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Translation

PostPosted: Fri Jun 22, 2007 12:58 pm
by Aulus Flavius
Salve amici,

My grip of Latin is fairly rough, almost abrasive actually. If anyone could translate the following passage for me I'd appreciate it.

Val(erio) Thiumpo qui militavit in leg(ione) XI Cl(audia) lectus in sacro comitatu lanciarius, deinde protexit annis V, missus, pr(a)ef(ectus) leg(ionis) II Hercul(iae) [e]git ann(is) II semisse et decessit, vixit ann(is) XXXXV, m(ensibus) III d(iebus) XI...

Any help would be great. It's an inscription from the Scythian province created under Diocletian from an officer in the Legio II Herculia.

Vale,

A. Flavius

Tech talk

PostPosted: Fri Jun 22, 2007 7:24 pm
by Aldus Marius
Ave, amice...

...and that there's no ordinary Latin; it's (a) inscriptionese, which has its own conventions; and (b) military trade-talk. Fortunately, those are the two forms of Latin in which I can do more than stumble around in the fog between my ears! So here's most of it (yes, some bits elude me):


Val(erio) Thiumpo qui militavit in leg(ione) XI Cl(audia) lectus in sacro comitatu lanciarius, deinde protexit annis V, missus, pr(a)ef(ectus) leg(ionis) II Hercul(iae) [e]git ann(is) II semisse et decessit, vixit ann(is) XXXXV, m(ensibus) III d(iebus) XI...

...all of which is to say that Valerius Thiumpus (some of these Provincials had some, to us, odd-sounding names) served in Legio XI Claudia; he was a lanciarius, or light-infantry spearman, in a detachment of the Legion [a vexillatio comitatensis] that had been sent to serve in one of the mobile "field armies" of the time; he served in that capacity for five years, was honorably discharged, and returned as Praefectus for Legio II Herculea, where he served for two and a half years before his death at the age of 45 years, three months, and eleven days.

The bits I'm unsure of: ...lectus in sacro...; ...deinde protexit...; and the details of the structure of Diocletian's army, myself being better-acquainted with the Flavian-Antonine era.

(There was a "Staff War College" for senior officers called the Protectores, whose alumni did Secret Service duty for a spell after they graduated; maybe protexit has to do with that. Way to go, Valerius!!)

Does this help?

PostPosted: Sat Jun 23, 2007 4:27 am
by Aulus Flavius
Salve mi Mari,

Thank you for the translation, it certainly helps some. I'm likewise more acquainted with the military of the early Empire, but I've recently read a simply brilliant online essay about historical 'decline and fall' syndrome that mainstream history seems to have.

The essay is aptly titled "Roman Decadence, Rome and Romania, the Emperors Who Weren't, and Other Reflections on Roman History".

http://www.friesian.com/decdenc1.htm

Anyway the point is I'm suddenly interested in whatever information I can gobble up on the Late Empire, but it's rather hard to come across material in bookshops, libraries etc that go past the Five Good Emperors. It's especially hard to find anything on the later legions of the Empire, particularly the comitatus and limes armies. So I'm trying to find any information regarding it that I can.

Further Assistance

PostPosted: Sat Jun 23, 2007 5:19 am
by Aldus Marius
Ave iterum, mi Flavi!

...I'll help you s'more with that on your other topic, which I'm moving over to Collegium Historicum. Is good? >({|:-)

-- Mari