SPQR

Published this morning:
Sir, Latin may not be per se a sine qua non of a good education, but it certainly provides a firm basis — a terra firma — for a broad-based understanding of the modern world (“Latin is an essential language for our digital age”, Benjamin Auslin, January 2). It was Latin, the lingua franca of the European continent for two millennia, which provided the link between the fall of ancient Rome and the 16th century Renaissance. The great scientist Isaac Newton taught himself Latin so he could attend and understand mathematics lectures at Cambridge in 1660. Latin was the language of instruction in the great medical schools throughout Britain and Europe. It is the language not only of the cognoscenti but also of the common man. Walk the streets of the Italian capital, the città eterna, and look down at the drains. What do you see? The inscription SPQR. Senatus populusque Romanus. Cast in iron, unchanged for 2,000 years, it means “The Senate and people of Rome”. Res ipsa loquitur: the facts speak for themselves. Vivat Roma! Vivat lingua Latina! And vivat my alma mater High Storrs School, the last state school in Sheffield to offer Latin as part of its curriculum, which is making strenuous efforts to raise funds to keep alive the teaching of this great language. Latin, a language of rigour and accuracy, is ipso facto the key to present-day European civilisation. Long may it be taught and learnt. Sir Andrew Cook Chairman, William Cook Holdings, Sheffield, S Yorks, UK

#Save Latin and Classics at High Storrs School