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please help me translate eng to latin for a tattoo x

 
 
Reply Fri 22 Apr, 2005 05:37 pm
Hi,

I have decided to have a second tattoo and after a lot of thought i have decided to have a very small latin translation on the bottom of my back. It will be in an old style english font. The translation i want is something on the lines of "Don't look at my bum" but in a sort of old english way of saying it. I have tried to translate the following myself using an online phrase translator:

Observe not ones rear
Video non ones tergum

Look not at ones rear
Vultus non procul ones tergum

Watch not ones rear
Vigilo non ones tergum

stop watching my rear
subsisto vigilo meus tergum

I really wanted to say "posterior" instead of "rear" however the latin translation meant something completely different. I would REALLY appreciate any help that any one could give me with either checking the above translations or helping with the word for "bum".

Thank you so much

Jade x
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Africanus
 
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Reply Sat 23 Apr, 2005 11:01 am
Ave Jadeladine,

Three things you have to bear in mind:
1. Latin cannot be transliterated directly into english, so it cannot be translated old english way or modern english way.
2. Online translators are tricky things - and often misleading, all those examples are grammatically wrong and ones hasn't translated at all.
3. Posterior is a world derived from latin and as is usually the case means something completely different (this makes it hard when learning latin as you first have to unlearn some things).

Try the following ...

Noli clunem meum videre => don't look at my butt
Noli clunem meum conspicere => don't watch/behold/catch sigh of my butt
Noli clunem meum contemplari => don't survey/regard/consider carefully my butt

Noli is singular (so you're only telling the one person not to look your butt)
Nolite is the plural (so you get to tell a whole roomful)

Noli/Nolite is the word the romans used for don't and it literally translates to be unwilling . Also, latin has NO word order as is in english so the line would translate literally to:

(Be unwilling) (butt) (my) (to look)

This is just so you know each word. Anyone who knows latin would understand it immediately as

Don't look at my butt

hope all this helps, and as always, get it checked by a few more latinists before getting it cut.

Vale.
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jadeladine
 
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Reply Sun 24 Apr, 2005 02:48 pm
Thank you mso much. Thats great

Jade x
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