on the Anglo-Saxon roots of English. Fortunately, there is an index to the Latin words discussed in the back of the book, so even if you are not interested in reading through all the lectures, you can look up any word of interest using the index. With just a few exceptions, the index is already hyperlinked, so you just have to click on the item you are interested in, and you will be taken directly to that page in the book.
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Saturday, September 3, 2011
Greenough: Vocabulary to Virgil
A Special Vocabulary to Virgil by James Bradstreet Greenough (1884)
This is a vocabulary based on all the words found in Vergil - not just the Aeneid, but all of his poetry. The vocabulary is organized like a dictionary, with full forms given for all nouns and verbs, although actual citations from Vergil's poetry are not provided.
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Friday, September 2, 2011
Lodge: Vocabulary of High School Latin
The Vocabulary of High School Latin by Gonzalez Lodge (1912)
Like Jenks' Manual of Latin Word Formation, this book is based on a very narrow selection of Latin reading materials: Caesar's Gallic War I-V; Cicero's speeches against Cataline, on Pompey's Command, and for the poet Archias; and Vergil's Aeneid, books I-VI. The words are presented in two different systems: they are arranged alphabetically in something like dictionary form with comments on usage and detailed citations, and then they are presented in running order that follows the text.
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Thursday, September 1, 2011
Sharpe: Nomenclator Poeticus
Nomenclator Poeticus by Lancelot Sharpe (1836)
This provides the quantities for all the proper names that occur in classical Latin poetry (190 BCE - 500 CE), with quotations that show the metrical usage of those names. The book is arranged alphabetically, and like a dictionary it gives both the nominative and genitive form for each proper name and adjective. The verse citations are fully marked with macrons, with citations provided. So, if you are working with a dictionary that skimps on proper names (as dictionaries sometimes do), this book could be a very useful reference indeed!
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Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Levins: Manipulus Vocabulorum
Manipulus Vocabulorum by Peter Levins, edited by Henry Benjamin Wheatley (1867)
This is a reverse English dictionary, originally published in 1570, organized alphabetically by the final syllable of each English word, and the English words are provided with Latin translations. As a specimen of 16th-century English and Renaissance Latinity, it is fascinating to browse through!
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Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Arnold: Latin Word-Building
Latin Word-Building by Thomas Kerchever Arnold (1855)
This is a thorough and somewhat technical book, probably more useful for Latin teachers than for Latin students. Its level of detail is commendable, as in this explanation of the fourth conjugation: "The suffix io, ire was originally causative: thus sanc-i-re, to make sacred, ir-ret-i-re, len-i-re, part-i-ri, make oneself a partner, sort-i-ri, blandiri, largiri, potirir, saevire, ferocire, vestire, punire from poena. These are mostly derived from i-nouns: finire, fini-s: lenire, leni-s: mollire, molli-s: audire, from auri-s = ausi-s: but not exclusively, as in the instances above given." Lots to use and learn from here, with great raw materials to use in preparing vocabulary-building exercises for students, even if this book itself is not very student-friendly.
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Monday, August 29, 2011
Dumesnil: Latin Synonyms
Latin Synonyms by Jean Baptiste Gardin Dumesnil (1825)
This is an English translation of a French book, with an introduction by the English translator who describes the book as follows: "The present volume contains the explanations of near 7000 words, each of which is exemplified by appropriate quotations from the most elegant writers of ancient Rome, and leaves but little difficulty in the choice of the proper expression to convey their meaning in English, when translating, or the most elegant word or phrase in rendering English into Latin." The arrangement of the book is basically alphabetical, by the Latin headwords, but there is also an alphabetical table in the front to facilitate the finding of specific words, as some Latin words are presented as synonyms rather than as headwords. So, for example, entry 1330 is "Induere. Vestire," so if you are looking for vestire you need to use the table at the beginning of the book. The entry then consists of a series of Latin phrases illustrating the use and meaning of the Latin word; citations are provided for the Latin phrases, but they are not translated. In some ways, the passages cited are just what you would expect to find in a Latin dictionary; the advantage of this book is that it encourages you to read and compare closely related Latin words, something that is harder to do in a dictionary organized on strictly alphabetical principles.
