(Grammar)Dative+Case

Dative Case
The dative case is a very popular one, especially if reading Vergil (where sometimes it seems as if he's using the dative just because, leading to labels of "dative of I haven't used one in a while" or "dative of because I said so"). While it does have a number of legitimate functions, we will focus on only a few here; other grammar pages will bring up other uses of the dative, and they will contain links back to this page so that users can see endings and translation options.

Usage:


 * Indirect Object- This is the first use most Latin students learn, as it's the most basic. Essentially, an indirect object is the person (and yes, it's almost always people) who receives a direct object(What's a direct object? Click here). In English, the words "give," "show," and "tell", and their synonyms, often foreshadow the use of an indirect object, since you usually give, show, or tell something **to someone**. In fact, with my students I will say "Give/Show/Tell? Ring the Dative Bell!" (thanks to Sue Bonvallet of the Wellington School for that helpful hint). In Latin the words to look out for in this regard are: //do// and //dono// (give); //monstro// and //demonstro// (show); and //narro// and //nuntio// (tell or announce). Verbs of speaking, such as //dico// and //loquor// may also employ indirect objects. One rule about indirect objects is that a direct object must be included in the sentence (though it may be implied, not directly stated, as you'll see in the following examples).

Marcus **Patricio** pecuniam dat. - Mark gives money **to Patrick**, or Mark gives **Patrick** money.

Petrus **amicae** novum agrum monstrat. - Peter shows the new field **to his girlfriend**, or Peter shows **his girlfriend** the new field.

Gloria **sorori** narrat. - Gloria tells **her sister**. (Notice here, there is no accusative noun as a direct object; however, we can assume something such as "a message," "news," or "a secret," whatever the surrounding context or our own imaginations would suggest. The fact that we //can// assume such a word and that it would make sense tells us we are doing the right thing in calling sister an indirect object).


 * With Special Adjectives- certain words kind of lend themselves to having a dative noun come after them. "Friendly to...," "similar to...," "equal to...," and "grateful to..." or "grateful for..." are common examples. In Latin, these adjectives include //amicus// (friendly) and //inimicus// (unfriendly); //similis// (similar); //par// (equal); and //gratus// (grateful or pleasing).

Example: Terra est grata **nautis defessis**. - The land is pleasing **to the tired sailors**.

Example: Marius civitatem amicam **Romanis** iuvat.- Marius is helping a state friendly **to the Romans**.

Endings:


 * || Singular || Plural ||
 * 1st || ae || is* (abus) ||
 * 2nd || o* || is* ||
 * 3rd || i* || ibus ||
 * 4th || ui* (long "i") || ibus ||
 * 5th || ei* (long "i") || ebus* (long "e") ||


 * - "abus" is used on the nouns //filia// (daughter) and //dea// (goddess) because there are related words in the 2nd declesion (//filius// and //deus//). This lets a reader know that the feminine word is being used rather than leaving it ambiguous. The "a" in abus is long.

Looking at patterns, one will notice that long "i" dominates the singular, while in the plural there are only three distinct endings ever (four if you throw in "abus").

Placement: As an indirect object, dative nouns in prose often come before the accusative direct object. This is one of the clues you can employ if you are looking at a noun that could be dative but you aren't sure. Remember also the "give/show/tell" clue; that's a biggie.