ICARUS FALLING
et iam Iunonia Samos erat laeva parte, Lebinthos et Calymne (fecunda melle) erat dextra. Delos et Paros fuerant relictae. Puer coepit gaudere audaci volatu. Deseruit ducem. Tractus cupidine caeli, egit iter altius.
Samos, Lebinthos, Calymne, Delos and Paros are all Greek islands. Samos, Delos and Paros have kept their ancient names. Lebinthos is Levitha now, and Calymne is Kalimna. Samos was sacred to the goddess Juno. Iunonia is an adjective from her name.
Other words may be familiar. Something fruitful or fertile is still called fecund in English, and mel is the root of many European words for honey or sweetness. It’s related to Irish milis and the name Melissa. Tractus is related to tractors and tractor beams, both of which pull things. Cupidine is related to Cupid and the English word cupidity, or greed.
Altius means higher – having greater altitude. The Olympic motto is Citius, altius, fortius: faster, higher, stronger. (More of that in the next module, which I promise will be a stroll in the park after this one.)
iam – now
erat – it was
laeva parte – on the left-hand side
dextra – on the right
fecunda – rich or fertile
melle – in honey
fuerant – they were
relictae – left behind
You should be able to make a stab at the first sentence now.