Lost in Translation - How Rome's Multi-Ethnic Army Communicated

The Roman army was made up of soldiers from across the Empire. But how did this multilingual force manage to communicate. Let's explore the language of the Roman Army! This video was sponsored by Surfshark VPN. Get it at Surfshark.deals/invicta and enter promo code INVICTA for 83% off and 3 extra months for free!
In this history documentary we look at the nitty gritty details of the Roman army that all to often get overlooked, namely how did the Roman army communicate. After all its forces, and in particular the auxiliaries, hailed from all across the world. We take a look at language within the legions and the roman auxiliaries with specific examples taken from Armnius and the events around the Battle of the Teutoburg forest.
#History
#Documentary
#RomanArmy

[@daviddavis4885]

General: (Latin) Quickly go around the side in a flanking maneuver, then once you’re there.... Legate: (Gaulic) Go around the side until further notice Centurion: (Regional language) Uhhh... forwards?

[@andresp1582]

@@baconbaron1776 agreed

[@majormarketing6552]

This is why the east was far more stable. Greek

[@Dave_Sisson]

Strong parallels with the Austro-Hungarian Empire and their performance in the First World War, although they *only* had to deal with 10 major languages plus a few dozen dialects.

[@MiciusPorcius]

Legate: “Nien! Around the hill” General: “Novem?! No the whole cohort” Centurion: “Colle? ....an Mons?” Infantryman: “Quis in Primus?”😏

[@DavidSantos-ix1hu]

Basically yes.

[@samiamrg7]

This is why one of my favorite scenes in “Life of Brian” is the one where the Roman soldier catches Brian writing grafitti and instead of punishing him, the soldier instead forces him to correct his poor Latin grammar and then orders Brian to write more grafitti with the correct grammar.

[@bigthoughts2644]

A beautiful classic

[@henryfanforever1414]

“Now don’t do it again.”

[@retro_boy_advance]

“What did the Romans do for us anyway?”

[@tfstalshek6398]

"They would have to least learn the basics of military talk in Latin: so basically commands and insults." War... war never changes.

[@urbanwarchief]

Dude in Cree i love to swear!!! Do you know what weent chisk means?

[@cautarepvp2079]

hahaahah

[@poki580]

I mean it was so "diverse" linguistically that 90% of western europe still speaks latin

[@poki580]

@CipiRipi00 what? I was talking how almost all of western europe speaks a derivative of latin today Which means the general populace spoke Latin back then which means it was not as diverse linguistically

[@poki580]

@CipiRipi00 today its barely intelligible, thousand years ago it was just dialects of the same language

[@BramVanhooydonck]

"Batavians thought high of themselves" Me, a Belgian: "So if you close your eyes, does it almost feel like nothing changed at all."

[@bramvanhooijdonk1185]

Broooooo wij hebben dezelfde naam

[@BramVanhooydonck]

@@bramvanhooijdonk1185 Gelukkig niet 100% hetzelfde

[@anthonychilders9549]

Funny enough I just watched a video not 30 minutes ago about a Batavian trade ship.

[@theleetworldbest]

Stop simping for Germanics, your national root lies within Celtic Belgae.

[@jgenard]

@theleetworldbest Many Belgae tribes were at least partly Germanic. But these ethnocultural divisions are mostly bullshit/conjecture anyway. ‘Stop simping’ for white supremacist pseudo-historians.

[@marclugtu5366]

No doubt they thought "where's the subtitles?" When they're in different countries

[@danielaramburo7648]

Roman general: Climb the hill and set up the archers. Soldier: I don’t understand you. Roman general: hold on..... hey google, translate.

[@gabrielvergara4633]

What's a subtitle? (a roman soldier probably)

[@Theevil6ify]

"Weeaboos go to Japan and be like 'Wh...where are the subtitles?" -Filthy Frank

[@003mohamud]

@@Theevil6ify east african and arab traders in se asia and china be like:

[@casparvoncampenhausen5249]

-What's you name? -Habitshupyta -Hello, Hank

[@freedombro6502]

Its common even today when being abroad to take a name of the place you are in . I have a Korean name, Arabic name and my English name

[@freedombro6502]

@T teg Egg common thats not legible

[@blyndblitz]

In Maurice's Strategikon, a period where the majority of Romans were speaking Greek, the military commands are still given in Latin.

[@heloo7773]

Well during Maurices time Latin was still the langauge of Administration so it makes sense that latin was still used in the army

[@Marshal_Rock]

@@heloo7773 but later in the Tactica, in the IX century, the army commands were still in latin and of course, greek

[@Ermagron]

You all have an incorrect vision of latin and greek of the time fir exemple some word in latin were taken directly from greek for exemple chaos / caos. Same pronouce. It was easier in fact be double languace at time that it would be prob today with lets say with any post medieval latin vs post medieval greek. Also all commander did properly their study during young age and they studied greek autors which made again ppl fluently with both languages.

[@blyndblitz]

@@Ermagron the languages shared borrowed words for sure, but they were not mutually intelligible. Proto-Greek and Proto-Latin underwent various sound changes before the civilizations as we know them came into contact with each other, and during this period they wouldve encountered much borrowing from separate languages as well (e.g. etruscan and other italic languages into latin, luwian into greek etc)

[@christopherzantiotis]

That is until the 800s AD when Greek became the formal administrative language and writing of the State, supplanting Latin. During the 8th-9th century AD, the Byzantine Empire also fundamentally changed the government system by further limiting the power of the senate, removing certain certain governmental bodies, dividing the empire into ‘Themes’ and restructuring the hierarchy within those themes to service the state and emperor better. Important to note is that the culture of the Byzantines/Romanoi was influenced ‘mainly’ by the Hellenic and Hellenistic eras of Greek history, as the Greek culture didn’t really change much in that region since the time of Alexander (except for Christianity, in which pagan cultural aspects were incorporated into the nascent Christianity)... and the Romans didn’t really try to change the culture in that region. Only in the formal matters of state like the language and writing of bureaucratic matters was there noticeable change... until as I mentioned it was reversed in the 800sAD. Also important is that the Byzantines/Romanoi had a Greek Orthodox culture that eventually became more and more distinct and divergent over time from the Christian culture that existed during the time of the Emperor Constantine.

