Genesis 11:2

Posted on January 11, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 11:2 Cumque proficiscerentur de oriente, invenerunt campum in terra Senaar, et habitaverunt in eo.

And when they set out from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and lived in it.

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Cumque and when CONJ
2 proficiscerentur they set out 3PL.IMPF.SUBJ.DEP
3 de from PREP+ABL
4 oriente east ABL.SG.M
5 invenerunt they found 3PL.PERF.ACT.IND
6 campum plain / field ACC.SG.M
7 in in PREP+ABL
8 terra land ABL.SG.F
9 Senaar Shinar ABL.SG.F
10 et and CONJ
11 habitaverunt they lived / dwelt 3PL.PERF.ACT.IND
12 in in PREP+ABL
13 eo it / that ABL.SG.N.DEM.PRON

Syntax

Temporal Clause: Cumque proficiscerentur de oriente — “And when they set out from the east.”
The conjunction Cumque (cum + enclitic -que) introduces a temporal subordinate clause, with proficiscerentur in the imperfect subjunctive denoting ongoing movement in past time. The prepositional phrase de oriente specifies their point of departure.

Main Clause: invenerunt campum in terra Senaar, et habitaverunt in eo — “They found a plain in the land of Shinar, and lived in it.”
The verbs invenerunt and habitaverunt are perfect indicatives, narrating successive completed actions. Campum functions as the direct object of invenerunt, while in terra Senaar locates the discovery geographically. The final prepositional phrase in eo (in it) indicates settlement within the discovered region.
The structure moves from journey to discovery to habitation — a progression that sets the stage for the unification project at Babel.

Morphology

  1. Cumque — Lemma: cum + que; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Compound (temporal + connective); Function: Introduces a subordinate temporal clause; Translation: “and when”; Notes: The enclitic -que links this clause with the preceding narrative.
  2. proficiscerentur — Lemma: proficiscor; Part of Speech: Verb (deponent); Form: Imperfect subjunctive, 3rd person plural; Function: Verb of subordinate temporal clause; Translation: “they set out”; Notes: Deponent verb expressing motion from one place to another; subjunctive required by cum in temporal subordination.
  3. de — Lemma: de; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs ablative; Function: Indicates source or origin; Translation: “from”; Notes: Marks direction of departure.
  4. oriente — Lemma: oriens; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Ablative singular masculine; Function: Object of de; Translation: “east”; Notes: Ablative of place from which; may also connote sunrise or geographical orientation.
  5. invenerunt — Lemma: invenio; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Perfect active indicative, 3rd person plural; Function: Main verb; Translation: “they found”; Notes: Indicates completed action preceding settlement.
  6. campum — Lemma: campus; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative singular masculine; Function: Direct object of invenerunt; Translation: “plain”; Notes: Refers to flat, fertile land suitable for habitation and agriculture.
  7. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs ablative; Function: Indicates location; Translation: “in”; Notes: Spatial preposition describing location of the discovered plain.
  8. terra — Lemma: terra; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Ablative singular feminine; Function: Object of in; Translation: “land”; Notes: Refers here to the region or territory.
  9. Senaar — Lemma: Senaar; Part of Speech: Proper noun; Form: Ablative singular feminine; Function: Apposition to terra; Translation: “Shinar”; Notes: Identified with southern Mesopotamia, likely Sumer or Babylonian plain near modern Iraq.
  10. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Indeclinable; Function: Connects successive actions; Translation: “and”; Notes: Links discovery with subsequent habitation.
  11. habitaverunt — Lemma: habito; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Perfect active indicative, 3rd person plural; Function: Main verb; Translation: “they lived / dwelt”; Notes: Describes establishment of settlement in the newly found plain.
  12. in — Lemma: in; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs ablative; Function: Indicates location; Translation: “in”; Notes: Marks the place of habitation.
  13. eo — Lemma: is, ea, id; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: Ablative singular neuter; Function: Object of in; Translation: “it / that”; Notes: Refers back to campum — the plain where the people settled.

 

About Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Born around 346 A.D. in Stridon, St. Jerome was a scholar fluent in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew whose ascetic discipline and deep engagement with Scripture prepared him for a monumental task: translating the Bible into Latin. Commissioned by Pope Damasus I around 382 A.D., Jerome began by revising the flawed Old Latin Gospels, then expanded his work to the entire Bible. For the New Testament, he corrected Latin texts using Greek manuscripts; for the Old Testament, he translated most books directly from Hebrew—a controversial but principled choice. His final Psalter, however, followed the Greek Septuagint tradition for liturgical use. This composite translation, later known as the Vulgate (editio vulgata), became the authoritative biblical text of the Western Church, formally endorsed at the Council of Trent in 1546. The Vulgate’s influence extends beyond theology into textual criticism and Latin education. As one of the earliest translations grounded in original-language scholarship, it offers a vital witness to the state of biblical texts in late antiquity. Jerome’s lexical and syntactic decisions are studied to trace manuscript history and assess variant readings. Its elegant Latin, consistent in grammar and rich in vocabulary, became a model for medieval and Renaissance learning, bridging classical and ecclesiastical Latin. More than a translation, the Vulgate helped define Christian doctrine, preserved the Latin language, and laid essential groundwork for the critical study of Scripture—remaining indispensable to students of Latin, theology, and textual history.
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