De Bello Gallico 5.14

5.14.1Ex hīs omnibus longē sunt hūmānissimī quī Cantium incolunt, quae regiō est maritima omnis, neque multum ā Gallicā differunt cōnsuētūdine.

Of all these by far the most civilized are those who live in Kent, a region that is entirely by the sea, and they do not differ much from Gallic customs.

5.14.2Interiōrēs plērīque frūmenta nōn serunt, sed lacte et carne vīvunt pellibusque sunt vestītī.

Most of those inland do not sow grain, but live on milk and meat and are dressed in skins.

Note. lacte et carne: ablatives with vīvunt, 'they live on milk and meat'.

5.14.2Omnēs vērō sē Britannī vitrō īnficiunt, quod caeruleum efficit colōrem, atque hōc horridiōrēs sunt in pugnā aspectū;

All the Britons, though, dye themselves with woad, which produces a dark blue colour, and this makes them look more frightening in battle;

Note. vitrum here is woad, the plant that gives a blue dye, not glass. hōc: 'because of this', an ablative of cause.

5.14.3capillōque sunt prōmissō atque omnī parte corporis rāsā praeter caput et labrum superius.

they wear their hair long and shave every part of the body except the head and the upper lip.

Note. capillō … prōmissō: an ablative of description, 'they are of long hair', that is, they wear their hair long.

5.14.4Uxōrēs habent dēnī duodēnīque inter sē commūnēs et maximē frātrēs cum frātribus parentēsque cum līberīs;

Groups of ten or twelve men share their wives among themselves, especially brothers with brothers and parents with children;

5.14.4sed quī sunt ex hīs nātī, eōrum habentur līberī, quō prīmum virgō quaeque dēducta est.

but the children born of these unions are counted as the children of the man to whom each girl was first brought as a bride.

Note. quō … dēducta est: 'to whom … was led as a bride'. dēdūcō is the regular word for bringing a bride to her husband's house.