Re: Odp: Glen acknowledges Agricola as masculine, Mea culpa

----- Original Message -----
From: Gerry Reinhart-Waller <waluk@...>
To: <cybalist@egroups.com>
Sent: Monday, 24 January, 2000 1:37 AM
Subject: [cybalist] Re: Odp: Glen acknowledges Agricola as masculine, Mea
culpa


> Marc Verhaegen wrote:
> >
> >
> > >Gerry here: I have a question for Marc and Piotr. If the root in
question
> > has the meaning of wheel in the sense of going around in circles, the
> > meaning of tilling or cultivating (i.e. agricola which is *masculine*)
and
> > cultura (possibly in the sense of *culture*) is there a connection in
> > meaning between wheel and culture? .... Gerry
> >
> > Perhaps the connection is this: going round on a field in circles (eg,
for
> > sowing) is bringing it in culture? or else: did the Romans have wheeled
> > ploughs? No doubt Piotr will know.
> >
> > Marc
> >
> I'm not sure whether the Romans has ploughs but what I do know is that a
> wheeled wagon has been found at Bronocice.
> Gerry
>

Dennis here :
I'm pretty sure that Romans had lost any sense of the connection of
"colere", with wheels or turning, for which other words were used in Latin,
i.e. "rota" and "vertere".
I studied Latin many years ago at school, so am I right in thinking that
"cultura" would be either a feminine singular or neuter plural of the future
participle, i.e. that which is to be tended?
Also, is the word "cultura" acutally used in Latin in the modern sense, or
is it a "neo-Latinism"? In fact, is there a word in another IE language
meaning culture, derived by a different route from "kwel-"? All the modern
European languages I know (not that many, I admit) seem to use the Latin (or
neo-Latin) word.

Regards
Dennis