Leviticus 11:31

Posted on April 11, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Lv 11:31 omnia hæc immunda sunt. Qui tetigerit morticina eorum, immundus erit usque ad vesperum:

all these things are unclean. Whoever touches their carcasses, shall be unclean until the evening;

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 omnia all NOM.PL.N
2 hæc these NOM.PL.N.DEM
3 immunda unclean NOM.PL.N
4 sunt are 3PL.PRES.ACT.IND
5 Qui whoever REL.NOM.SG.M
6 tetigerit touches 3SG.PERF.ACT.SUBJ
7 morticina carcasses ACC.PL.N
8 eorum their GEN.PL
9 immundus unclean NOM.SG.M
10 erit will be 3SG.FUT.ACT.IND
11 usque until PREP+ACC
12 ad to PREP+ACC
13 vesperum evening ACC.SG.M

Syntax

Main Assertion: omnia hæc immunda sunt — collective declaration of ritual status
Relative Legal Clause: qui tetigerit morticina eorum — general condition defining contact
Resulting Status: immundus erit — impurity incurred
Temporal Limit: usque ad vesperum — duration of impurity

Morphology

  1. omnia — Lemma: omnis; Part of Speech: adjective used substantively; Form: nominative neuter plural; Function: subject; Translation: all; Notes: Encompasses the full set just enumerated.
  2. hæc — Lemma: hic; Part of Speech: demonstrative adjective; Form: nominative neuter plural; Function: modifier of omnia; Translation: these; Notes: Points back to the listed creatures.
  3. immunda — Lemma: immundus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative neuter plural; Function: predicate adjective; Translation: unclean; Notes: Ritual classification.
  4. sunt — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person plural present active indicative; Function: copula; Translation: are; Notes: States a general legal fact.
  5. Qui — Lemma: qui; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: nominative masculine singular; Function: subject; Translation: whoever; Notes: Introduces a general human subject.
  6. tetigerit — Lemma: tango; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular perfect active subjunctive; Function: verb of relative conditional clause; Translation: touches; Notes: Expresses a general legal condition.
  7. morticina — Lemma: morticinum; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative neuter plural; Function: direct object; Translation: carcasses; Notes: Dead bodies transmitting impurity.
  8. eorum — Lemma: is; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: genitive plural; Function: possessive modifier; Translation: their; Notes: Refers to the animals previously defined.
  9. immundus — Lemma: immundus; Part of Speech: adjective; Form: nominative masculine singular; Function: predicate adjective; Translation: unclean; Notes: Legal state of the person.
  10. erit — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: third person singular future active indicative; Function: copula; Translation: will be; Notes: Marks future resulting condition.
  11. usque — Lemma: usque; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative with ad; Function: temporal limit; Translation: until; Notes: Specifies duration.
  12. ad — Lemma: ad; Part of Speech: preposition; Form: governs accusative; Function: temporal direction; Translation: to; Notes: Completes the time phrase.
  13. vesperum — Lemma: vesper; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative masculine singular; Function: object of ad; Translation: evening; Notes: Standard terminus of impurity.

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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