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  • “Why Study Latin?” Series — Reason #3: Logical Skills

    “Why Study Latin?” Series — Reason #3: Logical Skills

    How does Latin develop students’ logical-thinking skills?

    In the last article in this series I explained how the difference in the structure of a Latin sentence versus an English sentence forces students to understand the grammar of both languages in a deep, detailed way, which leads to students reading, writing, and speaking English at a much higher level. This is just ONE of the benefits of this difference, though. In fact, this structural dissimilarity also has a second very positive effect on students–it forces them to develop advanced LOGICAL SKILLS.

    Translating a sentence from Latin to English or English to Latin requires the student to transfer the meaning of the sentence out of one structural system into an entirely dfferent one. And because these two systems have so little in common with each other, the English-speaking student isn’t able to rely on his or her intuitive understanding of sentence structure in the way he/she can when translating between English and modern European languages like Spanish, French, or Portuguese. This forces the student to go beyond the intuitive to a conscious and detailed understanding of how both systems work and then figure out how to move from one to the other in a logical way.

    I’ll do my best to clarify what I mean through a few examples.

    English vs. Modern-Language Sentence Structure

    First, let’s look at a very simple English sentence:

    “The boy reads the book.”

    The Spanish translation of this sentence is:

    “El niño lee el libro.”

    The logic of the English and Spanish sentences is the same. We have an action verb in the middle, which we identify as the verb both because it comes second in the sentence and also because it clearly indicates an action. We also have a subject, which we know must be the subject because it immediately precedes the verb, and a direct object, which we know is a direct object because it follows the verb.

    The following English words/phrases have these Spanish direct translations:

    “The boy” = “el niño” [singular noun with definite article]

    “Reads” = “lee” [present, third-person singular verb form]

    “The book” = “el libro” [singular noun with definite article]

    Since the structural logic of the two languages is exactly the same, with the roles of words dependent on their position in the sentence, to produce a Spanish translation we simply replace each English word/phrase with the corresponding Spanish word/phrase in the same position in the sentence.  

    English: “The boy [subject] reads [action verb] the book [direct object].”

    Spanish: “El niño [subject] lee [action verb] el libro [direct object].”

    In both languages the role of the noun (subject or direct object) is indicated by its position in the sentence, and the final meaning of the sentence is then determined by the order of the words. Because the logic of sentence structure is (at least in this case) the same for both languages, the student can translate this quite easily, replacing each English word with its Spanish translation in the exact same spot in the sentence. This means that the student can rely on his/her intuitive understanding of sentence structure and doesn’t need to understand many of the the details of grammar.

    English vs. Latin Sentence Structure

    A Latin sentence, on the other hand, is governed by a completely different set of rules of grammar and has a completely different overall logic to it. In Latin the role of a noun is indicated not by its position in the sentence but by its particular ending.

    The following English words/phrases in the same English sentence (“The boy reads the book”) have these Latin direct translations:

    “The boy” = “puer” [singular subject noun, which therefore has the nominative singular ending; Latin has no articles, so the article is dropped]

    “Reads” = “legit” [present, third-person singular verb form]

    “The book” = “librum” [singular direct-object noun, which therefore has the accusative singular ending; again, the article is dropped]

    If we maintain the same order of elements in the sentence, then the English sentence is translated to Latin thus:

    English: “The boy [subject] reads [action verb] the book [direct object].”

    Latin: “Puer [subject] legit [action verb] librum [direct object].”

    Unlike English and Spanish, the subject and direct object must be given the ending that corresponds with their role in the sentence (which is expressed by case) and number. This is necessary because (unlike English and Spanish) Latin doesn’t demand that the words be placed in any particular order. The Latin sentence “Puer legit librum” could be expressed in any of the following ways with no difference in meaning:

    “Puer librum legit.”

    “Librum puer legit.”

    “Librum legit puer.”

    “Legit puer librum.”

    “Legit librum puer.”

