Many people say Latin is no longer in use on a regular basis, that it is a dead language. And it’s absolutely true in the strict sense of the word. Language itself is ever changing. Have you looked in the dictionary, especially one with an etymology in it? Words have changed. An example is peruse; in the late 1600’s it meant to read carefully. Today most people use it to say they are browsing.
Words change, vocabulary is added. Language is living.
Latin, on the other hand, has not been changed in years. According to Wikipedia Latin texts were no longer understood by the common people between the 7th and 8th Century. At that point in history new languages and dialects were appearing and education was falling by the wayside. Latin was still spoken in church and by the noble houses. Until after the Medieval Era, when the Catholic Church began to lose its influence, Latin was used in Mass and understood to that extent.
Outside of Catholic Mass and the Vatican, today Latin is not spoken. Even in the Renaissance and until the 19th century, understanding Latin was a noble’s, scholars’, or elitist’s language. In the 17th and 18th centuries understanding Latin meant you had the money to gain some form of education.
Today, people don’t know what Latin is, unless I explain it. An example I was talking to someone at work, I told him I am going to teach Latin. He looked at me and said, “Really? I didn’t know you knew Spanish.” I told him I didn’t. He was a little taken aback. “Are you going to teach the culture then?” When I told him no, he was shocked. “Then what are you going to teach?” I had to explain it and he still didn’t seem to completely understand.
So, Latin is dead. It has not changed meanings of its words in years. Not many people know what it is anymore and it is not noticed in our everyday lives. I’ll give anyone that, until now. Since starting my research, I have found Latin used in our everyday lives, we just don’t seem to know it. Latin is used, and not just in exclusive circles anymore. Recently there are the beginnings of a revival in Latin. More people realizing its uses. Many of its uses are still in the scientific and law based communities. Words like canis lupus or ex post facto are Latin in origin. English has its roots in the Latin language and people from the late 19th century to the present have noticed its means for a fully fledged form of expression. In other words, it’s becoming a language again.
Latin is dead as a language, that is that the language hasn't changed and I agree but it is still in use. Latin is beginning a new life in Contemporary Latin. Contemporary Latin is based on the old Latin but it is starting to add modern words like email, car, and Internet to its vocabulary it’s the “living Latin.” A new life is being brought to this old language.
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