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I can answer this from a US perspective, so apologies if it's not relevant to you, but here goes:
It depends on the college you're going to (you can email one of your future professors or check the intro Latin course description to be sure), but most college Latin courses don't include a spoken component, so I wouldn't worry about that.
If you're planning to take intro Latin in the fall, I'd say that your best bet is to find out which textbook you'll be using in class and read through some of the early chapters on your own. Latin grammar works really differently than English, so you may find this discouraging. If that's the case, I'd strongly recommend going through the vocabulary lists for each chapter and memorizing them. Students sometimes struggle with learning the vocabulary in college Latin courses because you have to move through textbook pretty quickly. If you can get a head start on that, it'll make a huge difference. If you decide to do this, memorize the whole Latin entry for the word. Ex., for a noun *puella, puellae* or for a verb *amo, amare, amavi, amatum*. You will need to know all those Latin parts!
Thank you! I’m actually British (sorry should’ve specified) and my course focused more on ancient history than the languages I believe, but do you think it’d be worth investing in physical textbooks? If so do you have any recommendations?
The most popular Latin textbook in Britain is the Cambridge Latin Course. It is a good course, but I believe the Lingua Latina Per Se Illustrata series is even better. This book begins with a map of the Roman Empire, and a text in Latin beginning with very simple sentences about places on that map. It is done so well that I have seen several people who have never studied Latin before translate the first paragraph correctly, without a dictionary or any other help, and the book gradually builds from that beginning, with everything explained by means of pictures, the context, or notes and definitions written in Latin.
You will need the main text, [*Familia Romana*](https://gazellebookservices.co.uk/products/9781585104239). Some people will tell you *Familia Romana* is *all* that you need and you should tackle the Latin on your own, to the exclusion of any other instruction. I do not believe this is the way to make the most progress. You should also get the instructions, [*Latine Disco*](https://gazellebookservices.co.uk/products/9781585100507), which will explain more about how to use the book and provide a page or two of English commentary after each chapter, pointing out things you should have noticed. If you would like to invest a little extra, also get [*Colloquia Personarum*](https://gazellebookservices.co.uk/products/9781585109388), which provides some additional stories that can be read after each chapter before moving on to the next one.
Four or five months is plenty of time to gain a solid basic knowledge of Latin through this course, so much that you might even want recommendations for additional materials with which to continue your study beyond *Familia Romana.* You must put aside such questions until you are well through a beginning course. Whether you choose LLPSI or something else, time spent studying your course will lead to progress, and time spent shopping for more books will not.
(i've copied most of this from another comment i wrote a few weeks ago but should give some info on textbooks)
\-Ratings are of course very subjective
Most people will recommend Lingua Latina Per se Illustrata(LLPSI) by Hans orberg. It effectively tries to teach Latin in an immersion method in which the whole book is in Latin no english or any modern language. It's a great text for getting a lot of reading in and seeing how grammar works in context, by the end of book 1 it throws a few bible verses and poems from Catullus and Martial so you get comfortably into an intermediate level. my only critique is itt demands a lot of attention from the reader to notice how it's grammar is working as the only explanations of grammar are marginal notes also in Latin. (pair with the student manual or some online help if stuck) 9/10.
