Hello all:
“nam sōl duōs iam mēnsēs prope cotīdiē lūcet ūsque ā māne ad vesperum”.
I think it means “because the sun has been shining constantly from dawn till dusk for almost 2 months”.
Assuming I’m right (a tad risky), is the separation of “duos” and “menses” common usage, or just here to prove a point, ie; it can be done?
Paul.
Hi Paul,
Iam is very often used this way – it’s perfectly idiomatic. See the entry for iam in the Oxford Latin Dictionary. The particular usage you’re looking for is dealt with at 3(c) – ‘with expressions denoting extent of time or number of repetitions’. A few of the usage examples listed there are multos iam annos, uiginti iam annos and quartum iam diem.
The meaning here is ‘for two months now’, not ‘for almost two months’.
Also, your translation shouldn’t include the word ‘constantly’. The Latin has ‘prope cotidie’, which means ‘nearly every day’.
Cheers. My “constantly” was usque a mane ad vesperum. Ie; all day, but not at night.
I’m easily thrown by invariable modifiers.
Paul.
…oh, and I read prope as nearly 2 months (already).
Casi ya dos meses. Ya in Spanish often agrees with iam in Latin.
Paul.
Quick question: is there ambiguity here or does context make it clear?
I think there is no ambiguity provided you read the latin as it comes and dont rearrange it in your head.
Take prope cotīdiē lūcet together and then ūsque ā māne ad vesperum.
For two months now the sun shines almost every day all the way from morning till evening.
I think your translation didnt capture the sense of prope cotīdiē.