Theiling Online    Sitemap    Conlang Mailing List HQ   

Re: Translation question

From:DOUGLAS KOLLER <laokou@...>
Date:Wednesday, December 6, 2000, 2:07
From: "Raymond Brown"

> As the message got sent publically by mistake, I thought it a mite unfair > on any Conlanger who read the mail & wondered what the Latin meant not to > see the reply.
> Hope you don't mind.
Not at all.
> >"Faber est suae quisque fortunae addius Claudius caecus dictum arcanum
est
> >neutron."
> Faber est suae quisque fortunae > "Every man (quisque [nom.sing]) is the fashioner (faber) of his own
fortune."
> SALLUST, Ad Caeserem senem de re publica oratio, 1
That's as far as I got, though I didn't know the source. [snip fun stuff]
> 'Everyman is the fashioner of his own fortune': Appius Claudius Caecus - a > mysterious saying.
> But that neutron eludes me.
Since it was a cryptogram and the students botched "Appius", perhaps "neutron" is also a mistaken decoding (stumping such an esteemed panel would seem to indicate that something is amiss). Armed with all this information, it may be a good idea for me to wrest the original crytogram from the math teacher and prooftweek it myself. Sidebar -- is a cognomen is a cognomen is a cognomen? Or does "Caecus" really refer to this particular family's ability to see? Anyway, thanks Ray. And thanks to Daniel and John for their input. Kou