Children's Lit Titles in Latin (Part 17): Dogs Quiz

Answer: Magnus Rufus

Since the dog in this story is a male Irish setter, we use the masculine form of "Big" which is "Magnus"; it would be the feminine "Magna" if Big Red was a female. Likewise, we use the masculine "Rufus" meaning "Red" as in reddish (especially of hair or animal coats). It would be "Rufa" is the dog was female.

This 1945 staple of American children's literature, by Jim Kjelgaard is about a boy named Danny Pickett and his Irish setter Big Red and their deep friendship in the Wintapi wilderness, a rugged mountain region in Pennsylvania. They face many dangers, including a blizzard, a wolverine attack, and a legendary, savage bear known as Old Majesty, whom they must track down.

Answer: Vocatio Ferarum

Vocatio Ferarum means "Call of the wild beasts" or, more loosely, "Call of the wild." "Vocatio" means a calling, summons, invitation (from vocare = to call), and "Ferarum" is the genitive plural possessive: "of the wild beasts".

"The Call of the Wild" (1903) by Jack London is a short adventure novel about a large, powerful mixed-breed St. Bernard/Scotch Collie named Buck living a comfortable life on a California estate. But then, Buck is stolen from his home and sold as a sled dog during the Klondike Gold Rush in the Yukon and Alaska in the 1890s. Through a series of owners Buck gradually sheds his previous domesticity and reconnects with something ancient and primal.

Answer: Intrepidus

The best Latin translations for "fearless", as in having no fear, would be "Inpavidus" (fearless, not trembling with fear) or "Intrepidus" (fearless, unshaken, bold) which is commonly used in classical Latin for someone who is fearless.

"Fearless" is by Colin Thompson, and illustrated by Sarah Davis, and is about a bulldog puppy who is named Fearless but ironically is actually quite timid and scared of everything. The story humorously shows how his actions are misunderstood and how he ends up seeming brave by accident rather than by intention.

Answer: Iter Incredibile

Latin has three grammatical genders: masculine, feminine, and neuter. These categories tell us how other words like adjectives, pronouns, and participles change their endings to match the noun-they do not have to do with gender in the sexual sense. From a modern perspective, the assignment of gender is often arbitrary, but there are some patterns:
Most nouns ending in -us (like nervus, "nerve, sinew, tendon") are masculine.
Most nouns ending in -a (like femina, "woman") are feminine.
Many nouns ending in -um (like gaudium, "joy") are neuter.
But there are also so many exceptions, and the noun "iter" is one of them.
"Iter" is the neuter noun for "journey" or route, or passage.
And "Incredibile" is the neuter adjective for "incredible", extraordinary.

This classic adventure novel by Sheila Burnford is about three family pets (a Labrador retriever, a bull terrier, and a Siamese cat) who travel 300 miles through the harsh Canadian wilderness, facing hunger, inclement weather, dangerous rivers, and wild animals as they strive to find their way back home.

Answer: Puella Revertere Domum

The name Lassie originates from the Scottish language, where it is a term of endearment meaning a "young girl," "maiden," or "young sweetheart". So, "Puella" is a good Latin translation for that.

A straightforward, classical command would be "Revertere", the singular imperative, direct command for "Come back, or return." And "Domum" would be "Home", the accusative of place to which Lassie returns.

The 1940 novel by British author Eric Knight was first made famous in his 1938 "Saturday Evening Post" short story. "Lassie Come-Home" is a classic animal adventure about a loyal collie who is sold by her loving family when they fall on hard times. But she makes numerous escapes and journeys through the English countryside to return to the family and the boy, Joe Carraclough, who loved her so much.

