Lectitō › Julius Caesar › Gallic War, Book 6
De Bello Gallico 6.18
Nights, birthdays and sons
Caesar, De Bello Gallico VI. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in Lectitō6.18.1Gallī sē omnēs ab Dīte patre prognātōs praedicant idque ab druidibus prōditum dīcunt.
The Gauls all declare that they are descended from Father Dis, and they say that this has been handed down by the Druids.
Note. Dīs pater: the Roman name for the god of the underworld; Caesar gives Gallic gods Roman names, as he did in the previous chapter. Dīte is ablative of Dīs.
6.18.2Ob eam causam spatia omnis temporis nōn numerō diērum sed noctium fīniunt;
For this reason they mark out every stretch of time by the number not of days but of nights;
6.18.2diēs nātālēs et mēnsum et annōrum initia sīc observant ut noctem diēs subsequātur.
they keep birthdays and the beginnings of months and years in such a way that the day follows the night.
Note. diēs nātālēs: 'birthdays'. ut noctem dies subsequatur: the day follows the night, so a day is reckoned from sunset, as in the Hebrew calendar.
6.18.3In reliquīs vītae īnstitūtīs hōc ferē ab reliquīs differunt, quod suōs līberōs, nisi cum adolēvērunt, ut mūnus mīlitiae sustinēre possint, palam ad sē adīre nōn patiuntur fīliumque puerīlī aetāte in pūblicō in cōnspectū patris adsistere turpe dūcunt.
In the other customs of life they differ from the rest of mankind chiefly in this: they do not allow their own sons to come up to them in public until they have grown up enough to be able to bear military service, and they think it shameful for a son still a boy to stand in public in his father's sight.
Note. nisi cum adolēvērunt: 'except when they have grown up'. ut mūnus mīlitiae sustinēre possint: a result clause, 'so that they can bear military service'.
Vocabulary
| suī, sibi, sē or sēsē, reflexive pron. | himself, herself, itself, themselves |
| omnis, -e | all, every |
| ā, ab (prep. + abl.) | away from, from; by (ā only before consonants) |
| pater, patris, m. | father |
| prognātus, -a, -um | descended (from) |
| praedicō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | proclaim; boast of |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| druidēs, -um m. pl. | the Druids (Gallic priests) |
| prōdō, -ere, -didī, -ditum | hand down; betray |
| dīcō, dīcere, dīxī, dictus | say, speak; diem dīcere, to appoint or set a day |
| ob, prep. with acc. | on account of, for; in compounds, to, against |
| causa, -ae, f. | cause, reason; abl. causā, for the sake of |
| spatium, -ī, n. | space, interval; space of time, time |
| tempus, temporis, n. | time, season |
| nōn, adv. | not |
| numerus, -ī, m. | number |
| diēs, -ēī, m. and f. | day |
| sed, conj. | but |
| nox, noctis, f. | night |
| fīniō, -īre, -īvī, -ītus | bound, limit; end |
| nātālis, -e | of birth (diēs nātālis: birthday) |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| mēnsis, -is m. | month |
| annus, -ī, m. | year |
| initium, -ī, n. | beginning |
| sīc, adv. | so, thus |
| observō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | watch; keep, respect |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| subsequor, -ī, -secūtus sum | follow closely |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| reliquus, -a, -um | left, the remaining, the other, the rest of |
| vīta, -ae, f. | life |
| īnstitūtum, -ī n. | custom, institution |
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| ferē, adv. | nearly, about, almost, for the most part |
| differō, differre, distulī, dīlātum | differ; scatter, put off |
| quod, conj. | that, in that, because |
| suus, -a, -um | his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their |
| līberī, -ōrum, m. plur. | children |
| nisi, conj. | if not, unless |
| cum, conj. | when, while, after; since; although |
| adolēscō, -ere, adolēvī, adultus | grow up |
| mūnus, mūneris, n. | service, office, duty; present, gift |
| mīlitia, -ae f. | military service |
| sustineō, -tinēre, -tinuī, -tentus | hold or bear up, sustain, withstand |
| possum, posse, potuī | be able, have power, can |
| palam (adv.) | openly, publicly |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| adeō, -īre, -iī, -itus | go to, approach |
| patior, patī, passus, bear | suffer, allow |
| fīlius, -ī, m. | son |
| puerīlis, -e | of a boy, of childhood |
| aetās, -tātis, f. | age |
| pūblicus, -a, -um | public, of the state (rēs pūblica: the state) |
| cōnspectus, -ūs, m. | sight |
| adsistō, -ere, adstitī | stand by, stand near; appear |
| turpis, -e | disgraceful |
| dūcō, dūcere, dūxī, ductus | lead; make, dig; with or without in mātrimōnium, marry |