    While there are certain general word-order conventions in Latin, these conventions are not anywhere close to absolute and are broken quite often (particularly in Latin poetry), so it is essential that the student fully understand this very different structural logic and also memorize the many endings that are used to express this logic. The need for a very specific understanding of grammar becomes obvious if we take one of the five Latin translations that doesn’t follow English word order and then translate it to English.

    Latin: “Legit librum puer.”

    “Legit” [present, third-person singular verb form] = “reads”

    “Librum” [noun with the accusative singular ending, which therefore is the direct object; the definite article “the” is added to conform to English convention] = “the book”

    “Puer” [noun with the nominative singular ending, which therefore is the subject; the definite article “the” is added to conform to English convention] = “the boy”

    Therefore:

    Latin: “Legit [action verb] librum [direct object] puer [subject].”

    Becomes:

    English: “Reads [action verb] the book [direct object] the boy [subject].” = “Reads the book the boy.”

    But this obviously makes no sense in English because the role of a noun in an English sentence depends on its position, not on an ending, so it is now necessary to take the pieces and reorder them to follow English word order. The final translation becomes:

    English: “The boy [subject] reads [action verb] the book [direct object].”

    Why Latin Develops Students’ Logical Skills

    As you can see from this example, translating between Latin and English is quite complex (even for a sentence as simple as this one) and is only done successfully if the student fully understands the grammatical rules and logic of both languages. And while the rules of grammar and the general steps of translation stay the same, the exact process of translation varies depending on the particular sentence and the elements included in that sentence. Students learn over time to hold a large amount of information in their minds all at once and then apply that information as needed to a particular sentence.

    Most students educated in the English-speaking world have been taught in school to think in a very linear fashion, memorizing series of steps that they then apply in the exact same way every time, or even just memorizing straight facts. Latin forces these students to develop a more lateral way of thinking. They are taught to break a complex sentence in Latin or English into its component parts and then hold all that information in their minds as they reorganize it so it conforms to the rules and conventions of the other language. This requires the development of quite advanced logical-thinking skills–skills that the student is then able to apply not just to his/her other subjects but also to many other aspects of life.

    Coming from me, a Latin teacher, I understand why you may take the following statement with a grain of salt, but I truthfully have never seen another subject (with the notable exception of Ancient Greek) that develops complex logical-thinking skills as well as Latin does. (And I’m including all levels of math.) No matter what goals the student has in life and what field the student finally chooses to go into, a solid education in Latin (under a competent Latin teacher or tutor) will allow that student to develop the logical-thinking skills he or she will need in order to excel in school, and in life in general.

    Check out the main article in this series: Why Study Latin?

  • “Why Study Latin?” Series — Reason #2: English Grammar

    “Why Study Latin?” Series — Reason #2: English Grammar

    Latin Teaches English Grammar

    It’s counterintuitive, but BECAUSE Latin and English grammar are so DIFFERENT from each other in so many ways, Latin actually teaches English grammar far better than modern languages do. In fact, a major reason for the general decline in English-grammar understanding is the steep decline in the number of students studying this ancient language. Latin teaches English grammar effectively because it provides students with a unique grammatical perspective that reveals the structure and logic of the English language, a perspective that most modern European languages don’t provide BECAUSE their sentence structure is so SIMILAR to that of English.

    How It Works

    English and most modern European languages have pretty much the same basic sentence structure. Every English sentence contains (at the very least) a subject and a verb, and may also contain a direct object, indirect object, predicate adjective or predicate nominative, objects of prepositions (in prepositional phrases), and/or possessives. All of these words are nouns (one of the parts of speech, along with adjectives, verbs, prepositions, etc.) except for the verb and predicate adjective.