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Sunday, August 28, 2011
Black: Dictionary of Words Derived from the Latin
An Etymological and Explanatory Dictionary of Words Derived from the Latin by Richard Harrison Black (1825)
This is a discursive exploration of English words derived from Latin roots. The book is arranged alphabetically by the Latin words, but the focus is on the English vocabulary. Here is a typical entry:
De-fer, defero (see FERO, p. 13.) I carry from. To delay, is imply not to commence action; to defer and postpone, are to fix its commencement at a more distant period. - Deference is from defero in the sense of to bear down and, with us, marks the inclination to agree to the sentiments of another in preference to our own. Complaisance is the act of an equal; deference, that of an inferior; condescension, that of a superior. Complaisance has most of genuine kindness in its nature; deference, most of respectful submission; condescension, most of easy indulgence.
As you can see, the book is an interesting one to browse through, especially for its attentiveness to the range of meaning and organization of the English vocabulary.
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Saturday, August 27, 2011
Kendall: Latin Vocabulary of Cognates and Derivatives
A Latin Vocabulary of Cognates and Derivatives by J. M. Kendall (1919)
The listings begin abruptly, with no preface or introduction. The arrangement is alphabetical (more or less - I will confess that I cannot quite figure out just how this book is arranged exactly!), with verbs, adjectives and nouns listed in columns. Some of the groupings are quite productive and useful, but this book seems strangely incomplete. I am not sure, for example, what has happened to the letter B. If anybody has any insight into this odd little book, let me know!
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Friday, August 26, 2011
Walker: Classical Pronunciation of Greek, Latin and Scripture Proper Names
A Key to the Classical Pronunciation of Greek, Latin and Scripture Proper Names by John Walker (1804)
This is a pronouncing guide to the stressed syllables - not the vowel quantities - of the proper names of Greek, Latin and Biblical Hebrew. Here is the very fulsome title presented on the book's title page: "A key to the classical pronunciation of Greek, Latin and Scripture proper names, in which the words are accented and divided into syllables exactly as they ought to be pronounced, according to rules drawn from analogy and the best usage, to which are added, terminational vocabularies of Hebrew, Greek and Latiln proper names, in which the words are arranged according to their final syllables, and classed according to their accents, by which the general analogy of pronunciation may be seen at one view, and the accentuation of each word more easily remembered, concluding with observations on the Greek and Latin accent and quantity, with some probable conjectures on the method of freeing them from the obscurity and confusion in which they are involved, both by the ancients and moderns." That just about says it all!
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Thursday, August 25, 2011
Moseley: Dictionary of Latin Quantities
A Dictionary of Latin Quantities by William Willis Moseley (1827)
The full title describes the book as follows: "A dictionary of Latin quantities: or prosodian's guide to the different quantities of every syllable in the Latin language, alphabetically arranged: to which is prefixed a treatise on prosody." Yet the book is not at all a dictionary in the traditional sense. Instead, it is a listing of Latin sound combinations of vowels and consonants with guidelines as to whether you would expect the vowels to be long or short. So, for example, the entry for "ud" begins: U before D is long in the middle syllables of nouns (examples) but U before D is sometimes short in the middle syllables of nouns (examples) etc. Although modern readers will probably find it faster and easier simply to look up the quantities in a dictionary, this book offers a fascinating tool for exploring the patterns of Latin sounds, covering all the vowel and consonant combinations systematically.
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Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Gates: Latin Word-Building
Latin Word-Building by Charles O. Gates (1887)
The book consists of "root words with their more common derivatives and their meanings illustrated by sentences taken from Caesar and Cicero." The book is organized alphabetically, with root word entries that contain derivatives of those root words, although definitions are not provided for the derivatives; only the root word is defined. This listing takes appx. 50 pages. Then comes the interesting part of the book: the root word list is presented again, this time with lists of sentences from Caesar and Cicero that contain an example of the root word or one of its derivates. So, for example, here is the entry for ager:
ager. a. 1. Rhenus agrum Helveticum a Germanis dividit. 2. Agricultura prohibebantur. b. 1. Caius Gracchus agrarios concitatre conatus est. 2. Ii nonnullos agrestes homines in eandem illam spem rapinarum veterum impulerunt.
It seems to me that the meaninglessness of these sentences taken out of context limits the usefulness of this book - but I can definitely imagine such an arrangement working nicely for proverbs, which can stand on their own and be meaningful!
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Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Allen: General Vocabulary of Latin
A General Vocabulary of Latin by Joseph Henry Allen (1882)
As the author explains, this book functions as a basic dictionary: "This Vocabulary contains about 15,000 words of common use, besides more than 1300 proper names or adjectives." The scan at Google Books is a good, clear one, making this book a very good choice for someone who wants a basic Latin-English dictionary, appx. 200 pages in length, with macrons marked.
