> > > > Tempus fugit , sed Latini etiam sugit .... > > > > ? > With the "sed", it seems a bit awk-ward (?) > > I know that "tempis fugit" thing; > > "Time flies like arrows, and fruit flies like bananas", > > but, > > "What's it all about, Alfie?" > > Let me explain a bit......
I was playing around with google translate to take expressions in English and render them in Latin. I noticed that some people put Latin expressions as a codicil on their emails. So I thought that instead of finding one from the world of literature and philosophy I would try to cook up my own Latin ditty. I tried typing "Latin sucks" and found that corresponds to "Latine sugit" according to google translate. Then I realised that that "sugit" was similar to "fugit" in the expression "tempus fugit"; the two words appeared to rhyme with each other. I then had the idea to become an apprentice poet in Latin....... I thought to myself that the expression "Time flies, but Latin still sucks" could be considered to be humorous, and, if it were translated into Latin it should produce a rhyming verse. I entered the phrase "Time flies, but Latin still sucks" into google translate and got "Tempus fugit , sed Latini etiam sugit"....... It is interesting that you felt that the word "sed" was a bit clumsy in that it doesn't scan too well. I agree. Unfortunately, my knowledge of Latin does not extend to coming up with a translation of both good quality and a better scan and the rhyme in there as well. I also tried translating the Latin expression I made back into English to check whether it would help anyone interested to "get" the joke.... But I noticed that google translate rendered it in English as: "Time flies, whereas the Latin still sucks." There is a bit of Chinese whispers effect in there I guess. If my knowledge of Latin were really good, then I could maybe come up with a translation that scans and rhymes and conveys the meaning of the English phrase accurately, and when translated back to English by google translate would work well enough for anyone interested to "get" the joke. But I'm not there yet...... Cheers Michael Fothergill "Tempus fugit , et sicut tela sicut muscae fructum bananas"