    English speakers know (though usually only intuitively, not consciously) what “role” a particular noun has in a specific sentence from the position that the noun has in the sentence. The English speaker is able to identify the verb quite easily because it indicates an action (action verb) or a state of being (linking verb). In English the noun that precedes the verb will then have to be the subject of the sentence, and nouns that follow the verb will have to be a direct object or indirect object (if it’s an action verb) or a predicate nominative or predicate adjective (if it’s a linking verb). Possessives and prepositional phrases can be placed pretty much anywhere in the sentence but are easily identified by the way they’re expressed (possessive = “of the noun”, “noun’s”, or “nouns’ “; prepositional phrase = “preposition + the noun”).

    Here is a summary of the four primary English sentence templates. Every English sentence or clause will fit into one of these, though there are many variations within each template.

    1) subject – action verb – direct object – “to” – indirect object

    Ex.: “The boy gives the book to the girl.”

    2) subject – action verb – indirect object – direct object

    Ex.: “The boy gives the girl the book.”

    3) subject – linking verb – predicate nominative

    Ex. “The boy is a student.”

    4) subject – linking verb – predicate adjective

    Ex.: “The boy is smart.”

    As you can see here, we know what role each noun has by its position in the template relative to the verb and the other nouns. The logic of a Latin sentence, on the other hand, is totally different. Latin has the same parts of speech (nouns, adjectives, verbs, prepositions, etc.) and the same roles for nouns (subject, direct object, indirect object, object of preposition, possessive, predicate nominative), but the role of a noun in Latin is determined by its “case”, indicated by the ending on the noun, which changes depending on the case (role) and the number (singular or plural).

    If we translate the following English sentence into Latin, which uses the same noun in a variety of roles and numbers, we see how this works:

    English: “The man gives the men to the man of the men.”

    (subject – action verb – direct object – “to” – indirect object – possessive)

    Latin: “Vir dat viros viro virorum.”

    In the English example we know which noun is the subject, which is the direct object, and which is the indirect object by the position, and we know that the final noun is possessive from the word “of”. In the Latin translation, on the other hand, we know the role of each noun by the ending. And while in the example above I used the same word order in Latin as I used in the English sentence, this isn’t actually necessary because position isn’t needed in Latin to determine role (which is instead determined by the noun’s ending). In fact, the main parts of a Latin sentence can be put in any order. Therefore the sentence above (“Vir dat viros viro virorum”) could be written in any of the following ways:

    “Vir dat viros viro virorum.”

    “Dat vir viros viro virorum.”

    “Virorum viro dat viros vir.”

    “Viros vir viro virorum dat.”

    “Viro virorum viros dat vir.”

    And these are only SOME of the word-order possibilities for this sentence. In fact, the primary elements of the sentence (subject, verb, direct object, indirect object, prepositional phrases) could be in any order and the meaning of the sentence would still remain the same since the endings determine the roles.

    As you can see, this is a VERY different way of structuring sentences compared to English, and a successful Latin student will have no choice but to learn and be able to apply every single rule of grammar relating to the structure of both Latin and English sentences. Over the years I’ve had very few students who genuinely understood the structure of English sentences before they began their study of Latin. After a relatively short time studying Latin, though, they all developed an advanced understanding of English grammar and sentence structure. Students learning languages like Spanish, French, or Italian, on the other hand, end up understanding English barely any better than they did before because the logic of sentence structure is pretty much the same in those languages as it is in English.

    Latin students really have no choice–they HAVE to develop a detailed understanding of English grammar or they won’t be successful in Latin. But what does this mean in real terms? Well, because Latin students are forced to understand the logic and grammar of their native English language, their relationship to English tends to change in the following ways:

    Change #1) Common mistakes in English grammar are greatly reduced in speech and writing.

    An example of a common English mistake is the confusion between subject pronoun forms (I, we, he, she, they) and the corresponding object pronoun forms (me, us, him, her, them). Because the average English speaker has never learned the overall logic of the English sentence and because subject and object forms are exactly the same for all other nouns, he or she may have a hard time understanding why “Bobby and me love sports” is incorrect but “Bobby and I love sports” is correct. Most people end up relying on what they hear the people around them say, even though those people may understand English grammar no better. But because Latin nouns have distinct forms for each role in the sentence, Latin students rapidly learn the difference between subjects and objects, making the correct use of English subject and object pronouns quite easy for them.