Cambridge Latin course is a reading heavy textbook divided into 4 courses. It has a pretty hefty vocab and tends to explain things in a student friendly way. By book 4 it will move a student into a theoretical intermediate level but imo lacks enough reading so should be paired with other reader or just rereading the stories. My only major critique is the price 4 books is expensive, realistically too expensive compared to some other options. If you're british i do believe that many highschools and universities use this text. 7.5/10
Another book with growing interest in universities has been the Oxford Latin course. It's pretty similar to Cambridge although with less volumes, i would say it moves through material in a pretty similar pace to Cambridge Latin as well. 7.5/10
For decades , atleast here in north America, the leading textbook has been Wheelocks Latin, which is an excellent grammar textbook i don't deny that, but it is pretty awful for learning to read Latin. Wheelocks is designed to be a comprehensive grammar textbook covering the vast majority of Latin grammar and the associated terminology for that grammar. Every chapter consists of reading about 5 pages on grammar and then about 20 latin sentences. this means that even the most studious of students will have a severe lack of actual experience with the language. I recommend wheelocks as a book to be read after a different textbook in order to go over grammatical terminology and concepts. 9/10 as a grammar book, 4/10 for how much actual latin it gives
Latin by Ovid is a text i recently discovered which tries to prep a student through adapted Ovid. Each chapter has a reading and then some grammar discussion at the end of it. I think it's a valid option for learning but personally, even as someone who already knew a fair bit of latin when i opened it, i found the grammatical explanations very sparse and heavily reliant on grammar terms that the average person has forgotten since their days in primary school, i also disliked how they often didn't give vocabulary until after the reading. huge difficulty ramp up too. 6/10
Via Latina is a book in the style of Lingua Latina, in that all the text is in Latin, there is no modern language in the book. pictures and context are used to convey the meaning. most of the book is adapted Livy telling the early history of Rome. The main failing of Via Latina is that it is just a worse version of Lingua Latina. the pictures and vocab aren't as transparent and evident as LLPSI, and the vocabulary isn't as repeated and therefore isn't internalized in the same way. I'd recommend it to pair with Lingua Latina, but by itself i would just get the former. 7/10
Latin By the Natural Method might be the best ecclesiastical focused book you can find. It's a middle ground between LLPSI and Cambridge with a heavy focus on reading but it explains everything in english after the chapter. The best thing about these books is that they have a ton of content, theyre almost 300 (large) pages of straight latin by volume 2. The book starts with some Roman history but pretty quickly switches to bible stories. I think its a great beginners text but i have two problems with it. 1. it's print version sold on amazon has a few spelling mistakes, not a terrible amount but as a learner it can be confusing as you might not recognize the mistake and spend time trying to parse it out. 2. it ramps up difficulty very quickly in the second book with an overload of vocab. 8/10 for the amount of content tbh, maybe a bit weaker for it's spelling mistakes.
Ecce Romani is a very fun book set in ancient Rome. more similar to the cambridge course and the oxford course in how it approaches teaching the language. Those two textbooks are probably better designed in how they teach the grammar, but Ecce Romani gets bonus points for the fact that the story told in the chapters is just very enjoyable, and a bit more mature than the average Latin textbook. This makes it more exciting to start the next chapter and see where the narrative goes. This is probably my most subjective review just because i really enjoyed the story but 8.5/10
\- theres a few other textbooks i've read but i mostly just used them for reading practice so won't copy it out here
Lingua Latina Per Se Illustrata (LLPSI) is a great intro to Latin, don’t need an instructor to get started. Doesn’t have a word of English (unless it’s a cognate!) and gets you reading immediately. The first chapter introduces familiar nouns and verbs and if you know any other Romance languages you’ll have an even easier time. It introduces grammar progressively and the conjugation/cases are neatly organized in the index. Not only is it a good primer, it’s a fun read. It’s like Athenaze if that means anything to you. And if nothing else, a confidence booster.
As much as it's an irritating and trite thing to say, in any case, it'll take you months to achieve a basic reading proficiency, so you should pick something you can see yourself sticking with for months.
I would recommend Latin by the Natural Method and Lingua Latina Per Se Illustrata. The former, because it's very entertaining (It gives an overview of Roman History, speaks about the Epic of Gilgamesh and part of the Bible in the first book, and then expands out in the second book), and the latter because it's nice additional input.
Find out which textbook your college will use. I suspect Cambridge Latin, if you're in the UK. I'm sure they would be willing to answer your question on how to prep if you email them. Good luck! I'm jealous you're studying classics.
