Carpe Diem
This is a famous saying from Horaces first book of Odes is one of the most well-known quotes in the world. Of which it is usually translated as seize the day. It has succinctness to it that the English translation does not have.
Carpe is the second-person singular present active imperative of carp. It literally means pick or pluck, but was used by Horace to mean seize, enjoy, and make use of. The Diem is the accusative of day, meaning it is having something done to it.
The quote also illustrates the philosophy of Epicureanism, whom Horace was an adherent of. The philosophy is about pleasure as a goal, but of a restrained kind: not physical, but to live modestly and to have a good well-being, the ultimate pleasure was held to be free from anxiety and mental pains. So in the context of the quote, Horace is advocating for the reader to make use of their day, to make the most of the moment, so that they will have peace of mind, and do not have regrets. Nowadays people often use this expression as inspirational quote.
Requiescat in pace
Even though the common English translation; Rest in Peace is shorter and terser, the Latin is more succinct which you see when you look at the grammar. The first word, requiescat is the present subjunctive of requiescere meaning to rest, so requiescat means May he/she rest. This has more piousness to it over the English translation which comes across as a command. The next word in means the same as it is in English; in. The final word in the phrase, pace is the ablative of pax, means peace. So a better translation of the phrase is may he/she rest in peace. This phrase is more agreeable, more poetic, and pious than the common translation.
The phrase has risen to prominence as it has been put on tombstones the 15th century but became common from the 18th Century. It is primarily used by Christians, in particular, Catholicism, Anglicanism, and among Methodists. Today people are often unaware of the latin translation (but it is still in use), in NZ it is common for people to just use the acronym when acknowledging someone who has just died.
Anno domini (A.D)
Anno domini is the term used in the Gregorian and Julian calendars to label and categorize years along with BC (before Christ). The term means in the year of the lord, often mistakenly translated as in the year of our lord.
In the two calendars time is based on the birth of Jesus Christ (despite the Julian calendar being made before 1 AD). This is interesting, as we do not know for certain which year Christ was born in, in fact, it is estimated he was actually born around 4 - 6 BC. Despite this, it is still the transition point between the AD and BC eras. This dating system was devised in 525 by a monk named Dionysius Exiguus. The use of A.D. has only been inconsistent use since AD 800.
In modern society, an alternate CE and BCE (common era, before common era) are becoming more common as a way to avoid reference to Christianity and, in particul...
