Vocative

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−	When we call someone by name, we use a form of the name called the "vocative". Here are the basic rules for making a vocative:	+	{{LanguageBar|Vocative}}{{Latin grammar articles}}
−	*If a name ends in "-ius", then the vocative ends in "-i". "Tullius" becomes "Tulli".	+
−	*If a name ends in "-us", then the vocative ends in "-e". "Marcus" becomes "Marce".	+
−	*All other names do not change at all. "Felix" stays "Felix", "Marca" stays "Marca" and so on.	+
−	There is a complete discussion of *which* name you should use at [[Choosing_a_Roman_name#Which_Names.3F]] .	+	When we directly address or call someone in Latin, we use a form of the name (or any noun or adjective used in the address) called the "'''vocative case'''". Here are the basic rules for making a vocative:
−	It is a good idea in general to use the cognomen (the last part of the name).	+	*If a name ends in "'''-ius'''", then the vocative ends in "'''-i'''". "'''''Tullius'''''" becomes "'''''Tulli'''''".
−	*To say hello to Marcus Lucretius Agricola you would write "Salve Agricola!".	+	*If a word ends in "'''-us'''", then the vocative ends in "'''-e'''". "'''''Marcus'''''" becomes "'''''Marce'''''".
−	*To say hello to Aulus Apollonius Cordus you would write "Salve Corde!".	+	*All other words do not change at all. "'''''Cicero'''''" stays "'''''Cicero'''''", "'''''Livia'''''" stays "'''''Livia'''''" and so on.
−	*To say hello to Gaius Equitius Cato you would write "Salve Cato!".	+
−	Only if you are very close friends indeed with these people you could write:	+	=== Usage in practice ===
−	*"Salve Marce!"	+
−	*"Salve Aule!"	+
−	*"Salve Gai!"	+
−	[[Category:Lingua Latina]]	+	It is a good idea in general to use the praenomen and nomen combination (the first two parts of the name):
		+	*To say hello to Marcus Lucretius Agricola you would write "''Salve, Marce Lucreti!''".
		+	*To say hello to Aulus Apollonius Cordus you would write "''Salve, Aule Apolloni!''".
		+	*To say hello to Gaius Equitius Cato you would write "''Salve, Gai Equiti!''".
		+
		+	A more informal style is for friends to use the cognomen (the last part of the name):
		+	*"''Salve, Agricola!''"
		+	*"''Salve, Corde!''"
		+	*"''Salve, Cato!''"
		+
		+	Only if you are family members or very, very close friends indeed with these people you could write:
		+	*"''Salve, Marce!"''"
		+	*"''Salve, Aule!''"
		+	*"''Salve, Gai!''"
		+
		+	There is a complete discussion of *which* name you should use at [[Using Roman names]].
		+
		+	===Algorithmically speaking...===
		+
		+	This '''perl''' function will return the vocative form of a name.
		+
		+	<pre>
		+	sub makeVocative
		+	{
		+	my ($nomen) = @_;
		+
		+	my @elements = split(/\s+/, $nomen);
		+
		+	for (my $i=0; $i<=$#elements; $i++)
		+	{
		+	$elements[$i] =~ s/ius$/i/;
		+	$elements[$i] =~ s/us$/e/;
		+	$elements[$i] =~ s/IUS$/I/;
		+	$elements[$i] =~ s/US$/E/;
		+	}
		+	return join(' ', @elements);
		+	}
		+
		+	</pre>
		+
		+	[[Category:Latin grammar]][[Category:Perl]]

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Latest revision as of 13:08, 29 November 2012

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When we directly address or call someone in Latin, we use a form of the name (or any noun or adjective used in the address) called the "vocative case". Here are the basic rules for making a vocative:

• If a name ends in "-ius", then the vocative ends in "-i". "Tullius" becomes "Tulli".
• If a word ends in "-us", then the vocative ends in "-e". "Marcus" becomes "Marce".
• All other words do not change at all. "Cicero" stays "Cicero", "Livia" stays "Livia" and so on.

Usage in practice

It is a good idea in general to use the praenomen and nomen combination (the first two parts of the name):

• To say hello to Marcus Lucretius Agricola you would write "Salve, Marce Lucreti!".
• To say hello to Aulus Apollonius Cordus you would write "Salve, Aule Apolloni!".
• To say hello to Gaius Equitius Cato you would write "Salve, Gai Equiti!".

A more informal style is for friends to use the cognomen (the last part of the name):

• "Salve, Agricola!"
• "Salve, Corde!"
• "Salve, Cato!"

Only if you are family members or very, very close friends indeed with these people you could write:

• "Salve, Marce!""
• "Salve, Aule!"
• "Salve, Gai!"

There is a complete discussion of *which* name you should use at Using Roman names.

Algorithmically speaking...

This perl function will return the vocative form of a name.

    sub makeVocative
    {
        my ($nomen) = @_;

        my @elements = split(/\s+/, $nomen);
   
        for (my $i=0; $i<=$#elements; $i++)
        { 
            $elements[$i] =~ s/ius$/i/;
            $elements[$i] =~ s/us$/e/;
            $elements[$i] =~ s/IUS$/I/;
            $elements[$i] =~ s/US$/E/;
        }
        return join(' ', @elements);
    }