Latin dialects

Guest   Mon May 15, 2006 3:16 pm GMT
Aren't Neo-Latin languages like Italian, Spanish and Romanian just dialects of the now extinct latin?
Aldo_b   Mon May 15, 2006 4:10 pm GMT
Well, really latin is not extinct completely, it is the Vatican official language today. It seems latin never stopped at all, just lost its antique influence on masses at least directly as language. Even Vatican updates the latin lexicon and has added thousands of new words of modern stuff. For example you are reading this text through your "instrumentum computatorium" (computer). Remember it is in science as well since many years ago.
Aldo_b   Mon May 15, 2006 4:46 pm GMT
I know the definition given to a dead language is "a language that does not have living native speakers" but I think while somebody uses it, it won't be dead not like a dinosaur which nobody can see how it was while living.

Maybe Latin had some of bad luck, it's trying to survive in a world of abstinence and chastity. Argh!!!! ;-)
Guest   Mon May 15, 2006 6:46 pm GMT
How can anyone claim with certainty that nobody teaches their child Latin as one of the first two or three languages?

Has (s)he queried the 2 billion-or-so people who have children under 15?
Arbër   Mon May 15, 2006 6:54 pm GMT
I have a question, in its origins, wasn't Latin spoken only by a little tribe in the nowaday region of Lazio Italy? Now, the people of the neo-latin (romance) countries, including Italian, do they consider themselves as latin, i mean ethnically? Does it exist a Latin "race"?
greg   Mon May 15, 2006 8:04 pm GMT
Le latin n'est pas mort — enfin pas vraiment. Mais de toute façon les langues latines ***SONT*** du latin.
Guest   Mon May 15, 2006 8:27 pm GMT
***NO*** greg. Latin was latin, and French,Italian or Romanian isn't the same as or the new Latin.

Latin is dead as it has not native speakers.French isn't latin neither are any of the romance languages. No matter what you say.
Aldo_b   Mon May 15, 2006 8:27 pm GMT
And what about if someday The Vatican dissolves the vow of celibacy and its priests may marry, who knows, things change. Latin could rise again like Hebrew did.

http://www.trosch.org/the/priests-marry.html

Good point Greg, the same way we can say that dinosaurs are not extinct at all, their heritage still lies in the modern reptiles.

Personally I think Latin is still alive and getting adepts every day, no matter if there are or not native speakers.
Aldo_b   Mon May 15, 2006 8:48 pm GMT
Wow really ? show me a crocodile flying, Ha!

Do you know what a tuatara is ? Find it out and come back and repeat it.
Aldo_b   Mon May 15, 2006 9:00 pm GMT
Aldo_b   Mon May 15, 2006 9:06 pm GMT
<<..they left no decendants other than birds.>>

So birds are dinosaurs, WOW! you knowledge is amazing. Again an interesting link:

http://www.godandscience.org/evolution/dinobird.html
Guest   Tue May 16, 2006 4:46 am GMT
No one can claim with assurance that they know for certain that there is nobody in the world who teaches their child(ren) Latin as one of the first three languages of the said child(ren).
greg   Tue May 16, 2006 6:13 am GMT
« Guest » : « ***NO*** greg. Latin was latin, and French,Italian or Romanian isn't the same as or the new Latin. Latin is dead as it has not native speakers.French isn't latin neither are any of the romance languages. No matter what you say. »

Deux points contredisent ton affirmation :

1/ La comparaison entre latin et espéranto.
L'espéranto est-il une langue morte ?

2/ La comparaison entre latin et grec.
En français, le mot <grec> sert à désigner l'ancienne koinè ou l'un quelconque des anciens dialectes aussi bien que le grec moderne et ses variantes. On peut spécifier par la suite à l'aide d'un adjectif : <moderne>, <ancien>, <classique> etc. Mais il ne viendrait à l'esprit de personne d'affirmer que la langue parlée aujourd'hui à Athènes n'est pas du grec. Il en va ainsi du latin et des langues romanes. La seule différence est que, il y a longtemps, des ***MOTS*** ont été créés pour désigner les langues latines par opposition au latin. Ça ne veut pas dire que les langues romanes ne sont pas du latin, pas plus que le grec n'est pas du grec.
Benjamin   Tue May 16, 2006 9:44 am GMT
Je suis complétement d'accord avec Greg. Franchement, il y a probablement un peu de parents qui enseignent premièrement le latin à leurs enfants car il y a certains qui parlent l'espéranto comme leur langue natale.
Aldo_b   Tue May 16, 2006 2:04 pm GMT
Good point again Greg, the same can be said about old Spanish and old English.