Germ. 27.1Fūnerum nūlla ambitiō: id sōlum observātur ut corpora clārōrum virōrum certīs lignīs crementur.There is no ostentation in their funerals: this alone is observed, that the bodies of famous men are burned with particular kinds of wood. Germ. 27.2Struem rogī nec vestibus nec odōribus cumulant: sua cuique arma, quōrundam ignī et equus adicitur.They do not heap the pyre with garments or spices: each man's arms, and for some his horse too, are added to the fire. Germ. 27.2Sepulcrum caespes ērigit: monumentōrum arduum et operōsum honōrem ut gravem dēfūnctīs aspernantur.A mound of turf forms the tomb: the lofty and laborious honour of monuments they scorn as a burden to the dead. Germ. 27.2Lāmenta ac lacrimās citō, dolōrem et trīstitiam tardē pōnunt.Laments and tears they put aside quickly, grief and sorrow slowly. Germ. 27.2Fēminīs lūgēre honestum est, virīs meminisse.For women it is honourable to mourn, for men to remember. Germ. 27.3Haec in commūne dē omnium Germānōrum orīgine ac mōribus accēpimus: nunc singulārum gentium īnstitūta rītūsque quātenus differant, quaeque nātiōnēs ē Germāniā in Galliās commigrāverint, expediam.This is what we have learned in general about the origin and customs of all the Germans: now I shall set out how far the institutions and rites of the individual peoples differ, and which tribes have migrated from Germany into the Gauls.
Lectitō › Tacitus › Germania › Germania 27
Tacitus · Germania
Germania 27
Funeral customs
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Latin vocabulary for this passage (71 words)
| fūnus, -eris n. | funeral |
| nūllus, -a, -um | not any, none, no |
| ambitiō, -ōnis f. | canvassing for office; ambition, desire for honours |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| sōlum (adv.); solum, -ī n. | only (nōn sōlum … sed etiam: not only … but also); ground, soil |
| observō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | watch; keep, respect |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| corpus, corporis, n. | body |
| clārus, -a, -um | clear, loud; famous |
| vir, virī, m. | man |
| certus, -a, -um | determined, fixed, certain; certiōrem facere, to make more certain, inform |
| lignum, -ī, n. | wood |
| cremō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | burn |
| struēs, -is f. | a heap, pile; a pile of sacrificial cakes; a pyre |
| rogus, -ī, m. | funeral pile, pyre |
| neque or nec, conj. | and not, nor; neque ... neque, neither ... nor; neque enim, for ... not |
| vestis, -is, f. | clothing, dress, robe |
| odor, -ōris, m. | smell, odor |
| cumulō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | heap up; crown, cap (one deed with another) |
| suus, -a, -um | his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their |
| quisque, quaeque, quidque, indef. pron. | each |
| arma, -ōrum, n. plur. | arms, weapons |
| quīdam, quaedam, quoddam, indef. pron. | a certain, certain |
| ignis, -is, m. | fire |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| equus, -ī, m. | horse |
| adiciō, -icere, -iēcī, -iectus | throw to, throw, hurl |
| sepulcrum, -ī n. | tomb, grave |
| caespes, -itis m. | turf, sod |
| ērigō, -rigere, -rēxī, -rēctus | raise or set up, raise, lift; cheer, encourage |
| monumentum, -ī n. | memorial, monument; record |
| arduus, -a, -um | steep, difficult |
| operōsus, -a, -um | laborious, troublesome; costly in effort |
| honor, -ōris, m. | honor |
| gravis, -e | heavy; severe, grievous, serious |
| dēfungor, -fungī, -fūnctus sum | finish, be done with; dēfūnctus: dead |
| aspernor, -ārī, -ātus sum | spurn, reject, scorn |
| lāmentum, -ī n. | (usu. pl.) wailing, lamentation |
| atque, ac (conj.) | and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants) |
| lacrima, -ae, f. | tear |
| citō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | set in motion, urge on; citātus: swift, rushing |
| dolor, -ōris, m. | pain, grief; anger |
| trīstitia, -ae, f. | sadness |
| tardē (adv.) | slowly; comp. tardius |
| pōnō, pōnere, posuī, positus | place, put; pōnī with in and abl., to be placed in, rest or depend on |
| fēmina, -ae, f. | woman |
| lūgeō, -ēre, lūxī, lūctus | mourn, grieve for |
| honestus, -a, -um | respected, honourable |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| meminī, meminisse | remember |
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| commūnis, -e | common, shared, public |
| dē, prep, with abl. | down from, from, out of; about, concerning, of |
| omnis, -e | all, every |
| orīgō, -inis f. | origin, beginning, source; ancestry |
| mōs, mōris, m. | way, manner, habit, custom |
| accipiō, -cipere, -cēpī, -ceptus | take to oneself, receive, accept; hear; suffer |
| nunc, adv. | now |
| singulī, -ae, -a | one at a time, single |
| gēns, gentis, f. | race, nation |
| īnstitūtum, -ī n. | custom, institution |
| rītus, -ūs m. | rite, ceremony; custom, manner |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| quātenus (adv.) | how far, to what extent |
| differō, differre, distulī, dīlātum | differ; scatter, put off |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| nātiō, -ōnis f. | people, nation; birth |
| ex, ē (prep. + abl.) | out of, from; of (ē only before consonants) |
| commigrō, -āre, -āvī | move (house), migrate |
| expediō, -īre, -īvī, -ītus | free, set clear; get ready; arrange, settle |
Tacitus, Germania. Latin text: H. Furneaux, Cornelii Taciti Opera Minora (Oxford, 1900), public domain; digital text from the Perseus Digital Library, CC BY-SA. Word analysis: drafted by our own tagger (trained on the hand-checked texts on this site), with every doubtful word checked by hand. English translation and section titles: written for this app, each checked against the Latin by a second reader.