# Latin translation **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 23, 2001, 10:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881 "2001-11-23T10:04:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![tavalla](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tavalla/32/89_2.png) [@tavalla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tavalla)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2001, 10:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/1 "2001-11-23T10:04:24Z")
It sounds silly, but I’m serious. Can any of our learned Latin-knowin’ types please translate a phrase for me? “It’s hard to fly like an eagle when you’re surrounded by turkeys.” I know there’s not a Latin word for “turkeys”, but I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![kniz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c37758/32.png) [@kniz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kniz)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2001, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/2 "2001-11-23T14:20:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by tavalla \* > **I know there’s not a Latin word for “turkeys”, but I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it.** I’m really not into sig lines, but if I were that is one I’d consider. ---
**Author:** ![SDP](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@SDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SDP)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2001, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/3 "2001-11-23T16:00:57Z")
Cum cingeris ab “turkeys [ablative],” volare ut aquila difficile est. ---
**Author:** ![Studi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Studi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Studi)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2001, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/4 "2001-11-23T17:52:01Z")
Just use (or modify) the scientific name (or part of it): Eastern wild turkey: meleagris gallapavo silvestris Florida wild turkey: meleagris gallapavo osceolam etc. Studi ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2001, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/5 "2001-11-23T20:33:32Z")
In which case, _gallopavo_ would mean turkey. The _meleagris_ is the genus and the _gallopavo_ is the species. _Silvestris_ and _osceolam_ are sub-spieces terms, indicating that the “type” bird is found in the forest or near Osceola. _Gallo_ would come from “chicken” _Pavo_ would come from “peafowl/peacock/peahen” So a turkey would be a really showy chicken. ---
**Author:** ![SDP](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@SDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SDP)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2001, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/6 "2001-11-23T22:57:20Z")
Using _gallopavo_ to mean turkey: **Cum cingeris a gallopavonibus, volare ut aquila difficile est.** ---
**Author:** ![nonsmokingmirror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/6a8cbe/32.png) [@nonsmokingmirror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nonsmokingmirror)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2001, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/7 "2001-11-24T01:29:56Z")
The standard Spanish word for a turkey is “pavo”, a peacock being a “pavo real” (royal peacock)… when you see a wild turkey, with its iridescent feathers and its similar size, you can kind of see what the conquistadors who named turkeys peacocks were talking about… it certainly makes a lot more sense than calling them after completely the wrong country. BTW, “Gallopavonibus cincto, difficile volare ut aquila” is probably more stylish. ---
**Author:** ![tavalla](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tavalla/32/89_2.png) [@tavalla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tavalla)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2001, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/8 "2001-11-24T04:01:04Z")
Thank you all most kindly. :bows: **kniz** , if you like that, consider the sig I use at work: “I could answer that, but I’ll need a working model of the solar system.” ---
**Author:** ![SDP](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@SDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SDP)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2001, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/9 "2001-11-24T05:45:28Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by nonsmokingmirror \* > \*\*BTW, “Gallopavonibus cincto, difficile volare ut aquila” is probably more stylish. \*\* I do not know about more stylish; however, the way you have it written there is slightly in error. _Cincto_ must agree with _gallopavonibus_ and should be _cinctis_. It would then be: **Gallopavonibus cinctis, difficile volare ut aquila.** I like mine better though, mostly because I wrote it, but also because it seems to me that even though a cum clause and an ablative absolute are basically equivalent, the cum clause is more appropriate here because it expresses the generality of the situation more explicitly, and I also prefer leaving _est_ in, perhaps because _difficile est_ was a common impersonal statement that my Latin teacher used in exercises. ---
**Author:** ![Cougarfang](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c67d28/32.png) [@Cougarfang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cougarfang)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2001, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/10 "2001-11-24T07:33:03Z")
[hijack]Ya know, the first thing I thought of when I saw the title of the thread (without reading the OP) was my sig. 😃 [/hijack] ---
