Gen Z, none.
Millennial here. I got a degree in Classics so I learned both in college. I continued to take Latin in grad school. Unfortunately I never used them, because, you know, there are no jobs in Classics, so I realistically have lost both. I could probably identify nouns/verbs/articles/etc and some vocabulary in a sentence. But that’s it. Plus, I’m learning Dutch now, and that has kicked out all other languages rattling around in my head.
I really enjoyed learning both! And doing so taught me a lot about grammar, linguistics, and etymology that I’ve carried with me through life even if the languages themselves didn’t stick. Would recommend if you have the time.
Semper Fidelis Tyrannosaurus
Only a handful of words that are famous, like “Cogito, ergo sum”, and “Romani ite domum”.
Older millennial here. I know a few random words and phrases in Latin. A couple examples:
“Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?”
“Who will watch the watchmen?”
Thanks to the comic Watchmen. Meaning it is difficult to regulate the actions of people in power.“Alea iacta est.”
“The die is cast.”
Attributed to Julius Caesar when he crossed the Rubicon river, guaranteeing there would be a civil war. Meaning the outcome is uncertain, but you’ve passed the point of no return (“crossing the Rubicon” is also used to mean that).I don’t know any ancient Greek though.
Not much Greek but I can make a good guess at Latin words having learnt quite a bit of French.
Null
Gen X here,
I know some dinosaur names …
I can figure out simple Latin sentences. Other than root words I don’t know any Greek.
Millennial. I had to take a root words class in grade school, with the promise it would help us become lawyers and doctors. It did not. It has helped me win a couple pub trivia rounds.
I learned Latin in school for several years; I only learned to understand and translate it, not actively speak or write it, and have by now forgotten some of it.
I do not know any Ancient Greek at all, I might recognize some words from other languages.
Cum gallo et gladio.
That’s the only thing I know in Latin cause I want it to be my family coat of arms.
It means “with a rooster and a sword”, but you need to understand French to discover the power of that sentence: “Avec un coq et une épée”, or as famously said in slang, “Avec ma bite et mon couteau suisse” (with my dick and Swiss Army knife).
It a saying we use to say that we don’t need preparation or equipment to do something.
Heh. Cum.
cum cum et cum
SPQR means Rome
More specifically, it means “The Senate and People of Rome.”
Latin: I can still bang out the five declensions and the four conjugations in my sleep. Trying to read a text, the sentence structure always finds ways to trip me up.
Greek: very patchy, I know a lot of words but my grammar is shite