letter to my Latin prof

Latin Learning Latin
1

Salvete omnes.

Below you will find a short note that I have included on the back of a postcard for my Latin prof. Though it is now to late to alter it - haec inscripta sunt - I would like to know how I can improve my knowledge of personal letter writing and the diction that usuall accompanies it. From this exercise, I have learned that I don’t have a very good knowldge at all of many common words, in fact, the words immediately learned in most foreign language classes, but which seem to be omitted in Latin because of its orientation (solely) toward literature. Such words as “meet, congratulate, visit, attend” fall in this category, methinks.

En tout cas, I have included my intended meaning below the Latin. If it is not too much trouble, please provide me with some criticism, suggestions, amendations, especially regarding the use of place constructions and appropriate diction.

Merci beaucoup, multasque gratias vobis ago.

In principio erant verba:

Carissime Magister Jones,

Salutem tibi dico ex Virginia, regione quo nonnullas dies commoratus sum et ex quo hodie mane egredier cum patre. Ad Virginiam venimus ut cum familia congrederemur et nuptiarum causa adessemus. Heri iuvenior filia mei patris fratris ducta est in matrimonium. Ei propinquisque gratati sumus.

Ad scholam Bruni Ioannis hebdomadae quinto die regredier. Spero me te visurus esse ibi.

Cura ut valeas!

David

Dearest Professor Jones,

I send you greetings from Virginia, the region [state? non civitate surely!] where I have lingered for several days and from which this morning I am departing with my father. We came to Virginia so that we could meet with (our) family and be present ffor the sake of a wedding [not sure what prep or case goes with adsum]. Yesterday, the younger daughter of my father’s brother [ie my cousin] was led in marriage. We congratulated her and her relatives. I will return to John Brown University [pardon my contrived humor] on the fifth day of this week [easier way for days of the week?]. I hope that I will see you there.

Take care to be well!

David

[Slightly edited, see bold text]

2

A very kind gesture to your professor, I’m sure. Composition is no easy task, especially when trying to discuss everyday things, some of which are hard to discuss in Latin. A few areas which I find questionable:

regio is feminine, so quo should be too, preceded by the preposition in. The ablative relative pronoun is sometimes used locatively, but I believe that is only when the antecedent is locative.

nonnullas dies

dies is generally masculine, I don’t think this situation justifies the rare switch to feminine.

ex quo

ex qua

egredier

I assume you mean egredior or egrediar. egredier could only be an archaic passive infinitive, which I am fairly sure was not intended.

iuvenior

’
usually irregular comparative, iunior.

gratati sumus.

This is poetic or post-Augustan, (con)gratulor, -ari, atus sum + dat would be the more Ciceronian construction.

regredier

.
regrediar

visurus

should be accusative in agreement with me.

3

Oh, thank you very much for your sharp eye, benissimus. . .

With the future first person singular of deponent verbs, switching between passive forms and active meanings led me to forget that, in fact, -am (and not -em) is the proper form. I shouldn’t have made that error.

I meant to write “gratulati sumus,” but my wandering mind must have interpreted “gratulor” as “grator.” Oops.

And visurum. . . of course! How silly of me to forget proper agreement in an indirect statement.

Gratias tibi ago, qui tam libenter me iuvavisti!

-David