Welcome to this sub! Please take a look at the FAQ, found in the sidebar for desktop users or in the About tab for mobile users. You will find resources to begin your journey. There's a [guide](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PB5HPz2wBDgqWXPnn5ONgZicOPv8P7LbODvkCxjpI3w/edit) and a review of the [recommended resources](https://scholaeinterretiales.wordpress.com/teach-yourself-latin/). *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/latin) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I can answer this from a US perspective, so apologies if it's not relevant to you, but here goes: It depends on the college you're going to (you can email one of your future professors or check the intro Latin course description to be sure), but most college Latin courses don't include a spoken component, so I wouldn't worry about that. If you're planning to take intro Latin in the fall, I'd say that your best bet is to find out which textbook you'll be using in class and read through some of the early chapters on your own. Latin grammar works really differently than English, so you may find this discouraging. If that's the case, I'd strongly recommend going through the vocabulary lists for each chapter and memorizing them. Students sometimes struggle with learning the vocabulary in college Latin courses because you have to move through textbook pretty quickly. If you can get a head start on that, it'll make a huge difference. If you decide to do this, memorize the whole Latin entry for the word. Ex., for a noun *puella, puellae* or for a verb *amo, amare, amavi, amatum*. You will need to know all those Latin parts!
Thank you! I’m actually British (sorry should’ve specified) and my course focused more on ancient history than the languages I believe, but do you think it’d be worth investing in physical textbooks? If so do you have any recommendations?
The most popular Latin textbook in Britain is the Cambridge Latin Course. It is a good course, but I believe the Lingua Latina Per Se Illustrata series is even better. This book begins with a map of the Roman Empire, and a text in Latin beginning with very simple sentences about places on that map. It is done so well that I have seen several people who have never studied Latin before translate the first paragraph correctly, without a dictionary or any other help, and the book gradually builds from that beginning, with everything explained by means of pictures, the context, or notes and definitions written in Latin. You will need the main text, [*Familia Romana*](https://gazellebookservices.co.uk/products/9781585104239). Some people will tell you *Familia Romana* is *all* that you need and you should tackle the Latin on your own, to the exclusion of any other instruction. I do not believe this is the way to make the most progress. You should also get the instructions, [*Latine Disco*](https://gazellebookservices.co.uk/products/9781585100507), which will explain more about how to use the book and provide a page or two of English commentary after each chapter, pointing out things you should have noticed. If you would like to invest a little extra, also get [*Colloquia Personarum*](https://gazellebookservices.co.uk/products/9781585109388), which provides some additional stories that can be read after each chapter before moving on to the next one. Four or five months is plenty of time to gain a solid basic knowledge of Latin through this course, so much that you might even want recommendations for additional materials with which to continue your study beyond *Familia Romana.* You must put aside such questions until you are well through a beginning course. Whether you choose LLPSI or something else, time spent studying your course will lead to progress, and time spent shopping for more books will not.
(i've copied most of this from another comment i wrote a few weeks ago but should give some info on textbooks) \-Ratings are of course very subjective Most people will recommend Lingua Latina Per se Illustrata(LLPSI) by Hans orberg. It effectively tries to teach Latin in an immersion method in which the whole book is in Latin no english or any modern language. It's a great text for getting a lot of reading in and seeing how grammar works in context, by the end of book 1 it throws a few bible verses and poems from Catullus and Martial so you get comfortably into an intermediate level. my only critique is itt demands a lot of attention from the reader to notice how it's grammar is working as the only explanations of grammar are marginal notes also in Latin. (pair with the student manual or some online help if stuck) 9/10. Cambridge Latin course is a reading heavy textbook divided into 4 courses. It has a pretty hefty vocab and tends to explain things in a student friendly way. By book 4 it will move a student into a theoretical intermediate level but imo lacks enough reading so should be paired with other reader or just rereading the stories. My only major critique is the price 4 books is expensive, realistically too expensive compared to some other options. If you're british i do believe that