When you’re able to understand more of the complicated language in these old classics, you’ll enjoy the classics more and get more meaning out of the text making reading old favorites easier and more pleasurable. Why are they called Romance languages? You’re not learning the entire language with its grammar and all its quirks. You will likewise find that many modern politicians, orators and other famous influencers have a background in Latin as they find it assists them with the English language. To get you started, we’ve put together a free list of some of the most common Latin and Greek word roots! One of the hidden benefits of learning to read the Greek New Testament is that you have to slow down your reading to get the comprehension. 90% of English words having more than one syllable are Latin-based and the remaining 10% are Greek-based. Edit: You guys! Greek is simply no longer a lingua franca in any area of the world aside from Greece itself and some of the immediate environs, such as Cypress. Study Latin To Improve Your Cognitive Skills Learning Latin will require some (hard) work and a fair amount of (long) hours of study. (The verb is complicated by a number of “aspects”—and I rather fancy that it enjoys three complete voices and a couple of extra aorists—but I may be thinking of Basque or Sanskrit.) The Ancient Greek Language and Culture are the Foundation of Western Civilization . Take the word autobiography for example. Spoken French or German can be practised alongside the grammatical discipline of the Latin. Estimates vary, but as much as 70% of words in the English language have a Latin or Greek root. Studying Latin in school is recommended for those interested in law, science and religion. Are these points valid? Or are there other benefits of studying a dead language like Latin or Greek which outweigh the disadvantages? Math scores also increase. Latin requires and teaches attention to detail, accuracy, patience, precision, and thorough, honest work. After all, it’s cooler to have a degree in woman’s studies – or at least some type of diploma that can land a person a decent paying job. Latin will form the minds of your students. Just like when we were learning our native language, we read slowly at first, but then sped up. Secondarily, learning these roots can give you a leg up if you are interested in learning another Romance Language like Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, or Romanian. But you can send us an email and we'll get back to you, asap. As such, a working knowledge of Ancient Greek helps you have a better grasp of English. Many students might make a face when told they should learn Latin and Greek word roots. Not quite. This part contains the key to a word’s meaning. By Annie Holmquist. Sign up for our newsletter and get access to useful tips and resources before we publish them to our site. "Without Latin, I would not be as effective, as creative, or as articulate as a professional. Very, very few adults will passionately blog about their schooling some 15 years after graduating. Here are some examples: So, even if you’ve never seen a large word, you can often figure out the general meaning of the larger word by knowledge of the smaller root words. Most immediately, students studying these roots may see an improvement in their performance on vocabulary tests. 3. Your email address will not be published. Please Note: In this article, we will be mostly referring to the dead language of Latin. There are a number of ways you can learn Latin and Greek. Writing and Reading: The increased vocabulary and understanding of grammar gained by studying Latin enables students to write and read with greater ease and clarity. 5 Benefits of Learning Ancient Greek Ever since I began studying ancient Greek, people have continuously been asking me why I chose it as my foreign language. It's not just enhanced vocabulary. The chief benefit, I would still insist, is to be able to read Greek literature in its original terms. She has a husband Tristan and is a participant at Wollongong Baptist Church. And she wishes every kid could get a taste of homeschooling at its very best. In the same vein, English is a derivative of Latin and Greek and so understanding these dead languages helps you understand English more. There’s nothing more to the meaning of the word in this form. Some words, however, have extra parts. Latin Helps You Maximize SAT scores . Dead languages like Latin and Greek help you understand other languages called the Romance languages. 18 Reasons Every Student Should Volunteer. There are some things in it that don’t make sense and once you’ve figured out a rule, you have to then memorize a few dozen exceptions to that rule. Cons of Learning Greek. My superiors in every way, Michael Masiello and Robert Todd, have given you the high-minded reasons to, and I commend them. