Definition of: Latin

(lat′n) adjective
1. Pertaining to ancient Latium, its inhabitants, their culture, or language.
2. Pertaining to or denoting the peoples or countries, as France, Italy, and Spain, whose languages and cultures are derived from the ancient Roman civilization.
3. Of or belonging to the Western or, since the Reformation, the Roman Catholic Church, as distinguished from the Greek Church.
—noun
1. One of the people of ancient Latium.
2. A member of any of the modern Latin peoples.
3. A member of the Western or Roman Catholic Church: used especially in the Greek Church.
4. The Indo-European, Italic language of ancient Latium and Rome: extensively used in western Europe until modern times as a language of learning, and still retained as the official language of the Roman Catholic Church.
—Old Latin, the language before the first century B.C., as preserved in early inscriptions and the comedies of Plautus.
—Classical Latin, the literary language of the period 80 B.C. to A.D. 200, standardized by such writers as Cicero, Caesar, Livy, Vergil, Tacitus, and Juvenal. Abbr. L
—Late Latin, the language from 200–600, including the patristic writings. Abbr. LL
—Low Latin, the language of any period after the classical, as Medieval Latin, especially as influenced and modified by other continental languages.
—Medieval Latin, the language used by the writers of the Middle Ages, from 600–1500: also called Middle Latin. Abbr. Med. L
—New Latin, a form of the language, based on Latin and Greek elements, developed since the Renaissance and used chiefly in scientific and taxonomic terms. Abbr. NL
—Vulgar Latin, the popular speech of the Romans in all stages of the language from about A.D. 200 through the medieval period: the chief source of the Romance languages. [<L Latinus of Latium, Latin]