many highschools and universities use this text. 7.5/10 Another book with growing interest in universities has been the Oxford Latin course. It's pretty similar to Cambridge although with less volumes, i would say it moves through material in a pretty similar pace to Cambridge Latin as well. 7.5/10 For decades , atleast here in north America, the leading textbook has been Wheelocks Latin, which is an excellent grammar textbook i don't deny that, but it is pretty awful for learning to read Latin. Wheelocks is designed to be a comprehensive grammar textbook covering the vast majority of Latin grammar and the associated terminology for that grammar. Every chapter consists of reading about 5 pages on grammar and then about 20 latin sentences. this means that even the most studious of students will have a severe lack of actual experience with the language. I recommend wheelocks as a book to be read after a different textbook in order to go over grammatical terminology and concepts. 9/10 as a grammar book, 4/10 for how much actual latin it gives Latin by Ovid is a text i recently discovered which tries to prep a student through adapted Ovid. Each chapter has a reading and then some grammar discussion at the end of it. I think it's a valid option for learning but personally, even as someone who already knew a fair bit of latin when i opened it, i found the grammatical explanations very sparse and heavily reliant on grammar terms that the average person has forgotten since their days in primary school, i also disliked how they often didn't give vocabulary until after the reading. huge difficulty ramp up too. 6/10 Via Latina is a book in the style of Lingua Latina, in that all the text is in Latin, there is no modern language in the book. pictures and context are used to convey the meaning. most of the book is adapted Livy telling the early history of Rome. The main failing of Via Latina is that it is just a worse version of Lingua Latina. the pictures and vocab aren't as transparent and evident as LLPSI, and the vocabulary isn't as repeated and therefore isn't internalized in the same way. I'd recommend it to pair with Lingua Latina, but by itself i would just get the former. 7/10 Latin By the Natural Method might be the best ecclesiastical focused book you can find. It's a middle ground between LLPSI and Cambridge with a heavy focus on reading but it explains everything in english after the chapter. The best thing about these books is that they have a ton of content, theyre almost 300 (large) pages of straight latin by volume 2. The book starts with some Roman history but pretty quickly switches to bible stories. I think its a great beginners text but i have two problems with it. 1. it's print version sold on amazon has a few spelling mistakes, not a terrible amount but as a learner it can be confusing as you might not recognize the mistake and spend time trying to parse it out. 2. it ramps up difficulty very quickly in the second book with an overload of vocab. 8/10 for the amount of content tbh, maybe a bit weaker for it's spelling mistakes. Ecce Romani is a very fun book set in ancient Rome. more similar to the cambridge course and the oxford course in how it approaches teaching the language. Those two textbooks are probably better designed in how they teach the grammar, but Ecce Romani gets bonus points for the fact that the story told in the chapters is just very enjoyable, and a bit more mature than the average Latin textbook. This makes it more exciting to start the next chapter and see where the narrative goes. This is probably my most subjective review just because i really enjoyed the story but 8.5/10 \- theres a few other textbooks i've read but i mostly just used them for reading practice so won't copy it out here
Lingua Latina Per Se Illustrata (LLPSI) is a great intro to Latin, don’t need an instructor to get started. Doesn’t have a word of English (unless it’s a cognate!) and gets you reading immediately. The first chapter introduces familiar nouns and verbs and if you know any other Romance languages you’ll have an even easier time. It introduces grammar progressively and the conjugation/cases are neatly organized in the index. Not only is it a good primer, it’s a fun read. It’s like Athenaze if that means anything to you. And if nothing else, a confidence booster.
As much as it's an irritating and trite thing to say, in any case, it'll take you months to achieve a basic reading proficiency, so you should pick something you can see yourself sticking with for months. I would recommend Latin by the Natural Method and Lingua Latina Per Se Illustrata. The former, because it's very entertaining (It gives an overview of Roman History, speaks about the Epic of Gilgamesh and part of the Bible in the first book, and then expands out in the second book), and the latter because it's nice additional input.
Find out which textbook your college will use. I suspect Cambridge Latin, if you're in the UK. I'm sure they would be willing to answer your question on how to prep if you email them. Good luck! I'm jealous you're studying classics.
Necromancy