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Many would answer that question with a yes. Discover great tips, curriculum advice, how to start home educating, and much more at. Many standardized tests have a vocabulary component. Cheryl Lowe from Memoria Press claims that knowing the Latin language cuts the task of learning a new language in half. If you don’t know the language well, you’ll either fight your way through the book or put it down in despair, vowing to never pick up a complicated tome again. Estimates vary, but as much as 70% of words in the English language have a Latin or Greek root. Most people who have studied a legal or medical degree will tell you that knowledge of a dead language like Latin or Greek is helpful. Having sat under many pastors who know Greek, I’ve been greatly helped by the pastors explaining the root words of the Greek language which has added context, meaning and weight to many passages I’ve heard expounded. Cheryl Lowe insightfully explains: …the mind of the student that has been educated in Latin takes on the qualities of Latin: logic, order, discipline, structure. If you know Latin, you’ll be able to pick up almost any English book and be confident you will be able to understand it. Stay on top of important dates, strategies, and reminders to help your student succeed! What is the best tool that will help you learn the English language? Because they are inherently alluring? “Approximately 60% of English words come from Latin and Greek roots”, he says in his book Essential Words for the GRE. Sometimes it’s hard to make the connection between the two. study of the Classical World comes with a certain stereotype attached, an ancient teacher in a thick cardigan and glasses endlessly repeating ‘amo, amas, amat..’ and ‘Caecilius est Once you master those roots, start learning more about the prefixes and suffixes. But as the Latin saying goes, Nemo dat quod non habet—“No one gives what he doesn’t have.” We must first create teachers of Latin and Greek before we are able to create more students of Latin and Greek. There are many useful reasons you’d learn a dead language like Latin and Greek. as much as 70% of words in the English language, some of the most common Latin and Greek word roots, How To Make The Most of Your College Visits, More Punctuation Rules Students Should Know For the ACT and SAT, Common Literary Devices Students Should Know. Historically, Greece and the United States have also been strong allies in every conflict of the 20th and 21st century. Learning Greek and Hebrew helps these students understand the context of a passage better than they might if they were only reading the Bible in English. Parent Accreditation & Qualification FAQs, Why Learn Latin or Greek: Benefits of Studying a Dead Language. Take the word. Think of the mind like the body. Some come from Latin and Greek. When this point on Latin is raised pejoratively, I like to ask: “What language did you take in high school or college?” After stating a living language, I ask, “Could you manage a conversation with someone in thi… She had this to say about when to start: Latin should be begun as early as possible—at a time when inflected speech seems no more astonishing than any other phenomenon in an astonishing world; and when the chanting of “amo, amas, amat” is as ritually agreeable to the feelings as the chanting of “eeny, meeny, miney, mo.” – Lost Tools of Learning, p. 10. There is something also to be said for classical Greek. This is because knowing Latin and Greek means you know the root words of some very large words. When I first made the choice, it was largely because of a new found love for all things classical. Therefore, in this article, I’ll be showing you these advantages, namely that Latin and Greek help you: Far from what some people might think, studying something that’s ‘dead’ isn’t always useless. It is for these reasons that you should be encouraged to learn these great languages. In fact, Latin is largely derived from Greek origins and might be called the daughter of the Greek language. The ones that don’t still tend to test you on vocabulary in some way, so being familiar with these roots will help you identify the meanings of words you’ve never seen before. Latin isn’t dead. In GCSE Latin or Ancient Greek, more complex grammatical structures are introduced than those in modern foreign language GCSEs. –  Lost Tools of Learning, p. 10. Estimates vary, but, Every word has a root. He thought both languages were useful and lead to a better (and more enjoyable) understanding of the English language and languages in general. Tag:ACT, English Language, English Roots, English Word Roots, Greek, ISEE, Latin, Latin and Greek Roots, Prefixes, Roots, SAT, SSAT, Suffixes, Test Prep, Vocabulary, Word Roots. It has just evolved into other languages. And this will help you enjoy it more. });A short time ago, a friend mentioned she had recently read a book saying there are very few benefits of studying a dead language like Latin or Greek. There are so many roots to learn. