How do we know what Latin sounds like?I'm serious.
I've been corrected on my pronunciation of Latin words many times before. I've probably even been the asshole correcting other people. But really, the language died out a long time before the invention of recording devices.
We assume that the language itself is important, right? Anytime we have to write anything of significance, it ends up in Latin. My diploma says "Universitatis Yalensis" on it. As if either of those words were around in Roman times. But sure, just slap an "is" on the end of it and make it all Latin-soundy. Why the fuck not. We print the titles to movies in Roman numerals. It's on all our monuments. But I don't think anyone really cares how it's pronounced.
I like to amuse myself by pretending that Latin was originally pronounced in an accent that was like a hybrid of Scottish and Portuguese. Like they all spoke like Sean Connery in Highlander. "I am Juan Sánchez Villa-lobos Ramírez, Chief metallurgist to King Charles V of Spain. And I'm at your service." -- "I'm not Spanish, I'm Egyptian."
(Side note, if I may, and of course I may because this is my blog post you controlling bastards: it really makes no fucking sense that they cast Sean Connery in this role. He's an immortal from... well, not from Scotland anyway, who speaks just like Sean Connery always does. It only serves to confuse the point in the movie. Because he's a Scottish Highlander playing an Egyptian-Spaniard directly opposite Christopher Lambert who is a Frenchman playing a supposedly Scottish Highlander... Jesus. Where was I? Where am I now? Sorry, I blacked out there for a second.)
Oh, right, Latin. Try it. Go ahead, I'll wait. Try saying your favorite Latin phrases in Sean Connery's accent but with a Hispanic cadence and flair. It's really fun. I'd be doing it outloud myself but I figured at least one of us should look sane.
Incidentally, my penis' name is Juan Sánchez Villa-lobos Ramírez.
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