3rd ANNUAL CAPITAL CERTAMEN - NOVEMBER 2002
Sponsored by the Maryland Senior Classical League

LEVEL I ROUND I


1. Welcome to the 3rd Annual Capital Certamen, sponsored by the Maryland Senior Classical League! What does the Latin word "Certamen" mean? CONTEST
          Bonus A: The word "Senior" is derived from what Latin word meaning "old man"? SENEX
          Bonus B: The word "Capital" is derived from what Latin word meaning "head"? CAPUT

2. We call this Certamen the Capital Certamen because it is held in the region of the *city* of Washington, DC. Give a Latin word that means city or town: URBS or OPPIDUM
          Bonus A: Give an English derivative from the Latin word "urbs" meaning city. URBANIZE, URBANE, etc.
          Bonus B: Translate into Latin, "I love the city." URBEM/OPPIDUM AMO.

3. The abbreviation D.C. in Washington, D.C. stands for "District of Columbia." If we were to translate "District of Columbia" into Latin, into what case would we place "of Columbia"? GENITIVE
          Bonus A: Give the Latin for "of Columbia." COLUMBIAE
          Bonus B: Give the accusative form of "Columbia." COLUMBIAM

4. Many buildings in Washington, DC are adorned with what tall and cylindrical architectural elements? COLUMNS
          Bonus A: What are the vertical indentations running around the circumference of certain columns called? FLUTES
          Bonus B: What style of column has the appearance of scrolls at the top? IONIC

5. Into what case would we place the word "pig" in the following sentence: "The mouse seizes the pig." ACCUSATIVE
          Bonus A: Translate the word "pig" into Latin from the previous sentence. PORCAM
          Bonus B: For what is accusative case used? DIRECT OBJECTS

6. Who was the blacksmith of the Roman gods? VULCAN (not Hephaestus)
          Bonus A: Vulcan made what electrically charged weapons for Jupiter? LIGHTNING BOLTS
          Bonus B: Who was the wife of Vulcan? VENUS

7. Imagine that you are an ancient Roman watching a gladiatorial match in the city of Rome. In what building are you most likely to be seated? THE COLOSSEUM / FLAVIAN AMPHITHEATRE
          Bonus A&B: Name two other events besides gladiator fights that could take place in the Colosseum. BEAST FIGHTS (VENATIONES) and MOCK NAVAL BATTLES (NAUMACHIAE)

8. Translate the following sentence into Latin, "Grumio prepares food." GRUMIO CIBUM PARAT.
          Bonus A: In what case is Grumio in that sentence? NOMINATIVE
          Bonus B: For what is nominative case used? SUBJECTS

9. Who was the founder of Rome? ROMULUS
          Bonus A: Who was his brother? REMUS
          Bonus B: On what exact date does legend say that Rome was founded? APRIL 21, 753 BC

10. Which of the following words does not belong and why not: equus, feles, silva, canis. SILVA BECAUSE IT IS NOT AN ANIMAL
          Bonus A: What is an equus? HORSE
          Bonus B: What is a feles? CAT

11. Listen to the following story: Vacca ambulat ad forum. Puer dicit, "Cur vacca est in foro?" Vacca mugit et fugit. Puer dicit, "Ecce, pater, vacca fugiens!" Now answer this question: To whom is the puer speaking? PATER/FATHER
          Bonus A: Give one English derivative from pater. PATERNAL, PATRIMONY, etc
          Bonus B: What would we call the wife of the father? MATER

12. Britain is to Britannia as _____ is to Gallia. FRANCE
          Bonus A: France is to Gallia as Spain is to _____. HISPANIA
          Bonus B: Spain is to Hispania as _____ is to Dacia. ROMANIA

13. Name two of the Romance languages. FRENCH, ITALIAN, SPANISH, PORTUGUESE, ROMANIAN
          Bonus A: Is English a Romance language? NO
          Bonus B: What family of languages includes Latin? INDO-EUROPEAN

14. In what room of the ancient Roman house might one find three couches? TRICLINIUM
          Bonus A: In what indoor garden might Romans also have eaten? PERISTYLIUM
          Bonus B: Homes with such lavish rooms would generally have been reserved for the very wealthy. Poorer Romans might have lived in apartment buildings. What is the Latin word for an apartment building? INSULA

15. What edible object am I? I am the reason why Proserpina must remain in the Underworld for six months out of every year. POMEGRANATE
          Bonus A: What other fruit was quite popular amongst the Romans because its oil could be used as for eating, cooking, and burning, or even for soap? OLIVE
          Bonus B: Romans made wine from what fruit? GRAPE

16. When you enter your classroom, you generally sit in a chair. What did the Romans call a chair? SELLA
          Bonus A: Please say in Latin, "I sit in the chair." SEDEO IN SELLA
          Bonus B: In what case is sella in the previous sentence? ABLATIVE

17. Translate into English: Scintilla fessa laborat et Horatiam iuvat. SCINTILLA, TIRED, WORKS AND HELPS HORATIA.
          Bonus A: The "t" ending on a verb indicates what? THIRD PERSON SINGULAR / HE, SHE, OR IT IS DOING THE ACTION
          Bonus B: What does the "mus" ending on a verb indicate? FIRST PERSON PLURAL / WE ARE DOING THE ACTION

18. Identify the canine creature that has three heads. CERBERUS
          Bonus A: What is the job of Cerberus? TO GUARD THE ENTRANCE TO THE UNDERWORLD
          Bonus B: Translate "of Cerberus" into Latin. CERBERI

19. Greet me in Latin. SALVE
          Bonus A: Now greet me, the scorekeeper, and the spotter all at once in Latin. SALVETE
          Bonus B: In Latin, ask me how I am doing. QUID AGIS? / QUOMODO SENTIS?

20. Translate into Latin: Publius and Furianus wait in the house. PUBLIUS ET FURIANUS IN CASA/DOMO/DOMU/VILLA MANENT/REMANENT.
          Bonus A: What tense is the verb manent? PRESENT
          Bonus B: Change manent to the imperfect tense. MANEBANT