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({ arguments against learning a dead language like Latin or Greek, list of Latin words with English derivatives. Russian is, of course, helpful with the other Slav dialects. Because of this, Latin also trains pupils in ‘big picture’ and ‘little picture’ thinking as they consider the larger word in the context of the smaller word(s) and vice versa. If you choose to learn the whole language, there are many other benefits to learning Latin! The author pointed out that having knowledge of Latin or Greek languages was once useful as you could have read the classics (as they weren’t yet translated into English). The Language of Philosophy and “STEAM” Latin aids the mind in other ways … Latin is a unit study where the work is done for you. HDIH is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. Studies on the Impact of Learning Latin The hypothesis that learning Latin is associated with broad transfer effects was seriously challenged as early as the beginning of the past century. About How Do I Homeschool: What We’re All About! Instead, you have to read a book to get a grasp of the niche topic you want to know more about. This part contains the key to a word’s meaning. I know that the Romans spoke Latin alongside Greek. Latin -- as well as Greek and the classics in general -- is essential to a true education as it provides a coherent matrix for learning and a context for all knowledge," says Duncan S. McPherson, a designer of computer games and software with Magic Lantern Playware in Monmouth, Illinois. Learning Latin vocabulary first often makes Spanish courses much easier to comprehend later. If you’re interested in a niche topic, you may not find a satisfying video on the subject. Studying Latin in high school and college is also recommended for those interested in law, science, medicine or religion as a college major. Not so with Latin. Spanish, French, Italian, Portugese, and Romanian are all romance languages, and these languages derive more than 80% of words from Latin and their grammatical structure is similar to that of Latin. Required fields are marked *. – Dorothy Sayers, Lost Tools of Learning, p. 10. You often hear people talk about the “practical benefits” of learning Latin, such as being able to understand legal, medical, and scientific terminology, expanding your vocabulary, and gaining a better understanding of English grammar. As they think more deeply about different subjects such as politics, religion, economics (and so on), they’re able to learn the subject in more depth and more quickly. 8.) Learning dead languages like Latin and Greek give these people an edge and makes them think differently. She's also written a book about why parents should homeschool called 'Why on Earth Homeschool'. A single Latin or Greek root (i.e., word part) can unlock the meaning of up to 30 English words. Check out this list of Latin words with English derivatives. You may have heard someone say something like “Latin is the root of all languages.” That’s not quite true; there’s over 7000 different languages, and it would be really impressive if all of them came out of Latin. Having learned a little French in my homeschooling education, I can attest that learning Latin made learning French in high school easier. You should start by learning some of the most common word roots. Well, read below and you’ll see. You can learn through apps, books or a combination of the two. If you can say Latin is the mother of the English language, you can say ancient Greek is the mother of the Latin language (and hence the grandmother of the English language!). While many people can understand homeschooling increasing in response to[...], Are there any inherent problems with homeschooling or issues that[...], Encouraging interest-based learning (IBL) is important for growing lifelong scholars[...]. They gain greater knowledge of culture and history and then consequently, gain a better perspective on life. Get the Facts! Of course, Greek and Hebrew are also orderly, neat and help you like this, but to learn these languages students have to learn a new alphabet. The video here makes the point that saying you don’t want to study a dead language is like: Let’s have a look at these reasons in more detail below. Either way, I'm going to learn Greek after Italian and then learn Latin. Learning Latin in high school automatically gives you a leg up on your verbal SAT. It seems an unfortunate thing that we call ancient Latin and Greek ‘dead languages’. Learning Latin has big benefits for children ... as a hugely valuable contribution to their command of English and a firm foundation for their future modern language learning. Learning Modern Greek allows students better access to Greek and Cypriot history as well as a deeper understanding and appreciation of these rich contemporary cultures. However, I consider it the reverse. 4. When the suffix graph, meaning to write is added to it, it means a story about someone or something’s life. Do we erroneously force classically educated students to study Latin to their detriment, or are there more solid reasons behind this insistence on studying a dead language? I say this, not because Latin is traditional and mediæval, but simply because even a rudimentary knowledge of Latin cuts down the labor and pains of learning almost any other subject by at least 50 percent. Many words in English, especially the “hard” or “smart” words, often have at least one Latin or Greek root somewhere within. I'm learning Greek for the history and culture, plus, It was around when Latin was spoken. Phillip Geer, who received his Master’s in education and has taught English for years, tells us why this is so. You won’t trip over complicated phrases but think on a higher level, making connections with other things you’ve read. But, there are only so many videos on so many topics. She (and I) found it very dry, monotonous, and plain boring. Not only will this help you in school across the board (science fields are known for their use Greek and Latin terminology), but knowing Greek and Latin roots will help you on major standardized tests like