**Author:** ![nonsmokingmirror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/6a8cbe/32.png) [@nonsmokingmirror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nonsmokingmirror)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2001, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/11 "2001-11-24T14:46:45Z")
SDP – Cincto isn’t supposed to agree with gallopavonibus: “surrounded by turkeys” (where gallopavonibus is the agent (in the ablative) of the surrounding that is happening) rather than “the turkeys being surrounded” – though if you use “circumsto” instead of “cingo” it would be doable, I think. And there’s definitely nothing wrong with “difficile est” – though I’m pretty sure that with an animate agent (eg a turkey) rather than an inanimate instrument, one doesn’t use “a” but rather the naked ablative. As you say, though, it’s mainly a matter of style and the particular way you’ve been taught Latin :O) NSM ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2001, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/12 "2001-11-24T17:19:33Z")
How about translating Archancellor Ridcully’s motto: “When You’re Up To Your Ass in Alligators, Today Is the First Day of the Rest of Your Life”? ---
**Author:** ![gingersnap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f04885/32.png) [@gingersnap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gingersnap)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2001, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/13 "2001-11-24T17:33:46Z")
Can anyone post a latin translation of “Loose Lips Sink Ships” or an equivalent phrase? ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2001, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/14 "2001-11-24T19:16:33Z")
How about, **“Pull the other one, it’s got bells on”.** Of course, my favorite dog latin phrase appears in the sig. ---
**Author:** ![Lodrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c4cdca/32.png) [@Lodrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lodrain)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2001, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/15 "2001-11-24T19:22:49Z")
Is ‘Carpe Jugulum’ grammatically correct? If not, what’s the correct way, and where would you recommend it tattooed? ---
**Author:** ![SDP](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@SDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SDP)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2001, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/16 "2001-11-24T20:53:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by nonsmokingmirror \* > \*\*SDP – > > Cincto isn’t supposed to agree with gallopavonibus: “surrounded by turkeys” (where gallopavonibus is the agent (in the ablative) of the surrounding that is happening) rather than “the turkeys being surrounded” – though if you use “circumsto” instead of “cingo” it would be doable, I think. > > And there’s definitely nothing wrong with “difficile est” – though I’m pretty sure that with an animate agent (eg a turkey) rather than an inanimate instrument, one doesn’t use “a” but rather the naked ablative. > > As you say, though, it’s mainly a matter of style and the particular way you’ve been taught Latin :O) > > NSM \*\* Oh, hmm, yes, I sort of see. You can’t use _cincto_ though; if you want “surrounded by turkeys” you’d need _cinctus_. Since you had it in the ablative I thought you were going for an ablative absolute, which needs to be at least a two word phrase agreeing in number and case, so I pluralized it into _cinctis_. The ablative absolute doesn’t really work there though; you’d need something like “_me cincto a gallopavonibus_…” The general rule regarding _a_ in an ablative of agent is that you _do_ use it with an animate object (_Necatus sum a servo_), but you do not use with an inanimate object (_Navis deleta est tempestate_). ---
**Author:** ![Daowajan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3bc359/32.png) [@Daowajan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Daowajan)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2001, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/17 "2001-11-24T20:58:07Z")
Carpe jugulum is fine. ---
**Author:** ![SDP](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@SDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SDP)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2001, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/18 "2001-11-24T21:07:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Doghouse Reilly \* > \*\*How about translating Archancellor Ridcully’s motto: “When You’re Up To Your Ass in Alligators, Today Is the First Day of the Rest of Your Life”? \*\* I don’t know of a Latin word for alligator, but I do know crocodile. Somewhat literally (bear in mind that this makes little sense in Latin): **Cum crocodili usque ad clinem tuum praesunt, hodie est primer dies porro omnium annorum.** Somewhat literally back into English, “When crocodiles are present all the way up to your buttocks, today is the first day of all the years to come in the future.” ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2001, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/19 "2001-11-24T21:39:31Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SDP \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by Doghouse Reilly \* > > \*\*How about translating Archancellor Ridcully’s motto: “When You’re Up To Your Ass in Alligators, Today Is the First Day of the Rest of Your Life”? \*\* > > I don’t know of a Latin word for alligator, but I do know crocodile. Somewhat literally (bear in mind that this makes little sense in Latin): > > **Cum crocodili usque ad clinem tuum praesunt, hodie est primer dies porro omnium annorum.** > > Somewhat literally back into English, “When crocodiles are present all the way up to your buttocks, today is the first day of all the years to come in the future.” \*\* Thanks! Do you think that would make an impression if I quoted that to the judge on Monday? ---
**Author:** ![RichLather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/da6949/32.png) [@RichLather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RichLather)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2001, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881/20 "2001-11-24T22:32:08Z")
How about this one: “I came, I saw, I plundered”. Having had absolutely NO Latin schooling, the best I considered was “Veni, vidi, praedari”. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latin-translation/94881.md?page=2)