A few questions for those who have studied Classical Greek and/or Latin

[Bast]

Hi

1. Where did you study them? Do you think buying books and teaching yourself is a good idea?

2. Depending on where you studied them were you taught how to speak and listen too or is it purely reading and writing (translating)? Do you think that in the contemporary world, it's actually useful to be able to speak and listen to them or do people learn it purely for reading and writing?

3. Do you think that they help you with other languages? For instance, does knowing/learning Latin help you with your French? Or even with English grammar?

I ask because I'm interested in learning but don't know where I should go to. Not going to do another University degree, so don't even suggest that. LOL! (Unless if I become rich and have a lot of free time. Hmmm... ) Also with regard to Question 3, that is not why I want to learn them. I want to learn them because I'm interested but am curious whether they do indeed help like people say.

 

[Bast]

Also I'm asking here on this forum because I've read a few references to these languages in various threads and this is not common to other boards I visit. You guys are a smart bunch.

 

[Leifmk]

I've done a bit of Latin (about equivalent to a full year's worth of university credits, though spread over more than one year as it was something I did part-time as a hobby). Went to classes where we did round-robin reading and translating as well as individual grammar exercises (we were just a handful of students, of varying ages and backgrounds; a large part of the "fun" for me was in hanging out with and bandying ideas about with the other students and the professor).

Whether to spend much effort on the spoken form depends on what you want out of it. Due to Latin's role both as an ancestral form to many modern European languages, as well as its use in both classical and post-classical times as a language of poetry and song, I think that learning about the pronounciation and not least the rhythm of the spoken language is worthwhile. Also about how pronounciation changed over time (the early post-classical period, when Latin dialects diverged into separate languages, is very interesting both for the historian and the linguist).

The primary utility of Latin is probably the ability to say things that sound dead clever. However, I would not discount it as an secondary aid if you later want to learn one or more modern Romance languages -- you will recognize much vocabulary as well as achieve a better understanding of how various grammatical structures in those languages came to be. Not English grammar, though, as that owes very little to the Latin.

 

[Bast]

However, I would not discount it as an secondary aid if you later want to learn one or more modern Romance languages -- you will recognize much vocabulary as well as achieve a better understanding of how various grammatical structures in those languages came to be.

I have a good understanding of French and German but not fluent yet. It's a work in progress.

 

[Gladi]

Bright day
I am learning Latin right now.

1) In school (gymnasium), /shrug, continental thing. Nope, tutor or small group with tutor is better IMHO.

2) Speak and listen too. Cicerian Latin that is. Language is not a just a translation table, you need to be able to work it directly, which can be only done in its first form. Short conversations are good tools for example. Right now in my class we have chosen personas of principate (I am syrian banker) and will use them in conversations.

3) Every language helps. Even every knowledge helps. As long as you don't stop studying you should be able to learn everything quicker and better.

 

[Neonanocyborgasm]

Hi

1. Where did you study them? Do you think buying books and teaching yourself is a good idea?

I was a Classics major in college, where I took classical Latin. It was a pretty interesting, if not at times tedious experience. The books are probably ok, since Latin is not a spoken language anymore. It did help to drill in class because the forms and endings of words can get quite tedious to memorize.

2. Depending on where you studied them were you taught how to speak and listen too or is it purely reading and writing (translating)? Do you think that in the contemporary world, it's actually useful to be able to speak and listen to them or do people learn it purely for reading and writing?

I was taught to speak, listen, read, and write, but in practice, you only need to be literate, not spoken, in Latin. There is really no usefulness to learn a dead language to speak it.

3. Do you think that they help you with other languages? For instance, does knowing/learning Latin help you with your French? Or even with English grammar?

English not so much, but the Romance languages definitely. Even though I've forgotten most French, and never knew Italian or Spanish, I can definitely catch onto certain words or phrases much more easily now than I used to.

I ask because I'm interested in learning but don't know where I should go to. Not going to do another University degree, so don't even suggest that. LOL! (Unless if I become rich and have a lot of free time. Hmmm... ) Also with regards to Question 3, that is not why I want to learn them. I want to learn them because I'm interested but am curious whether they do indeed help like people say.

Teaching books are probably ok. You don't need to be able to have a conversation in Latin. You just need to be able to read and write.

 

[shortguy]

It was a pretty interesting, if not at times tedious experience.

That's a very good way to put it.

Personally, I found it quite useful for increasing my understanding of English grammar.

 

[Dragonlord]

I had Latin for several years at school (Gymnasium in Germany).

1.) No reason why you shouldn't learn it from books

because

2.) You'll probably never have occasion to actually speak it. I can't remember ever having been taught to speak it in class, it was all (or mostly) reading/writing/translating

and

3.) yes, it very definitely helps with other languages that were influenced by it. I also learned French (and English, obviously ), and knowing Latin and those languages allows me to understand quite a bit of Italian and Spanish w/o ever having studied them.
It would also help to learn English and German, though not to the same extent, because those languages were also influenced by Latin, whether directly or at second remove (through French).

