Latin is still widely taught in both public and private schools, despite it having little to no function in modern society. Latin is a dead language, meaning you will never use it unless you are studying ancient Latin texts (and if you want to read Cicero you’re going to need far more than a high school latin course anyways). Some argue that it helps one learn other Romance languages, but this is unnecessary (most people do not learn Latin before Spanish, for example, and fare just fine) and it would be a better use of time to focus on learning the target language directly. Any assistance that learning Latin provides in learning another language is outweighed by the inefficiency of learning a whole language just as a prerequisite for the useful language. It also has the potential to confuse the language learner even more, as they’re trying to distinguish between two similar languages. I’m all for technically pointless hobbies - Latin is akin to sudoku in my book. But the fact that it is taking up a valuable slot in schools instead of the many practical and increasingly necessary languages, like Russian, Korean, or Portuguese, is problematic. Satis dictum.

Learning latin is not pointless, rather is it highly useful as it helps us to understand our own language, as well as other languages better. Around two thirds of all English words are derived from Latin. Therefore, studying Latin means that you can gain valuable insights into general English vocabulary. Learning Latin helps to explain the structure and meaning of many English words. Even though Latin does not exist as it used to, many words that we still speak have their origins in the Latin language, so learning Latin helps us to better understand their meaning. For example, learning Latin is especially useful for understanding medical terms. As medical terminology is largely derived directly from Latin, learning the language is almost essential for everything in the medical field. As Latin is a mother language, with many modern languages that exist today having their origins in Latin, learning it can help us to better understand our own language. Learning and having a basic education of Latin not only teaches you about your own language, but also creates an easier education of another half-dozen languages - which can be mastered much quicker with a basic understanding of the Latin language. **WORKS REFERENCED** ‘Benefits of Latin’, (https://mcl.as.uky.edu/benefits-latin) ‘The Unique Benefits of Learning Latin’, (https://davenantinstitute.org/benefits-learning-latin/)

**TL;DR – While learning a dead language might seem pointless, this is most definitely not the case. We can find evidence of Latin in romance languages, law medical and literature professions, etc. Consequently, Latin cannot be considered pointless if it still has so many influences in various fields today.** N.S. Gill (2020), ancient History and Latin expert, provides us with five very good benefits to learning the Latin language. The first benefit to learning Latin is that its grammar is the best when it comes to grounding education. That is to say, if one has learned Latin one will have prior knowledge (foundational knowledge) which can assist when learning other languages – enabling one to pick up on other languages more easily. The second benefit is that Latin helps one to grasp the English language better. What’s more, while it’s true that English grammar and the overall language does not originate from the Latin language, many of the English grammatical rules that we have do. The third benefit Gill mentions is that Latin makes one more careful in the English language. More specifically, when learning Latin one has to consider much more (grammatical) rules. As a result, this makes one more careful and even meticulous when it comes to the English language. Notably, the traditional study of Latin also provides one with a grammatical framework – indirectly transferring of the “Latin grammar” system to one's work in English. Furthermore, this then affords one with a “grammatical awareness” – standard set of terms that can be used to describe words in relation to other words, which in turn leads to improved English writing. The fourth benefit is that Latin helps one to maximize one’s SAT scores. Apparently, test takers can guess what the meanings of new words are because they already know the roots and prefixes. Remarkably, it was found that not only does Latin enhances one’s vocabulary but also one’s Math scores too. The fifth and final benefit is that Latin increases one's accuracy. This could be due to the fact that when one studies Latin, it does foster precision when using words. Particularly, since one has to read it very closely and carefully – often word by word. This then, places more emphasis for the person to concentrate on (the) individual words and their usage. Moreover, it’s been also been observed that people who have studied Latin usually write English prose which are quite good. So its clear that while Latin is widely considered a dead language, just because it’s no longer actively spoken does not make it pointless. 5 Good Reasons to Study Latin https://www.thoughtco.com/the-benefits-of-learning-latin-112914 [accessed February 28, 2021].

No one speaks Latin anymore. So, why should anyone bother to learn a language anybody speaks? Does it not seem more important to learn languages everybody speaks, such as Spanish, French or Russian? Why waste the opportunity studying languages a lot of languages could use? Latin, indeed, is a language that now belongs in humanity's past. No one speaks it. But just because nobody speaks a language does not mean there are not any benefits to learning it. But writer Frankie Thomas argues that it is because Latin is a dead language that makes it so fun to learn. Obviously this is a win for introverts, who won't have to speak with strangers and ensure they are speaking it fluently. But Latin remains stapled within the minds of its students because no one knows it. Because no one knows it, the words float through the mind as they dissect the inner meaning of English words, and therefore the meanings of everything. Learning a language generally helps sharpen the mind, and helps students think critically about how they speak in their native language. But learning a dead language is not just a way to prevent the past from being forgotten. Although that is one of the cases to learn it. Josephine Livingstone considered the main benefit to learning Latin would that it would help individuals learn other Indo-European languages descended from Latin. Livingstone characterized this process as the "principle that your great-grandfather had children and grand-children and great-grandchildren, learning a language that occupies a place farther up the family tree will mean that younger languages will have grown up out of it". I strongly believe we should all learn a second language in our lives. It would help us develop a sense of empathy for how people we consider foreigners see the world differently than us. But learning Latin helps us dissect the inner meaning of things. Learning the language that English largely descends from helps us understand our own native language better. CITATION Livingstone, Josephine. “Why You Should Learn A Dead Language.” The Guardian, 16 Oct. 2013, www.theguardian.com/education/2013/sep/16/why-learn-a-dead-language. PBS NewsHour. “Why Learning Latin Stays with You Forever.” YouTube, 9 Apr. 2018, www.youtube.com/watch?v=2IS9Ct4fm0Q.

Latin is taught to be read rather than spoken. That’s how my Latin class in high school was and just so happens to be what the source below says too. The language is about learning the grammatical rules rather than using it in everyday speech. Being that it’s a dead language, it’s very easy to pick it up when approaching it from this perspective. On that note, it’s an extremely utilitarian language. Latin literature holds dense information that can be interpreted in so many ways based on your understanding of the language. It’s a whole new sector of literature that can directly lead into English literature. What appears to be useless can be a whole new set of tools to those who are rigorous and imaginative in their reading and studies. https://www.theguardian.com/culture/charlottehigginsblog/2009/may/24/latin-in-schools

I disagree only because once I started trying the Latin section on Duolingo, it made the French and Italian languages a lot easier to try and figure out at a very basic level! I never studied Latin before, as it was never offered at my school, but I think it would be useful for a linguist or someone interested in how the romantic languages evolved over time. Therefore I think that in the same way for someone interested in art history, learning about renaissance paintings is not pointless, that for someone interested in the roots of language, learning Latin would not be pointless.