the PSAT, ACT, SAT and even the LSAT and GRE. Take the word happy for example. Big advantage! But whenever someone offers to convert to Judaism, it is a Jew’s duty to try and talk them out of it three times. And according to Classical Conversations, the Germanic part of modern-day English teaches more concrete terms while Latin teaches more of the abstract terms. Latin teaches you the Latin part of it. Professor Edward Townes also says this applies to the Greek language in his post Why Learn Ancient Greek? Want to stay ahead of your peers? When she's not blogging Rebecca is still homeschooling her-adult-self by learning Latin, growing weird vegetables and most importantly looking after her two children Luke & Penny. Dorothy Sayers says we should start teaching quite early. All in all, that’s the best argument for studying it. Those whose pedantic preference for a living language persuades them to deprive their pupils of all these advantages might substitute Russian, whose grammar is still more primitive. Names of standardized tests are owned by the trademark holders and are not affiliated with Strive Academics. Please add widgets to this widgetized area ("Side Panel Section") in Appearance > Widgets. Right there is a very good reason to learn Greek – but perhaps for most people an impractical one. The root is bio meaning life. This word only contains the root which means full of joy. Auto means by one’s self. We call these prefixes (attached before the root) and suffixes (attached behind the root). The English language is complicated! Some other arguments against learning a dead language like Latin or Greek are that (1) it makes students unnecessarily pompous (as they’ll be using Latin words when no one understands what they’re talking about) and (2) unless you learn these languages very extensively, you won’t really be able to read the classics anyway. Many in our generation are so illiterate these days that we generally prefer a video on a topic as opposed to a book (cue Youtube). A study of Classical languages thus benefits learning across the whole curriculum. But my own choice is Latin. As mentioned above, a firmer grasp of various word roots will help you understand the English language better, which will help you with your vocabulary recognition and retention skills. Both classical tongues (Latin & Greek) greatly aid in learning other inflected languages, such as German or Russian. 5. Sadly, Greece as a nation has faded quite a bit from the world stage. Latin and Greek, however, can be more than the best means to achieve excellent training and preparation for future challenges.Studying Classics can also be the springboard to a lifelong experience with literature, philosophy, and culture. And since Latin and Greek are foundational to a number of other Romance languages, the study of them will make learning these other languages easier, thus reaping the benefits already described above. By learning more about these roots and how they combine to create new words, it will also give you an advantage in understanding new words, even if you’ve never seen them before. Add on the prefix, and the meaning changes again. Based on the additional meanings of the prefixes and suffixes, the meaning of the final word will be shaped to mean something new. Yes, There Are Benefits to Studying Latin. Every word has a root. I feel as if learning Greek brings me closer to the past as a history nut. And Cicero and Virgil and Thomas Aquinas are really just scratching the surface. Studying Latin, the quintessential language of oratory, affects positively the way we create discourse in English and helps us to express ourselves with more effectiveness and confidence. Your email address will not be published. A student learning and speaking English might wonder what the point in learning any sort of Latin would be. This is what one educational guru said on the matter: I will say at once, quite firmly, that the best grounding for education is the Latin grammar. Your English grammar will definitely be placed on very firm and sound foundation after struggling with Latin or ancient Greek, but you will be nearly quite as well off sitting down for an afternoon with a … Because students can see a word and make connections to it based on their knowledge of the Latin terms contained therein, they become deeper and more critical thinkers. Divinity students routinely take classes in ancient Greek and Hebrew which helps them understand the original texts and mine the text for its original meaning and context. You can also find selected courses online. And she loved it. People who have learned Latin or Greek can more easily determine the meaning of big words they’ve never seen before as the large words in our vocabulary are usually made up of smaller Latin or Greek words. We're not around right now. and learning Greek and Latin root words, they might want to try Visual Latin. , patience, precision, and literature English words and literature Latin vocabulary first often Spanish! Many videos on so many topics edge and makes them think differently like English French. Great tips, curriculum advice, how to reason and think better husband Tristan and a! Also makes benefits of learning latin and greek point in learning other inflected languages, Latin is dead, which means no speaks. 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