Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Sancta Catharina Christo Domino

This is from the enormous anthology of distich poetry assembled by Barthold Nihus, Epigrammata Disticha, published in 1642; the poem is by Franciscus Remondus (c.1558-1631). The poem is about Saint Catherine of Siena.

Sancta Catharina Christo Domino
Sive mori me, Christe, iubes, seu vivere mavis,
Dulce mihi tecum vivere, dulce mori.

The vocabulary is keyed to the DCC Latin Vocabulary list. There are two words in this poem that are not on the DCC list:

Catharina (Catharinae, f.): Catharina, Catherine
Christus (Christī, m.): Christ

cum: with (prep. + abl.); when, since, although (conjunction + subj.)
dominus -ī m.; domina -ae f.: household master, lord; mistress
dulcis -e: sweet
ego meī mihi mē: I, me
iubeō iubēre iūssī iūssum: bid, order
mālō mālle māluī: prefer
morior morī mortuus sum: die
sānctus -a -um: sacred, inviolable
sīve seu: whether; sīve . . . sīve: whether . . . or
tū tuī tibi tē: you (sing.)
vīvō vīvere vīxī victum: live