Latin Wikipedia
Encyclopedia
The Latin Wikipedia is the Latin language
edition of Wikipedia
. As of , it has about articles. While all primary content is in Latin, in discussions modern languages such as English
, French
, German
or Spanish
are allowed and often used, since many users
(usores) find this easier.
Professional latinists have observed a gradual improvement in the encyclopedia: according to Robert Gurval, chairman of the UCLA
classics department, "the articles that are good are in fact very good," even though some articles by beginning students contain grammatical errors.
.
The official policy of Vicipaedia is that neologisms and user coinings aren't allowed ("Noli fingere!" Latin for "Don't coin/make up things"). In order to deal with concepts that did not exist in Classical
or Mediaeval Latin, terms from modern Latin sources are used, such as botanical Latin, scientific Latin, 18th and 19th century Latin language encyclopedias and books, the official Vatican dictionary of modern Latin, as well as current Latin newspapers and radio shows, such as Ephemeris and Radio Bremen.
As in any language with a broad international character, often more than one correct term exists for a given concept (just as in English a certain car part
is called a "bonnet" by British speakers but a "hood" by Americans). In Latin the existence of multiple synonyms for the same thing is even more prevalent since the language has been in continuous use over a wide geographical area for over 2000 years. Sometimes the same concept is represented by different terms in classical, medieval, scientific and modern Latin. Where possible Vicipaedia adopts the oldest or classical term for the page name, with redirects from any others; major alternatives are listed in the article with footnote references. There is often lively debate among editors about shades of meaning. The practice of avoiding invented words and giving references for alternative terms agrees well with the general Wikipedia insistence on verifiability and the rule against original research.
When occasionally a term for a modern concept cannot be found, the customary practice is to do exactly what most other languages do: to borrow an international word (often from a Romance language or English). Such direct borrowing was done for the particle names photon and gluon and for the unit of temperature Kelvin. The word is given a Latin morphology if this can be done easily, or, if not, used unchanged in its foreign form; but many international words already have a Latin or Graeco-Latin appearance, because Greek and Latin have always served as sources of new scientific terminology.
The rationale behind this policy is that there are two primary linguistic communities in which Latin is spoken today: secular academics and the Roman Catholic Church. Academics generally seek to emulate classical pronunciations used by the Romans themselves which do not strongly distinguish the u-vowel from the u-consonant/v. However, in the pronunciation system used by the Catholic Church, the v is pronounced as an English v.
The logo
on the Vicipaedia main page reads "VICIPÆDIA", displaying a ligature "æ". However, in accordance with contemporary practice, Vicipaedia does not use ligatures in its articles for the diphthongs written ae ("Æ
", "æ") and oe ("Œ
", "œ"). In Latin, such ligatures are not pronounced any differently from the unligatured diphthongs and they were only adopted by the Romans
, as medieval and late Latin typographers for decorative purposes and to save space. If users prefer, however, they can activate a gadget under user preferences that automatically displays the diphthongs as ligatures on the pages.
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
edition of Wikipedia
Wikipedia
Wikipedia is a free, web-based, collaborative, multilingual encyclopedia project supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Its 20 million articles have been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world. Almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone with access to the site,...
. As of , it has about articles. While all primary content is in Latin, in discussions modern languages such as English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
or Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
are allowed and often used, since many users
User (computing)
A user is an agent, either a human agent or software agent, who uses a computer or network service. A user often has a user account and is identified by a username , screen name , nickname , or handle, which is derived from the identical Citizen's Band radio term.Users are...
(usores) find this easier.
Professional latinists have observed a gradual improvement in the encyclopedia: according to Robert Gurval, chairman of the UCLA
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
classics department, "the articles that are good are in fact very good," even though some articles by beginning students contain grammatical errors.
Modern vocabulary and coining policies
The Latin Wikipedia began dominated by topics from classical history, but beginning in 2006 a group of new contributors greatly expanded the coverage of 20th century topics, such as pop culture and technologyTechnology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
.
