I don’t know who wrote that, and I imagine it’s a joke, but there certainly is “vulgar” classical Latin. As I understand it, we learned a lot of it from graffiti. 
After a council of my Latin class, we agreed “ancilla” would mean “bitch” in certain contexts. As in “tu es meum ancilla.”
Also, “scribit tua mater” euquals “word to your mother.”
“quid hades?”=“what the hell?” And so on.
It absolutely warms my heart, as a classics major who hopes to be a classics professor in the not-to-distant future, to see so many people encouraging someone to take Latin.
Everyone has already expressed all of the reasons for taking Latin, but I myself have grown tired over the years trying to convince people of the practical application of my major. I just do it because it’s fun!
[Ancient Greek is too!]
Daphne
Plus, there’s the chance to get PAID for, more or less, reading and writing, which seems unimaginably wonderful to me.
No, it doesn’t. “He wrote you mother”?
“Word” is verbum, 2nd declension singular nominative. “To your mother” is dative case, also 2nd declension *matro tuo * thus, verbum matro tuo.
Blast. I had a feeling it wasn’t right… but it’s my fault for not checking. How embarassing. :o
“He wrote your mother” has potential.
DaphneBlack, as another Classics major (now a Classics PhD hopeful), I’d just like to say welcome to the boards!
Ahem.
Tu es mea ancilla.
Quid Tartari?
:smack: I’m new at Latin, bear with me here!
Hey Achernar, that little joke was actually a conversation in my Latin class.
Student 1: Is there any Latin slang?
Teacher: No.
Student 2: Sure there is, it’s called Italian.
Teacher: That’s really funny! Joke of the day!
And the link for the Forbidden Latin was awesome. Henceforth I shall always refer to Britnety Spears a mulierculum in Latin class.
We actually watched that scene in my Latin III class. For the locative jokes mostly, IIRC.
This web site is well worth a look:
http://www.orbilat.com/index-main.html
And especially this page, an Alternative Latin Grammar. I have not yet read all of it myself, but it does seem to a slightly different, less traditional approach:
http://www.orbilat.com/Latin/Alternative_Grammars/index.html
If you want to see Mel Gibson’s new movie, you should not only learn Latin but Aramaic as well. I can’t find another link than this one.
Probably a little too arty for me, though.
I can’t believe I’m the only one pedantic enough to point out that Latin is not a dead language. A dead language is one which nobody knows any more, not just one which nobody speaks as a first language. The fact that it is possible to take Latin classes is proof positive that it’s not dead. There are, however, many tribal languages around the world which are dead or dying (as in, the only people who know the language are elderly and can’t find any willing pupils among the younger generation).
But yes, learn it. If nothing else, it’s fun, and it can occasionally even be useful.
Yeah, we watched it in Latin 101.
And I wholeheartedly recommend study of Latin. I took it as an undergrad because I thought it would be cool to know. Which proved a good thing, because I now need it for my PhD – I’m studying English, but since I’m concentrating in Renaissance literature I have to prove proficiency in Latin.
My department is thinking about dropping this requirement (though I’d still be bound by it since it was in place when I started). I hope they don’t…
Any details? I (a former Classics major), for one, would be interested.