latera ecfututa

April 11, 2005 8:40 AM

Can't hack Catullus in Latin? How about Brazilian Portuguese, Catalan, Chinese, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, French, German, Hungarian, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Rioplatense, Romanian, Russian, Scanned, Serbian, South African, Spanish, Swedish, or Welsh? You can also compare two languages side by side.
posted by kenko (15 comments total)

This is both beautiful and mind-boggling. Why would you spend the effort translating latin (a language with no native speakers) to welsh? Welsh is a language with effectively no native speakers that aren't also fluent in english.

I realize that sometimes you do something because you can, but man...
posted by Mayor Curley at 9:17 AM on April 11, 2005

Catullus? The first poet to get his bone on?
posted by Capn at 9:25 AM on April 11, 2005

This is brilliant - thanks kenko.
posted by the quidnunc kid at 9:35 AM on April 11, 2005

Capn, that's my first link.
posted by kenko at 9:39 AM on April 11, 2005

Wow, wonderful stuff, well presented.

(I surprised myself by being able to read in the Latin poems I last looked at revising for Latin A-level a decade ago - had no idea that stuff was still in my head.)
posted by jack_mo at 10:27 AM on April 11, 2005

This is very cool, and if you need a break for lighter reading, try Terry Pratchett in Bulgarian, Chinese, Czech, Croatian, ...
posted by Wolfdog at 10:34 AM on April 11, 2005

OK, color me impressed. Great find, kenko. But it wouldn't be complete without the Charles Bukowski Memorial Center for Classical Latin Studies. "The ancient Romans had lusty appetites; just like modern people, they seemed to have one thing on their minds. The Charles Bukowski Memorial Center for Classical Latin Studies seeks to drag obscenity out of those dusty tomes and stick it right where it belongs."
posted by languagehat at 1:01 PM on April 11, 2005

d'oh, once again I am fooled by the link-per-word post.
posted by Capn at 1:19 PM on April 11, 2005

This site has been a great use to me during my Latin studies over the years. It's a great way to check scansion when you're first starting out.
posted by thebabelfish at 1:59 PM on April 11, 2005

What, no Esperanto?
posted by Araucaria at 2:03 PM on April 11, 2005

everyone should learn latin
posted by gambit at 2:20 PM on April 11, 2005

Out of all the poets we read in Latin, Catullus was my favorite, second to Horace. They were so naughty!

Virgil's Aeneid and Homer's Oddysee made me yawn, but H&C had the entire class laughing through every translation. This is a gem! ...and this and this are two of my favorite Catullus poems!
posted by naxosaxur at 2:42 PM on April 11, 2005

Poetry? In Swedish?
Väl formar den starke med svärdet sin värld,
Väl flyga som örnar hans rykten;
Men någon gång brytes det vandrande svärd
Och örnarna fällas i flykten.
Vad våldet må skapa är vanskligt och kort,
Det dör som en stormvind i öknen bort. (clicky for rest)
Best. Poem. Ever.
posted by spazzm at 2:51 PM on April 11, 2005

(Thanks for that one, Wolfdog)
posted by spazzm at 3:20 PM on April 11, 2005

I don't think I need to specify that yes, I do like me some Catullus

I like all his stuff, though some poems I have more fondness for. Lately the poem about Attis has been something I think about. The English translations almost never do it justice. First of all they don't change Attis's gender when he gets rid of his genitalia. Thankfully my copy from Wordsworth Classics is not so afflicted. Even if it's sometimes quite prudish in its translations of Catullus's cruder verse.

But yes, Catullus is a genius. Even his inventiveness and experimentation comes through, 2000+ years after he died. And his humor and feeling and wit and passion. One of the greatest poets of all times.

And yeah, Horace is a lot of fun. The one where he gets followed around by a bore is hilarious.
posted by Kattullus at 6:41 PM on April 11, 2005