The official policy of Vicipaedia is that neologisms and user coinings aren't allowed ("Noli fingere!" Latin for "Don't coin/make up things"). In order to deal with concepts that did not exist in Classical
Classical Latin
Classical Latin in simplest terms is the socio-linguistic register of the Latin language regarded by the enfranchised and empowered populations of the late Roman republic and the Roman empire as good Latin. Most writers during this time made use of it...
or Mediaeval Latin, terms from modern Latin sources are used, such as botanical Latin, scientific Latin, 18th and 19th century Latin language encyclopedias and books, the official Vatican dictionary of modern Latin, as well as current Latin newspapers and radio shows, such as Ephemeris and Radio Bremen.
As in any language with a broad international character, often more than one correct term exists for a given concept (just as in English a certain car part
Hood (vehicle)
The hood or bonnet is the hinged cover over the engine of motor vehicles that allows access to the engine compartment for maintenance and repair. In British terminology, hood refers to a fabric cover over the passenger compartment of the car...
is called a "bonnet" by British speakers but a "hood" by Americans). In Latin the existence of multiple synonyms for the same thing is even more prevalent since the language has been in continuous use over a wide geographical area for over 2000 years. Sometimes the same concept is represented by different terms in classical, medieval, scientific and modern Latin. Where possible Vicipaedia adopts the oldest or classical term for the page name, with redirects from any others; major alternatives are listed in the article with footnote references. There is often lively debate among editors about shades of meaning. The practice of avoiding invented words and giving references for alternative terms agrees well with the general Wikipedia insistence on verifiability and the rule against original research.
When occasionally a term for a modern concept cannot be found, the customary practice is to do exactly what most other languages do: to borrow an international word (often from a Romance language or English). Such direct borrowing was done for the particle names photon and gluon and for the unit of temperature Kelvin. The word is given a Latin morphology if this can be done easily, or, if not, used unchanged in its foreign form; but many international words already have a Latin or Graeco-Latin appearance, because Greek and Latin have always served as sources of new scientific terminology.
Orthography
Vicipaedia has complied to the contemporary late 20th century orthographical habit of distinguishing u from v (both pronounced as u/w in classical Latin) but not i and i-consonant. This orthographical practice is not without passionate detractors, who point out that it is a mere calque of the Italian spelling reform in which the i/j distinction is lost, but the u/v distinction is maintained.The rationale behind this policy is that there are two primary linguistic communities in which Latin is spoken today: secular academics and the Roman Catholic Church. Academics generally seek to emulate classical pronunciations used by the Romans themselves which do not strongly distinguish the u-vowel from the u-consonant/v. However, in the pronunciation system used by the Catholic Church, the v is pronounced as an English v.
The logo
Logo
A logo is a graphic mark or emblem commonly used by commercial enterprises, organizations and even individuals to aid and promote instant public recognition...
on the Vicipaedia main page reads "VICIPÆDIA", displaying a ligature "æ". However, in accordance with contemporary practice, Vicipaedia does not use ligatures in its articles for the diphthongs written ae ("Æ
Æ
Æ is a grapheme formed from the letters a and e. Originally a ligature representing a Latin diphthong, it has been promoted to the full status of a letter in the alphabets of some languages, including Danish, Faroese, Norwegian and Icelandic...
", "æ") and oe ("Œ
Œ
Œ œŒ is a Latin alphabet grapheme, a ligature of o and e. In medieval and early modern Latin, it was used to represent the Greek diphthong οι, a usage which continues in English and French...
", "œ"). In Latin, such ligatures are not pronounced any differently from the unligatured diphthongs and they were only adopted by the Romans
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
, as medieval and late Latin typographers for decorative purposes and to save space. If users prefer, however, they can activate a gadget under user preferences that automatically displays the diphthongs as ligatures on the pages.