I’ve just started reading De Bello Gallico and I find it to be of intermediate difficulty. One sentence confuses me though:
Qua de causa Helvetii quoque reliquos Gallos virtute praecedunt, quod fere cotidianis proeliis cum Germanis contendunt, cum aut suis finibus eos prohibent aut ipsi in eorum finibus bellum gerunt.
What confuses me the most is the middle part. I’ve translated the first part to something like “Where the Helvetians also are better than the Gauls by the means of virtue”, not really sure about the de causa, though I doubt that is an important part.
I find the second part hard to make make sense. “Which often daily try to fight against the Germans” or something is what I understand it as. The quod confuses me. Maybe it means “because”?
The third part would be “Either keep them away with their borders or themselves fight in their borders” or something similar I think.
“Qua de causa” most likely means “for which reason”. Remember the previous sentence? Similarly, “quod” further explains this reason: because they fight with the Germans almost every day.
“Virtus” here probably means “courage” and the Ablative is not that of means, but more likely of respect. The Helvetians surpassed all other Gauls in their courage.
Qua de causa Helvetii quoque reliquos Gallos virtute praecedunt, quod fere cotidianis proeliis cum Germanis contendunt, cum aut suis finibus eos prohibent aut ipsi in eorum finibus bellum gerunt.
What confuses me the most is the middle part. I’ve translated the first part to something like “Where the Helvetians also are better than the Gauls by the means of virtue”, not really sure about the de causa, though I doubt that is an important part.
Qua de causa would generally be put as de qua causa if we were reading a textbook and not real latin. From which cause/on account of which cause. The qua is an example of a relative adjective.
“Where the Helvetians also are better than the Gauls by the means of virtue” Really more like - the Helvetians also are better than the Gauls with respect to/in regard to virtue. Or courage. Certainly some manly quality. Virtus comes from vir, and indicates the kind of good qualities expected of a Roman male. Although our word virtue derives from the same source it doesn’t have quite the ring of toughness and violence even.
I find the second part hard to make make sense. “Which often daily try to fight against the Germans” or something is what I understand it as. The quod confuses me. Maybe it means “because”?
The third part would be “Either keep them away with their borders or themselves fight in their borders” or something similar I think.
Quod is because. They fight near daily battles with the Germans. cotidianis is an adjective modifying proeliis. fere modifies cotidianis.
Block them from their borders seems more likely. Ablative of separation.