English to Latin ...quick title translation...

Pallin · Post by **Pallin** » 03 Feb 2005 03:34

Need the English to Latin translation of:
"Unconquerable Force"

This is a bit of a silly request, but I like to be correct in my naming conventions...

...and I've been looking into this on my own, but properly matching Latin adjectives to nouns is slowly eroding my brain cells :p

So I come to you for assistance...

A casual online gaming guild I belong to is looking for the correct Latin translation of the title: Unconquerable Force

...we wish to use it as our guild-name, if you will.

I know one version of "unconquerable" is: Invictus
So too have I researced that "force" can be translated: Vis

...however, lost in all the adjective and noun matching in Latin, I'm thinking "Invictus Vis" is not the correct translation...

Any help is appreciated.

Sisyphe · Post by **Sisyphe** » 03 Feb 2005 16:07

Indeed... "vis" is feminin, so it is :

"invicta vis"

("invictus" is ambiguous, because it could mean either "which is not defeated" or "which is invicible", but there is no other word).

Olivier · Post by **Olivier** » 03 Feb 2005 17:17

or maybe: inexpugnabilis, inexsuperabilis ?
-- Olivier

Pallin · Post by **Pallin** » 03 Feb 2005 18:49

Ah...

Invicta Vis

Quick question...
In Latin, I believe I've read that though adjectives often precede the noun they modify... they could also be place after the noun and mean exactly the same thing...

So would it follow that:

Invicta Vis = Vis Invicta

(i.e. do they mean exactly the same thing... and is one more correct than the other?)

Sisyphe · Post by **Sisyphe** » 03 Feb 2005 21:11

@Olivier : "inexpugnabilis vis" is OK, although the word is quite unfrequent.

"inexsuperabilis" is not classical (but still understable as well). I thought "vis inexsuperabilis", because the essential meaning of "inexsuperabilis" is "that cannot be crossed or passed over, insurmountable " (F. Gaffiot's dictionnary : insurmontable, indépassable, impossible). But according to Oxford Latin Dictionnary "vis inexsuperabilis" does appear in Livius (vis inexsuperabilis fati = the unconquerable force of destiny). So it's OK.

@Pallin : indeed, word's order has no importance in latin. Usually the adjective comes first, so that the reverse is a litle more emphatic ; but in that case, "vis invicta" is perhaps better.