Author - Editor - Translator       of    Latin Texts


Publishing house

The publisher LEO LATINUS  is editing Latin literature of all epochs, dictionaries and secondary literature concerning Latin studies.
 
1. AUDIOBOOKS

Latin is not a dead language: Since the decline of the Roman empire there was never a time, in which Latin was not thought, written and spoken.  
By the experience of Latin as a spoken language the learning motivation of students is heightened, the learning of vocabulary and grammar is lightened, poetical and rhetorical structure of classical texts can be better understood.
In the last decades there has been written a plenty of learned studies about the reconstruction of Classical Latin. But until now, there is still a great lack of Latin audiobooks, in which the scientific reconstruction of classical pronunciation is applied consequently.
LEO LATINUS has made his duty to make available ancient, medieval and neoteric works of Latin literature as audiobooks (CDs). LEO LATINUS is publishing audiobooks and CD-ROMs. Only per exception we send you bound or printed texts.


2.  TEXT EDITIONS (CD-ROM)
 
2.1 Editions of Latin texts of all epochs

LEO LATINUS offers you Latin texts of all kinds which are not available on the book market. These are new critical editions and commentaries of ancient, medieval and neo-Latin texts, which in no recent edition are available. These text editions are often equipped with a German or an other translation into a modern language. To the neolatin publications belong also texts written by LEO LATINUS  himself, which concern especially subjects of philology, cultural history and natural sciences.

2.2 Latin translations of modern literature

An important field of LEO LATINUS’ publishing activity are Latin translations of modern literature.
They are manifold and pleasant reading materials for lovers of Latin language (there are specially translations of narrative works, like fairy tales, novellas and novels).
By them the learner of Latin becomes conscious of the grammatical and stylistic peculiarities of Latin in opposition of the original language.
By them, too, are shown the extraordinary flexibility and versatility of the Latin language, especially its appropriateness for the rendering of modern thoughts.

Personal background


autorDear reader,
thank you a lot for your interest in my Latin Internet service. Maybe you wonder how I got the rather unusual idea to offer an interpretation service for an ancient language, which is, quite erroneously, believed to be dead. Therefore allow me, please, to give a brief account of my studies and instructional works in the field of Latin language and literature.
I studied Latin philology, biology, phonetics and Indo-European linguistics at the University of Saarland in Germany; in 1987, I received my doctoral degree in Latin philology.
From 1981-89, at the Institute of Neolatin language and literature (University of Saarland, Prof. Dr. Christian Helfer, Father Dr. Caelestis Eichenseer) I was the moderator of the "Colloquium Latinum", a seminar, in which we discussed in Latin, authors of the humanistic and post humanistic age, e.g. Petrarca, Erasmus, Morus, Copernicus, Bacon, Campanella, Cardano, Hobbes. Besides, I collaborated with Prof. Helfer who published three editions of the "Lexicon Auxiliare", a German-Latin dictionary.
From 1994-2002, in the "Seminarium phlilologiae Latinae" of Seoul National University (South Korea) I taught students in the methods of classical philology; we read e.g. Cicero, Plautus, Terence, Lucretius, Virgil, Manilius, Tacitus, Augustinus, Abelard, Petrarca and Erasmus. The language spoken in this seminar was latin.
During the last 25 years I have published numerous Latin articles in various Latin reviews (Ephemeris, Latinitas, Lupa, M.A.S., Melissa, Retiarius  Rumor Varius, Vox Latina). My special fields are textual criticism, lexicography, terminology and literature of natural sciences, as well as Latin translations of modern tales and novels.
Four Latin works of mine have been edited by the foundation "Melissa" (Brussels): three works translated from German into Latin ("The black spider", a novella by Jeremias Gotthelf, "The Baron Münchhausen", a children book by Erich Kästner, "The perfume" , a novel by Patrick Süskind), as well as the "Glossary of the Perfume", originally written by me in Latin.
In the following pages I will inform you about the translations and editions I offer. I am grateful for all further suggestions and recommendations, and I wish you much pleasure with the Latin language and literature.

Yours sincerely


Dr. Nikolaus Gross
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