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Glite Dictionary
Old Latin

Old Latin

9.9
The earliest written form of Latin used from the sixth to the third century BC
  • noun
  • /oʊld ˈlætɪn/
translation icon : latín antiguo
  • During my research, I came across some texts written in Old Latin, which date back to the 3rd century BC.

Examples

  • That and a few words of Old Latin.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • Many scholars study Old Latin to understand the evolution of the Latin language.

  • The inscriptions from the Old Latin period provide valuable insights into ancient Roman culture.

Surface Forms

Old Latin singular
Old Latins plural

Morphology

old + Latin

The meaning 'the earliest recorded form of the Latin language' is directly derived from combining the adjective 'old' (earlier/historical) with the noun 'Latin' (the language), following a common adjective+noun pattern that indicates an earlier language stage. This compositional pattern is cross-linguistically widespread, so a B1 learner who knows both words would readily understand the intended meaning.

Etymology

Old Latin gets its name from the idea of an old form of Latin used by the first Romans and written on very early stone inscriptions. So, the name literally calls it the 'old' version of the Roman language, which is why it means the very early known form of Latin.