Opinions on this latin name use

gcomm · Post by **gcomm** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 2:54 pm

Hello All
The following "latin name/derivations" have been selected for the name of a small business and they are not sure if there is any grammatical reason why this would not make sense?
The name "Mercantare" is being considered as the name of a small business but am not sure about the actual grammer. For example if it was a past tense it would probably not make sense.
Any opinions would be gratefully recieved on the matter.
Many Thanks

amans · Post by **amans** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 9:01 pm

Hi,

What is it supposed to mean? I know of words such as merx, merchandise, and mercatura, trade, but not the word you mention. If you explain what you wish to say, it will be easier to be of further assistance. Cheers.

gcomm · Post by **gcomm** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 5:04 am

Hello
Many thanks for your relpy. The spelling was wrong. The word that was being considered is: mercatare
The query is: Would this gramatical tense make it incorrect to use it as a name of a small business?
Any suggestions of a better sounding name would be more than welcome.
With Thanks

benissimus · Post by **benissimus** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 5:10 am

Mercatare isn't a Latin word either, and if you don't tell us what kind of word you are looking for then how can we tell you if something sounds appropriate or make suggestions? Mercatare sort of looks Latin, if that is all that matters.

I am also baffled by your queries about the "tense" ... is there a particular tense (future, present, past, etc.) that is more appropriate to the name of a business than others, and who decided?

I would think the name of a business or the name of anything for that matter should be a noun, not a verb, but it's not unheard of these days.

gcomm · Post by **gcomm** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 6:28 am

Hello
Thankyou for your reply.
Here is where I found the name.

Main Entry: 1mer·chant

Pronunciation: 'm&r-ch&nt
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English marchant, from Old French marcheant, from (assumed) Vulgar Latin mercatant-, mercatans, from present participle of mercatare to trade, frequentative of Latin mercari -- more at MARKET
1 : a buyer and seller of commodities for profit : TRADER
2 : the operator of a retail business : STOREKEEPER
3 : one that is noted for a particular quality or activity : SPECIALIST <a speed merchant on the base paths>
- merchant adjective

Pasted from <http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?b ... &x=11&y=10>

What is the difference between "vulgar latin" and ordinary latin?
Thankyou in advance

FiliusLunae · Post by **FiliusLunae** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 7:16 am

gcomm wrote:Hello
Thankyou for your reply.
Here is where I found the name.

Main Entry: 1mer·chant

Pronunciation: 'm&r-ch&nt
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English marchant, from Old French marcheant, from (assumed) Vulgar Latin mercatant-, mercatans, from present participle of mercatare to trade, frequentative of Latin mercari -- more at MARKET
1 : a buyer and seller of commodities for profit : TRADER
2 : the operator of a retail business : STOREKEEPER
3 : one that is noted for a particular quality or activity : SPECIALIST <a speed merchant on the base paths>
- merchant adjective

Pasted from <http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?b ... &x=11&y=10>

What is the difference between "vulgar latin" and ordinary latin?
Thankyou in advance

Interesting. Vulgar Latin was the Latin as spoken by the "vulgus", i.e. the people. As the different areas became romanized, the spoken Latin taken there began to diverge more and more from the written norm, becoming, in each region, the various Romance languages we have today. So that entry says that "mercatare" is an assumed Vulgar Latin form, because it was not in use in the written Classical Latin. Therefore, I assume people here will suggest a Classical term. Perseus has "mercator":

mercātor , ōris, m. [id.] ,

I. a trader, merchant, esp. a wholesale dealer (opp. to caupo, a retailer; class.).

And also, mercatus.

amans · Post by **amans** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 7:23 am

If you want the name of the small business to be a Latin equivalent of "merchant", I think you'd be best off with mercator.

As you can see from the MW entry, mercatare is the assumed vulgar Latin of mercari. Vulgar Latin is Latin as it was spoken among ordinary people: what you call 'ordinary' Latin is Latin as it has come down to us, the Latin of intellectual and educated men. This is also called Classical Latin.

mercator is a derivation of the classical mercari.

That being said, I wonder why you want such a general name for the business. What is it dealing in?

Lucus Eques · Post by **Lucus Eques** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 9:45 am

Trade?

gcomm · Post by **gcomm** » Wed Oct 12, 2005 5:48 am

Greetings from the UK!
Thankyou for your help and advice. Its interesting from a general point of view regarding the history of the language not just about my particular point.

So it seems that "vulgar latin" is kind of "the language of everyday use" a bit like the word "colloquial". Would you agree that the two words can be used interchangably. Eg. coloquial means local use rather than exact or official I believe.

So in essence the Latin of Educated men is called "Classial latin" and general everyday latin of the people is called "vulgar latin". I hope I've got that right now!

I don't know what you guys think but there is something about the sounds of "latin" that are really appealing as a language. It has a "strong sound" and I'm surprised it is a dead language.

Well thankyou all for helping me clear this up! So in essence mercator or mercatus both mean merchant. Although I'm not sure of the difference.

Best Regards

benissimus · Post by **benissimus** » Wed Oct 12, 2005 5:59 am

Yes, we think it is interesting too! I think part of the "power" of the language is that people these days often have a lot of ideas about the language's difficulty and glory but don't know much about it, giving it an element of mystery. The main reason to go with Classical over Vulgar Latin is that no one really knows Vulgar Latin; it wasn't used for writing after all, which is our only way to observe it two thousand years later, so its vocabulary and other features can only be reconstructed from their derivatives in Romance languages and/or assumed.

mercatus doesn't mean "merchant" but "the act of being a merchant" (i.e. trade, market).

gcomm · Post by **gcomm** » Wed Oct 12, 2005 6:05 am

Hi Benissimus,
I agree with you! It does contain alot of mystery. In addition to that it seems the actual "sound of the language" is appealing. The way the words are formed have "strong sounds without sounding harsh. (In my opinion at least).

Thanks for clearing up the "vulgar latin" compared to "classical latin". I see what you mean. Eg. most people didn't read or write (most but some did obviously) and hence the records are not as good and more open to assumptions.

I guess "mercator" is like the equivalent of "trader". eg. the act of being a merchant.

benissimus · Post by **benissimus** » Wed Oct 12, 2005 6:11 am

That's right, mercator is "one who trades" (i.e. a trader), the -or suffix being equivalent to English -er.

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Opinions on this latin name use

Opinions on this latin name use

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