Nunc hic aut numquam: Latin
Roman Latin, the university standard, is a historical reconstruction of Julian received pronunciation.
Ecclesiastical Latin, the Vatican standard, is substantially similar, but with identifiable Italian influences.
National Latin is pronounced exactly like a modern language, such as English or Polish. National Latin is unintelligible to people from other communities, but is typical of literary expressions such as et cetera, vice versa, and ad infinitum, as well as Latin scholars educated in the bad old written-language days.
Like the Hebrew resurrectionists, Latin activists have generated vocabulary for a host of post-Empire concepts such as gelatum (ice cream) and chartula credit (credit card). (Some call these coinages "Neo-Latin.") Thanks to their efforts, we may now enjoy such wonderful non sequiturs as Latin for Travellers
Finland, for some reason, boasts the world's most dynamic, delightfully unpompous Latin movement. Radio Finland broadcasts daily news in Latin, both from its own transmitters and via other stations. RealAudio files are also available. Finnish classicist Jukka Ammondt has recorded a CD of Elvis songs in virtually flawless Roman Latin, while fellow Finns Rene Rimon and Her Hot Papas have done likewise with the poems of Horace, set to Dixieland jazz. Not satisfied with these conquests, Dr. Ammondt has also announced his intention to broadcast an entire hockey match, live and direct, in Latin.
Anyone still uncertain of Latin's 21st century viability can stop by Franz Blatt's Gesta Danorum, a Danish history site entirely in Latin. And for the compulsive sceptic: Quomodo Invidiosulus nomine Grinchus Christi natalem abrogaverit. Scrutinise that title carefully; if you still don't get it, or you want to buy a copy, click on the link.
A partial list of excellent Latinist resources on the Web includes Canadian linguist Bill Casselman's link-rich site, Middlebury's in-depth entry, and Tufts' massive, one-stop classics server. Latin desktop resources for Mac and IBM-compatibles are also available online, while Tufts and the University of Kentucky maintain online Latin dictionaries. Students who would like to receive a snail-mail Latin newsletter should stop by Marie Bolchazy's Artes Latinae.
I encourage any young person headed for the arts, humanities, or sciences to pursue written and oral competence in Latin. This uncommonly evocative language is instrumental to these areas of study, which constitute the lion's share of the university curriculum. Better yet, Latin is an entry to a
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