Tuesday, December 16, 2014

Latin Proverbs and Fables Round-Up: December 16

Here is a round-up of today's proverbs and fables - and for previous posts, check out the Bestiaria Latina Blog archives. If you have not downloaded a free PDF copy of Brevissima: 1001 Tiny Latin Poems, it's ready and waiting.

HODIE (Roman Calendar): ante diem septimum decimum Kalendas Ianuarias.

MYTHS and LEGENDS: The art image for today's legend shows Scylla; you can also see the legends for the current week listed together here.


TODAY'S MOTTOES and PROVERBS:

TINY PROVERBS: Today's tiny proverb is: Pulsanti aperietur (English: It will be opened to the one who knocks).

3-WORD MOTTOES: Today's 3-word verb-less motto is Libertas pretiosior auro (English: Freedom is more precious than gold).

ANIMAL PROVERBS: Today's animal proverb is Inter simios oportet esse simium (English: Among monkeys, you need to be a monkey).

POLYDORUS: Today's proverb from Polydorus is: Iacta super dominum curam tuam, et ipse te enutriet (English: Cast your worries upon the Lord and he will nourish you).

PROPER NAME PROVERBS: Today's proper name proverb from Erasmus is Nunc pluit, et claro nunc Iuppiter aethere fulget (English: Now Jupiter rains, and now he shines forth from the clear sky; from Adagia 1.8.65 - in Latin, "Jupiter," as the god of the sky, was also a weather god).

GREEK PROVERBS: Today's proverb is Ἡ κάμηλος ἐπιθυμήσασα κεράτων, καὶ τὰ ὦτα προσαπώλεσεν (English: The camel desired horns, but she lost her ears into the bargain, as the Aesop's fable tells us).

BREVISSIMA: The distich poster for today is Mors Non Timenda. Click here for a full-sized view.


And here are today's proverbial LOLcats:



Omnes filii Dei estis.
You are all children of God.

Igne quid utilius?
What is more useful than fire?

TODAY'S FABLES:

FABULAE FACILES: The fable from the Fabulae Faciles widget is Equus Circensis Molae Iugatus, the sad story of a racehorse fallen on hard times (this fable has a vocabulary list).

MILLE FABULAE: The fable from the Mille Fabulae et Una widget is Ursus et Amici Duo, the story of a bear and two friends, one true and one false.

Ursus et Amici Duo

TODAY'S LATIN HOLIDAY SONGS

The Latin holiday songs for today are: O Hanukkah, a Latin version of "The Hanukkah Song," in honor of the beginning of Hanukkah at sundown tonight, along with Lapsi Caelo Super Gentes, a Latin version of "Angels We Have Heard on High," and the hymns Jesu, dulcis memoria and Gloria in Excelsis Deo. You can find more at the Gaudium Mundo blog.