    Change #2) Students write English more clearly and efficiently.

    Because Latin students learn the grammar and logic of English better and in more detail than other students, they develop a conscious control of the language that allows them to write in English at a higher level and much more easily. Since they now understand English sentence structure, they’re able to put sentences together with little effort and fewer mistakes. Writing skills are key for every student’s long-term success and should be a central focus of a good education. Unfortunately, the general quality of students’ writing has degenerated over time with changes in educational norms, and in recent years accelerated with the advent of AI (artificial intelligence). If you are a parent who’s concerned about this trend, there’s (in my opinion) only one clear solution–put your student in Latin. People who study Latin acquire the tools and knowledge they need to write English at a high level even if their previous education in English may have been less than ideal.

    Change #3) English reading speed and comprehension are greatly increased.

    As you’d probably guess, Latin improves students’ English reading skills just as much as it improves their writing skills. The understanding of English grammar and structure that comes with the study of Latin makes it far easier for the student to interpret English in an accurate and specxific way. This greater reading competence affects all aspects of the student’s education, making it far easier for him or her to excel in every other subject. There’s been a severe and rapid degradation in recent years in the general literacy of the English-speaking world (due partially to changes in educational models over time and partially to the explosion in the use of AI). If you’d like your student to be the exception, there’s no better and simpler solution than the study of Latin.

    Check out the main article in this series: Why Study Latin?

  • “Why Study Latin?” Series — Reason #1: English Vocabulary

    “Why Study Latin?” Series — Reason #1: English Vocabulary

    Latin Study Expands English Vocabulary

    Most high-achieving students would love to improve their English vocabulary. They know that a better understanding of the meaning and spelling of English words will lead to higher grades in a wide range of subjects and (perhaps more important to most learners and their parents) MUCH higher scores on standardized tests like the SAT and ACT. In fact, a broad and detailed understanding of English vocabulary is (probably more than anything else) what separates the highest-achieving students from the rest.

    It isn’t surprising that a good vocabulary is closely associated with improved academic achievement, but what most students and parents may not realize is that one of the best and easiest ways to learn and retain English vocabulary is through the study of Latin. Since the roots of English lie largely in Latin, gaining a solid understanding of the elements and logic of its vocabulary leads to a far better understanding of English vocabulary. This makes it much easier for the student to learn a wide range of English words and even guess (quite accurately) the meaning of words he or she has never seen before.

    But why is Latin such a great tool for learning English vocabulary? How exactly does this work?

    First of all, about 56 percent of English words are derived from Latin, either directly or through French, so the vocabulary link between the two languages is quite strong. (Finkenstaedt 1973; Xiao 2020) In addition, the Latin-derived words in English (unlike Latin-derived words in most other languages) have been purposely Latinized, their spellings largely conforming to the original Latin spelling, making it quite obvious which specific Latin word each English word was derived from.

    But how exactly does this help students understand the MEANINGS of English words? Well, the real key lies in the way Latin words are constructed.

    Most Latin words were assembled from a limited number of smaller pieces–combinations of more basic Latin words, or combinations of stems or bases and a small number of prefixes. Knowing the meanings of these pieces allows the student to guess the meaning of the larger Latin word quite accurately, which is then carried over to the related English word.

    A couple examples should make this clear.

    Example 1:

    The English word “invisible” comes from the Latin word: 

    “invisibilis, -e”

    Which is a combination of the fourth principal part of the verb:

    “video, videre, vidi, VISUS” (which means “see”)

    Plus the prefix “in-” (which means “not”),

    And so:

    “in-” (“not”) + “visus” (“see”) = “invisus” => “invisible” (“not seeable”)

    A basic knowledge of Latin allows students to discover the precise meaning of this English word by taking the meanings of the Latin pieces (the basic verb plus the prefix) and then putting those pieces together into a final combined meaning. This is just one of countless examples of English words whose meaning can be found and understood by digging down into the Latin roots.

