Are there any Latin teachers who aren't also keen etymologists? There is immense joy and satisfaction to be found in learning about the journey of the English language and offering insights into individual words serves to both stretch our ablest students and develop the understanding of those who find Latin a challenge. LaFleur himself dedicates this book to ‘all readers charmed by words’ secret lives’. I have to agree that upon reading his compilation I was charmed, captivated, enthused and enlightened. Not only does LaFleur flesh out a fascinating exploration of many English words that any native or foreign speaker would find interesting (e.g. Chapter 34. carpe diem, quid pro quo, et cetera) but in other areas there is sufficient appeal to those classicists with a deeper thirst and more intellectual curiosity, i.e. Chapter 7. augury, inauguration, and Caesar Augustus.
If you're thinking that there are many other books like this out there, then I can reassure you this one is worth some attention. We all know you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but, the front of the book is disappointingly old-fashioned and easy to overlook, and certainly not something a teenage classicist would be drawn to on the shelf. Yet once inside, Chapter 1 on Ben Hur, Harrius Potter and the Classics provides a strong initial hook using material many of us of any age or experience will be familiar with. For me, the more specialist content on the Perseids, Demagoguery (yes, you're right, Trump gets a mention here!) and Saturnalia provided more intellectual stimulation and convinced me that this is a book worth reading in full.
Each chapter is just a few pages long, making it an easy read which you can dip in and out off at whim, especially if a student (or teacher) has a short attention span or limited time. Accessibility is further enhanced as all derivations are CAPITALISED, even where the derivative forms just part of the word, allowing the secret lives of words to jump out from their hiding places. The modern references to Biden, Covid 19 and Wonder Woman are refreshing and keep the book relevant to us in the 21st year of the 21st century. Clearly aimed at a US audience, with topics such as Labor Day, George Washington and Thanksgiving, there is much to enjoy for us here in the UK too. As a teacher I can see myself extracting sections to use as starter activities or wider reading for my students. The colour pictures, unlike the cover, add to the appeal as a teaching aid and even more useful are the appendices which include a thorough list of Latin to English derivations, including a considerable number of words used on the WJEC and OCR GCSE vocabulary lists.
What started as a newspaper column for The Apalachicola Times in Florida, USA, has morphed into a delightful summation of all the most enduring, important, enticing and enhancing aspects of Roman life and language.
Open access
