Languages Latin

Rarus fortuna sua contentus – easy Latin text for beginners

Latin is one of my favourite languages. I know it quite well. Or better said – I knew but I forgot a lot of it. Now, I want to (re)learn it but also be able to speak it as fluently as possible. There are already some Youtubers making video in the language so maybe I will be able to join them in future. Right now, I practise my pronunciation and hence the video. I read a short story from one of my Latin books, the first I used for learning the language. If you have any suggestions on the pronunciation I would be grateful for your commenst! If the story could be better written, let me know too. However, the text wasn’t written by me.

The book: O. Jurewicz, L. Winniczuk, J. Żuławska, Język łaciński. Podręcznik dla lektoratów szkół wyższych, PWN, Warszawa 2011; text: Rarus fortuna sua contentus, page 40.

RARUS FORTUNA SUA CONTENTUS

Numquam fortuna nostra contenti sumus. Agricola fortuna sua contentus non est, nautae fortunae invidet. “Beatus es, nauta, – inquit – multas terras visitas, divitias magnas habes. Ego miser sum, semper laboro, fatigatus iam sum, numquam otium mihi est”. Tum nauta: “Tu, agricola, beatus es: in casa tua habitas,  pericula non times, vitam securam agis. Ego autem ventos et procellos semper timeo. Numquam securus sum”. Tum deus apparet et “En, ego – inquit – fortunam vestram muto. Tu, nauta, agrum ara, agricola es! Tu autem, agricola, navigium conscende et divitias para!” Nauta agricolam, agricola nautam spectat, et nauta, et agricola vitam suam laudare student. Agricola in casa manet, nauta navigium conscendit. Saepe aliena nobis placent. Notum est dictum Polonorum: Aliena laudatis, vestra ignoratis.

About the author

Ioannes Oculus

I am addicted to languages, both modern and ancient. No language is dead as long as we can read and understand it. I want to share my linguistic passion with like minded people. I am also interested in history, astronomy, genealogy, books and probably many others. My goals now are to write a novel in Latin, a textbook for Latin learners, Uzbek-Polish, Polish-Uzbek dictionary, modern Uzbek grammar and textbook for learners. My dream is to have a big house in UK or USA where I could keep all my books and have enough time and money to achieve my goals.

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