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Antique Bound

Why Latin?

"To read the Latin and Greek authors in their original is a sublime luxury. I thank on my knees him who directed my early education for having put into my possession their rich source of delight. I would not exchange it for anything..."

Thomas Jefferson

10 Reasons for Studying Latin

A summary of Cheryl Lowe's article, "Ten Reasons for Learning Latin"
You can find the entire article on memoriapress.com

  • Latin is the next step after phonics.

    • ​English is the marriage of two languages - English and Latin. Once students begin encountering the Latin part of our English language, they struggle with the bigger, harder, more abstract pronunciations of these words. How do we teach the Latin part in a systematic orderly way like we do phonics? We don't. But we should. â€‹

  • One half of English words come from Latin.

    • Now, your child has learned the English word, father, but then he progresses through school and meets a whole new set of words: 3-5 syllable, difficult, abstract words that come from the Latin word for father - pater. How do we prepare the student for these Latin rooted words - patriarch, patriarchy, paternal, patrimony, patriot, patronize, and so on?​​​

  • Latin provides the root words for all of the modern sciences.

    • Latin (and Greek) provides the root words for the specialized vocabularies of not one, not half, but all of the modern sciences.​

  • Latin is the language of law, government, logic, and theology.

    • Not only does Latin provide the root words for all of the modern sciences, but Latin is the language of law, politics, logic, and theology. While a large number of words in science come from Greek, law is the exclusive domain of the Latin language.​

  • Latin is the most efficient way to learn English grammar.

    • English grammar is a difficult subject for many students for multiple reasons - it is difficult to analyze something that comes instinctively, and students don't need grammar to speak their own language. Latin is a concrete and structured language and is visible because of its inflection. Students can literally see what the noun is doing in the sentence based on its ending. It is much easier to analyze English grammar through the lens of Latin.​

  • Latin is the best preparation for learning any language.

    • Once you really understand how language works, the task of learning a new language will be more than cut in half. Latin is the best preparation for learning a Romance language, or any language.​

  • Latin trains and develops the mind.

    • Subjects are formative. Your mind takes on the qualities of the subjects on which it dwells. The mind educated in Latin takes on the qualities of Latin: logic, order, discipline, structure. Latin requires and teaches attention to detail, accuracy, patience, precision, and thorough, honest work.​

  • Latin is the best unit study.

    • In Latin, everything is connected and integrated. There is no subject you can study that connects with every other subject more than Latin.​

  • Latin is transformative.

    • The two most difficult and challenging subjects in the curriculum are mathematics and languages. Both subjects are necessarily cumulative. Everything must be remembered; nothing can be forgotten. But, without Latin, mathematics is the standalone cumulative subject that develops higher, deeper, more advanced skills year after year. We need that kind of experience on the language side, and Latin is that answer.​

  • Latin is the mother tongue of Western civilization.

    • No one would think that we could study and preserve American civilization without studying and preserving English. The same is true of Western civilization. Latin is the most influential language in human history. Latin is not dead; it's immortal.​

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