[SOLVED]Latin speakers, help me translate this!

redguy

So, I really wanna know how would I go about translating the sentence "I am my own god" to latin... I've tried Google but didn't come up with anything. So I opened up my latin copy of the Holy Bible and tried to understand the basic grammar from similar phrases and came up with "Deus meus ipse sum", but I don't know if that's correct or even if it makes sense at all. So, maybe you guys could help me, or if possible link me to a latin speakers online community (Google didn't come up with anything...) so I could ask there?

Thanks in advance!

Dhalphir

Failing that, ask your parents, if they're old enough, or your grandparents.

Latin was a commonly taught language in schools, my grandparents are still fluent in it.

Regrettable

"Ego sum meus Deus" translates directly to "I am my God" and seems a pretty good match but I'm not sure if there's some sort of formality you can thrown in there to indicate the "my own" not having studied Latin formally.

amateurhour

Also, Latin doesn't always follow the same sentance structure as modern english. Ego sum Deus meus sounds a little more realistic. Think about it in terms of currency. "E Pluberus Unum", is comepletely out of whack when you translate it.

On a side note, if you've got a real interest in writing this you can pick up a latin book on the cheap. Most private schools and a lot of public schools still teach it. Fifty bucks would probably be more than enough for a textbook, and then you could be all roman and shit : )

GoodOmens

I'll ask one of the Latin teachers where I work...I'll hopefully have an answer for you in a bit.

redguy

Thanks for all the replies so far. Unfortunatelly I can't take some of the advice posted here because I no longer live in NA and latin is a even rarer language where I live AND I'm of Japanese descent, so asking my family members is out of the question since most of the older ones had Japanese education.

The reason I need this translated is so I can tattoo it on me. So it is really important I get this right, or else I'll have to shed bux for laser surgery later on...

GoodOmens

I asked 2 of my colleagues who teach Latin, and they both said that it would be difficult to render that into the language. One suggested "sum meus Deus mihi," which he said would mean something like "I am my God for myself." The other said that you could probably leave off the "sum." They both agreed that it didn't quite sound right; one said that it's not what a "self-respecting Roman" would say, if that's important to you.

'Course, don't blame me if these are wrong...I don't know Latin at all.

enderwiggin13

I have to agree with GoodOmens...that's about the closest you're going to get. Not all languages equate perfectly to each other and this is a good example. "meus deus mihi" would be the most correct in the language itself. (IMHO - 5 years of latin incl. AP in high school)

"sum meus deus mihi" would translate a little smoother to English. The "sum" (I am) is basically understood in the phrase and not necessarily voiced...

Not trying to turn you off of tattooing this on yourself, but personally I'd choose a phrase a little more easily translated back and forth as there are some subtleties lost in translation here.

redguy

Hmm, well that's disapointing, what if instead of "I am my own god" something simpler yet retaining some of the meaning like "I am my god"? And just out of curiosity, what does "mihi" mean in this case?

enderwiggin13

Unfortunately, dropping the "own" is not going to change the Latin translation here. "Own" is not literally phrased in the Latin.

"mihi" literally means "to me/myself". It's a case though that doesn't exist in English. Dative I think only exists in Latin, Greek, German...maybe Russian. It normally describes to whom or what something is given.

"Ego sum deus mihi" could be stretched to mean "I am a god to myself" but it's grammatically poor in Latin and English.

When I first entered the tower in Bioshock I thought that the banner would make for a great Latin phrase (No gods or kings. Only man).

This one is a complete stretch but "Nullum dei vel reges. Tantum vir". More correctly in Latin it would be 'Nec dei neque reges. Tantum vir" - Neither gods nor kings. Only man.

I wouldn't jump into that one as a tattoo based on my translation alone. I'm almost 10 years out of high school now so I'm a bit rusty.

redguy

Well, thanks for all the help guys... apparently it ain't possible eh... but I'll keep this open for one more day so that maybe, just maybe, someone comes up with a way of translating it, even though that probably isn't gonna happen.

Thanks anyway for everyone that replied.

Walter

"meus deus mihi"

This is an excellent way of putting the phrase. You will never get it exact but it is not a problem at all. The meaning is there. Part of the fun of Latin (or any language I presume) is that it doesn't translate perfectly. If it did, there would be no reason for authors to release new versions of works that have already been translated.

Heck, even "sum meus deus" would be alright. It is just too plain for me, the other saying has more flourish.

redguy

Thanks so much for all the help everyone, it seems that I'll have to rethink about getting the tattoo since there was no common verdict... Still, I'll take what everyone said into account...

Mods, will you lock it please?