    Example 2:

    Another example is the English word “magnanimous”, which comes from the Latin:

    “magnanimus, -a, -um”

    This is a combination of:

    “magnus, -a, -um” (“great”)

    And:

    “animus, -i” (“soul”).

    And so together:

    “magnus” (“great”) + “animus” (“soul”) = “magnanimus” => “magnanimous” (“great-souled”)

    This is a good example of Latin’s tendency toward compound words (new words formed by joining together two or more smaller words). Unfortunately, without a minimal understanding of Latin and the meanings of the two common Latin words fused together in the example above the meaning of the related English word will elude most students.

    The examples above are two of many thousands of English words that can be understood by breaking down the related Latin word into its component parts. Study of Latin reveals the actual roots and logic of English vocabulary and so makes it far easier for the student to learn new English vocabulary words and their meanings. This improves the speed and quality of the student’s English reading and writing and also boosts the student’s SAT/ACT scores.

    Because most students and parents are unaware that Latin is such an effective shortcut to English-vocabulary mastery, they generally settle for the highly inferior method of straight memorization of English words and their definitions. The reality is that most people are very bad at straight memorization, and since their attempts at memorizing English vocabulary in this way are in general so unsuccessful, the majority of students go into the SAT or ACT with one arm tied behind their backs. Students end up wasting countless hours trying to memorize long lists of vocabulary words that they’re unlikely to remember on test day or, realizing the uselessness of it all, just give up and settle for lower standardized-test scores.

    These same students, though, with just a couple years of Latin, will improve their English vocabulary knowledge far more than they could through straight memorization. The average human brain is far better at remembering the meanings of a limited number of words and/or roots that have been seen over and over (as happens with the study of Latin) and then recognizing the pieces when they appear in larger words and in this way understanding the meaning. To most students the word “magnanimous” is just an incomprehensible series of letters and/or sounds that the student is unlikely to have seen enough to know the meaning of, but to any first-year Latin student the meaning is obvious because he/she knows the meanings of the component parts. In the same way the meanings of compound English words like “backhand” and “Badlands” are obvious to English speakers who may never have heard or read those words before.

    Of course, the improved understanding of English vocabulary that comes with the study of Latin isn’t just helpful on standardized tests. It also contributes to long-term success in a variety of subjects and even helps the student at the college level and later on in life. There is a crisis of illiteracy in America. According to a 2017 PIAAC study 54% of American adults read below a sixth-grade level, and only 32% of university freshmen read at a 12th-grade level. (PIACC 2017) In an article in The Atlantic, Columbia professor Nicholas Dames states that many of his students now struggle to comprehend and finish books. Professors at UC Berkeley and Georgetown voice similar concerns in the same article. (Horowitch 2024) Obviously, a major part of the problem is the poor English-vocabulary knowledge of these students, and one of the best and most realistic ways to improve that vocabulary knowledge is to study Latin.

    Check out the main article in this series: Why Study Latin?

    References

    1. Finkenstaedt, Thomas; Wolff, Dieter (1973). Ordered Profusion: Studies in Dictionaries and the English Lexicon. C. Winter. p. 119. ISBN 3-533-02253-6.
    2. Xiao, Xiao (2020). “The study of loanwords in English”. Journal of Contemporary Educational Research. 4 (12): 36–43.
    3. Highlights of the 2017 U.S. PIAAC Results (Report). United States Department of Education Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics. 2017. Archived from the original on January 9, 2025. Retrieved February 13, 2025.
    4. Horowitch, Rose. “The Elite College Students Who Can’t Read Books.” The Atlantic, November 2024 (published online October 1, 2024).