 

[Elta]

I have never studyed Latin but I can do translations at a fairly acurate rate just by using my knowledge of Spanish. There is a book given out by the red cross (I doubt it's published but you maybe be able to get one) called latin root words for spanish speakers - it basicly showed you the main diff. between spanish and latin so that you can learn the medical terms*

Some of the stuff is easy like the modern Spanish P is ussually a B in Latin for example a commen latin erm you will see is causa bela - Causa Pela (sp) - Cause Fight (ENG) people call cause bela a reason for war etc etc

Greek is very hard when it comes to medical terms - I am thinking about taking it just enouf so that I can learn them.


*I used the book to study while I was at job corps in the medical office support class

 

[Suppersalmon]

1) I studied Latin at school from 11 to 14

2) we had to read a part out then translate it

3) i found it completely useless

 

[Rossiya]

1. Where did you study them?

Still studying Latin at school.

Do you think buying books and teaching yourself is a good idea?

No.

2. Depending on where you studied them were you taught how to speak and listen too or is it purely reading and writing (translating)?

Purely reading and writing.

Do you think that in the contemporary world, it's actually useful to be able to speak and listen to them or do people learn it purely for reading and writing?

It wouldn't really be useful to do speaking and listening because nobody speaks it as a mother tongue.

3. Do you think that they help you with other languages? For instance, does knowing/learning Latin help you with your French? Or even with English grammar?

I also learn Italian, and as you can probably guess, it does help a lot, but in some cases the two languages contradict each other, which can make it confusing as well.

I have never learnt Spanish or French, but I can understand quite a bit of the written language; not really Portuguese or Romanian as they are more different.

 

[dutchfire]

Hi

1. Where did you study them? Do you think buying books and teaching yourself is a good idea?

2. Depending on where you studied them were you taught how to speak and listen too or is it purely reading and writing (translating)? Do you think that in the contemporary world, it's actually useful to be able to speak and listen to them or do people learn it purely for reading and writing?

3. Do you think that they help you with other languages? For instance, does knowing/learning Latin help you with your French? Or even with English grammar?

I ask because I'm interested in learning but don't know where I should go to. Not going to do another University degree, so don't even suggest that. LOL! (Unless if I become rich and have a lot of free time. Hmmm... ) Also with regards to Question 3, that is not why I want to learn them. I want to learn them because I'm interested but am curious whether they do indeed help like people say.

1. Gymnasium, I'm now in 5th grade (out of 6). I think having a teacher really helps, but I don't know for sure.

2. Mainly reading and translating, but we sometimes get some info on speaking as it is usefull to know when translating poets.

3. I certainly helps you with languages, mainly grammar, but vocabulary too.

 

[Masquerouge]

I studied Latin in Junior high and high school.
We read and translated, but we also recited poems. Latin poetry kicks ass, it's all about the scansion (?), it doesn't rhyme, and words are not put in any kind of order.
Vivamus, mea Lesbia, atquamemus!

It's sorta useful. For English I believe it will help you with all these fancy, upper-class, technical terms.

 

[jameson]

Took three years of Greek, five years of Latin at school (age 13-16 and 13-18 respectively). With regard to language training, we only learned them passively, i.e. by reading and translating. I'm actually not convinced that learning Latin did more for my understanding of Romance languages than did learning French, which I took at the same time.
I'm no longer capable of reading Latin texts (my Greek slipped a long time ago), though I am able to translate some phrases. What I did take away from it is some knowledge of Greco-Roman society and culture and the way they influenced European culture, art, law, history et cetera. Though translating texts in school eventually bored me to tears, this did ultimately make it a rewarding experience.

 

[Leifmk]

Latin poetry kicks ass, it's all about the scansion (?), it doesn't rhyme, and words are not put in any kind of order.

Heh, yeah. After studying the Aeneid I kept trying to make ordinary prose (even in English) scan as hexameter.

 

[Bast]

What I did take away from it is some knowledge of Greco-Roman society and culture and the way they influenced European culture, art, law, history et cetera.

That's ultimately what I'm interested in too.

And to read Harry Potter in Greek and Latin. Cool huh?

Thanks for the suggestions guys.

 

[The Last Conformist]

I'm finding Latin helpful in learning Spanish.

 

[Bast]

I'm finding Latin helpful in learning Spanish.

Of the Romance langauges Italian stayed closest to Latin (as it should) and French deviated from it the most - from what I can see particularly through nasty tricky pronunciation.

I'd imagine Spanish will be in the middle of that change.

 

[downtown]

I studied latin for 3 years in high school. We used the Ecce! Romani! books, which I understand are fairly common in US high schools. Personally, I couldn't begin to try and teach myself a language, because I didnt have the discipline or the memory to just drill myself and remember it. It might work for you though

We were taught how to read, write, and speak latin (we had oral exams). I dont know how useful learning to speak latin is...but there you go.

I actually took the class b/c I thought it might help me with Portuguese, which I've been trying to learn on and off since I was like, 11. I wasnt a great latin student, and I dont remember too much of what I learned, but it helped me a *lot* with my English, 'specially on standardized tests like the SAT.

 

[Azash]

I'd like to learn latin properly, as well. All I can do is derive translations thru etymology. I borrowed a book from the library, but I didn't read it much. Should give it another try.