Classical Latin pronunciation
Classical Latin pronunciation is the reconstructed way educated Romans spoke in the age of Cicero and Caesar.
Can recognize Classical Latin pronunciation in a short Latin prompt
Schau dir diese Beispiele an. Kannst du das grammatische Muster erkennen?
Marcus reads.
Julia sees the tablet.
Achte auf die hervorgehobenen Teile. Was haben sie gemeinsam?
Classical Latin pronunciation is the reconstructed way educated Romans spoke in the age of Cicero and Caesar. Learning it early makes new words easier to hear, spell, and remember, and it keeps you from importing English sound habits that hide the real shape of a word.
The key idea for an English speaker: Latin letters are consistent. A letter is pronounced the same way almost every time, unlike English, where "a" sounds different in "cat," "care," and "father." Master a handful of rules and you can read any word aloud on sight.
| Letter | Sound | Example |
|---|---|---|
| c | always hard "k" | Cicero = KEE-ke-ro |
| g | always hard "g" as in "go" | gens |
| v | English "w" | vīnum = WEE-noom |
| i (before vowel) | English "y" | Iūlius = YOO-lee-oos |
| ae | "ai" as in "aisle" | Caesar = KAI-sar |
Vowels have two lengths, short and long, and the long ones are marked with a macron: a vs ā. Long vowels are simply held longer.
Try these aloud:
- Vēnī, vīdī, vīcī. - I came, I saw, I conquered. (WAY-nee, WEE-dee, WEE-kee)
- Caelum caeruleum est. - The sky is blue.
The commonest English-speaker error is softening "c" and "g" (saying "Sisero" or a soft "g") and reading "v" as English "v." Keep them hard and "w," and your Latin will sound Roman.
Marcus reads.
Example for Classical Latin pronunciation.
Julia sees the tablet.
A short A1 sentence with visible endings.
Im Kurs üben
Wende diese Grammatik in den Übungen des Kurses A1 an