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Monday, August 22, 2011
Allen: Etymological Analysis of Latin Verbs
An Etymological Analysis of Latin Verbs by Alexander Allen (1836)
Don't let the old date of this book throw you - it is not a basic book for elementary Latin students, but instead is an attempt to apply the linguistic principles of the time to a study of Latin word formation. So, for example, the first class of verbs considered are "Uncontracted Verbs: Class 1. Perfect tense distinguished by the addition of S." Although the book is old, there is much of value here - for people who have never had a formal course in Latin word formation based on linguistic principles, there is a lot that can be learned from this book.
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Sunday, August 21, 2011
Henn: Ahn's Latin Vocabulary for Beginners
Ahn's Latin Vocabulary for Beginners by Peter Henn (1879)
Here is the book's full title: Ahn's Latin vocabulary for beginners, methodical and etymological, with a collection of Latin proverbs and quotations. Here is a description of the "Methodical Part" as given by the author in the Introduction: "This is an attempt to bring home those words and expression of everyday life which are of prime importance for easy reading." Then, in the "Etymological Part," the words derived from the same root are grouped together. There is also a supplement of Latin proverbs and quotations with English translations. The topics covered in the first part are: homo (figura et membra, corporis affectiones, animus eiusque affectiones, aetates et sexus), domus, vestitus, supellex, victus, familiar, commercium, and so on. Macrons are used but not everywhere and always. This first part occupies appx. 30 pages. The etymological part occupies appx. 70 pages, with appx. 30 pages of proverbs in the appendix.
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Saturday, August 20, 2011
Galfridus Anglicus: Promptorium Parvulorum
The Promptorium Parvulorum by Galfridus Anglicus, ed. Anthony Lawson Mayhew (1908)
This publication for the Early English Text Society contains The first English-Latin dictionary. Ed. from the manuscript in the Chapter library at Winchester, dating to the early 15th century, with introduction, notes, and glossaries. The text of the promptorium is quite substantial, running to over 500 pages in this edition. What a fabulous book - here's a typical entry:
Parlowre: locutorium, ij, neut 2.
Lots of fun browsing here, and some quite unusual Latin that gives you a sense of just how much Latin had "run wild" before its Renaissance standardization based on classical norms.
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Monday, August 15, 2011
Robertson: Dictionary of Latin Phrases
A Dictionary of Latin Phrases by William Robertson (1829)
Here is the long title, full of confidence: "A dictionary of Latin phrases: comprehending a methodical digest of the various phrases from the best authors, which have been collected in all phraseological works hitherto published for the more speedy progress of students in Latin composition." This is indeed a very useful book, running to almost 900 pages in length. It is organized alphabetically with English headwords, but unlike a traditional English-Latin dictionary, Robertson provides Latin equivalents not just for English words but for English phrases, citing Latin words and phrases in great abundance. So, for example, under the word "able," you can find the phrase "as far as I am able," glossed with a whole series of Latin words and phrases, with citations, e.g. "He withstood them as well as he was able; quoad potuit restitit; Cic." As an aid to Latin composition, the value of this book is immense!
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Sunday, July 31, 2011
Kennedy: Latin Vocabulary
A Latin Vocabulary by Benjamin Hall Kennedy (1856)
This is a vocabulary which, as the author explains, is "arranged on etymological principles." The book consists of an alphabetical word list, with derivative words indicated in brief, and English derivates and cognates in capital letters Here is a typical entry:
aestim-are, to ESTEEM, value. (s. -atio, -ator). existim-are, to deem, think (s. -ator, -atio).
The word lists are not especially user friendly, but could be useful for Latin teachers preparing materials for their students. The printing of English derivatives and cognates in all-caps definitely helps them stand out on the page and makes them easy to harvest!
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Jenks: Manual of Latin Word Formation
A Manual of Latin Word Formation for Secondary Schools by Paul Rockwell Jenks (1911)
I am a big fan of this book, which provides a systematic overview of Latin word formation, starting with nouns (nouns derived from verbs, from nouns), then adjectives (derived from verbs, from nouns) then verbs (derived from nouns or adjectives, and from other verbs), and then adverbs, followed by compounds and then prepositions in composition (a section which comprises roughly one fourth of the whole book!). The vocabulary focus is Caesar's Gallic Wars; Cicero's In Catilinam, Pro Lege Manilia and Pro Archia; and Vergil's Aeneid I-VI, but the book is very useful even for students who are not reading those particular texts.
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