Answer: Vetus Flavus-Clamator

The eponymous dog "Old Yeller" is a name with a double meaning regarding the name "Yeller"-the name is a bit of wordplay that combines the concept of "yellow" as in the color of the dog's coat, with the word "Yeller" as in his bark sounded like a human being yelling. While it's no problem coming up with "Vetus" for "Old" in the venerated sense, not because the dog was a senior dog. In fact, she was able to have puppies. But coming up with wordplay in Latin is nearly impossible in this case. We can either simply say "Yeller" which in and of itself is a real word, which could be "Clamator" meaning one who shouts or yells. Or we can retain that and add on "Flavus" which means "yellow or tawny, especially regarding an animal's fur." Maybe "FlavaClam", LOL, and have a Flava Flav title song more the next movie version?

The classic 1956 tearjerker written by Fred Gipson is about a frontier boy in Texas, who bonds with a brave stray dog who protects his family, ultimately defending them from a wolf. It's a coming-of-age story for the boy, and a tale about loyalty.

Answer: Porcus Qui Oves Pavit

Less clinical than the scientific styled "Porcus Ovinus" which would seem to indicate an actual hybrid species, or the more playful "Porcus Ovis" which still connotes a pig who acts like a sheep, "Porcus Qui Oves Pavit" is the more accurate description, since the pig herds the sheep, it doesn't act like a sheep.
"Porcus" is the masculine, nominative singular of pig.
"Qui" is the masculine relative pronoun, for "Who" agreeing with porcus.
"Oves" is the accusative plural of ovis, meaning "Sheep".
And "Pavit" is the 3rd person singular present active indicative of "of pascere", meaning "shepherds, or leads to pasture."

"The Sheep-Pig" was published in the United States as "Babe the Gallant Pig" but was originally British children's book writer, Dick King-Smith's story about a pig who learns to herd sheep, and was the basis of the beloved movie, "Babe". After Farmer Hoggett wins Babe at a fair, the farmer's kind sheepdog named Fly, take Babe under her wing as Babe wants to follow in her footsteps of helping herd sheep.

Answer: Pacifer

The most widely accepted meaning for the name Shiloh, is "place of rest" or "tranquil," a meaning connected to the Hebrew root word shalah, conveying ideas of being at peace, at ease, or prosperous. Many interpret "Shiloh" to mean "the peaceful one" or "the one who brings peace," which aligns very appropriately with the role that the boy Marty serves in the story. Pacifer is Latin for "Peace-bringer" as it combines "Pax" (Peace), with "fer" from the Latin "ferre" meaning "to bring."

This Newbery Medal winning book by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, is a powerful and moving story about compassion and justice regarding an 11-year-old boy named Marty Preston, who must decide whether to protect a mistreated beagle he finds in the woods.

Answer: Ubi Filix Rubra Crescit

"Ubi" is the relative adverb for "Where", and "Filix" is the feminine noun for "Fern". "Rubra" is the feminine adject for "Red" agreeing with "Filix". "Crescit" mean "Grows" in the third person singular present active indicative of "crescere."

The beloved and emotional story from 1961, by Wilson Rawls is about a boy named Billy Coleman and his two coonhound hunting dogs, which he acquired by working so hard for two years to buy. The three form a strong bond. I won't give away the ending, but suffice it to say that according to the story's legend, only an angel can plant a red fern, which symbolizes divine love.

Answer: Ubi Est Macula

We use Ubi (Where) with Est (Is) for "Where's." And instead of treating "Spot" as a proper noun, we'll use what it actually is in truth - the reason a dog is named "Spot" - it's because of a spot. So that would be "Macula" meaning "spot".

Eric Hill's series of ten books in the "Spot" series began in 1980 with "Where's Spot?", in which a mother dog named Sally searches for her missing puppy, Spot. This iconic lift-the-flap book was the very first of its kind. In the story, it's dinner time and mischievous Spot is hiding from his mother. She searches all around the house - under the stairs, in the piano, behind the door. She finds other animals in all the other places she looks, but not Spot. Eventually, she finds him hiding in a basket. Suffocated. NO! I'm kidding! He's happy and playful.