[@kanyekubrick5391]

This is much more interesting than what I was doing before

[@GoogleRuinsAnythingItTouches]

This is the first thing I'm watching post nut.

[@3asianassassin]

More interesting than the idea rome was all white by losers who think knowing a lot about rome makes them more interesting than everyone else

[@ZacharyReaper]

Same

[@kingmuddy5898]

What was I doing again? Oh yeah my chem hw.

[@Geywilliamjohnson432]

@@GoogleRuinsAnythingItTouches horny bonk

[@animeyahallo3887]

They just recruit the Best Translator of their age which is a direct descendant of Biggus Dickus.

[@robertbruce7686]

Or Glutus Macimus....

[@khanhtran8772]

* try to hold my laugh *

[@robertbruce7686]

@@khanhtran8772 "was that man laughing?" (Muffled guffaw) "ffrooow him to the ground"

[@robertfaucher3750]

You ever hear the tragedy of Phallus Giganteus the Massive? I thought so. Not a story the Greeks would tell you.

[@atomic_wait]

@@robertbruce7686 Wuffly!

[@Mrkabrat]

*Gives a long, inspiring speech in latin* General: Any questions? Auxiliary troops from the far corners of the empire: What did he say?

[@zainmudassir2964]

He said it's lunchtime.....

[@spaceman081447]

@Mrkabrat In a situation like that, the general would probably use a translator.

[@thedukeofdeathpt6262]

@@zainmudassir2964 Yep, they'll feast in the human blood and corpses of their enemies

[@Mrkabrat]

@@zainmudassir2964 Is that an Asterix and Obelix reference?

[@lessssssgooooo]

@@Mrkabrat what did he say ?

[@chariotrider9716]

Last time I was this early Brutus was known as an honorable name

[@clovispadilha3237]

SO ARE THEY ALL; ALL HONORABLE MEN!

[@MusaMansu]

@@clovispadilha3237 I have come here to speak at Caesar's funeral. He was my friend, he was faithful and just to me.

[@rottik3327]

@@MusaMansu But Brutus says he was ambitious, and Brutus is an honourable man.

[@clovispadilha3237]

@Hernando Malinche If it were so it was a grievous fault! And grievously hath Caesar answer’d it. He hath brought many captives home to Rome whose ransoms did the general coffers fill: did this in Caesar seem ambitious? When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept! Ambition should be made of sterner stuff, yet Brutus says he was ambitious; and Brutus is an honourable man. You do know that on the Lupercal , Antony thrice presented him a kingly crown, which he did thrice refuse: was this ambition? Yet Brutus says he was ambitious; and, sure, he is an honourable man. I speak not to disprove what Brutus spoke, but here I am to speak what I do know. We all did love him once, not without cause: what cause withholds us then, to mourn for him? O judgment! thou art fled to brutish beasts, and men have lost their reason! Bear with me; my heart is in the coffin there with Caesar, and I must pause till it come back to me.

[@piotrgrzelak2613]

BTW does anyone know if Brutus is a regional name, meaning someone from Brutia? Same with the word brutal. You know, the Brutti tribe from Campania

[@joebollig2689]

The Austrian-Hungarian Army used “Army Deutsch,” a simplified German. However, the French Foreign Legion requires recruits to learn French.

[@ankokunokayoubi]

So Simplified German was a thing?

[@robinderoos1166]

Yes and the german parts pissed the rest off by their superior attitude

[@lsarenkir]

the legion was a mean for foreigners to serve and later becoming French proper, so it's different than the Austro-Hungarian, having multi-lingual army domestically.

[@joebollig2689]

Good point, Reof.

[@taoliu3949]

FFL requires recruits to "learn" French, but it's a rudimentary version of French enough for them to follow orders. You're not going to master the language in 6 months.

[@senatuspopulusqueromanus3011]

This makes me think of the Metatron video he did on Barbarians... That first scene where it’s the Greek and the Roman talking about who’s a barbarian.

[@SonsOfLorgar]

Hmph... southerners... /this comment was brought to you by the Ultima Thule tribes

[@kushalthapa5177]

I see a noble here.

[@full-timepog6844]

Is there a latin keyboard? How do u have the - on your letters?

[@senatuspopulusqueromanus3011]

@@full-timepog6844 there is a Latin keyboard, it’s the one you are using actually... The English alphabet is really just the Latin alphabet with a few more letters. As far as the - above some of the letters in my name, they are accent marks, and most keyboards have access to them.

[@DudeWatIsThis]

I find Metatron profoundly cringy and boring. 45 minute videos which could be condensed in 20 minutes, as well as his new Cringe Legion stuff. Urgh, hard pass.

[@HistoryOfRevolutions]

‘Census’ is a Latin word, and the modern notion of a state counting the population is a direct legacy from the Roman system of counting its citizens. The complex Roman census process involved a sworn declaration of age, family and property, allowing the administration to record the city’s human and property resources and to rank them

[@Rampart.X]

.. and to then tax them mercilessly 😈

[@jorge69696]

@@Rampart.X And steal property when they government needed money. Maybe that's why burrowed vases with coins and jewelry have been found.

[@TheAlmightyAss]

Wasn't the first census taken in Egypt?

[@Slayer119988]

@@TheAlmightyAss I believe the Sumerians did it even before them, perhaps Babylonians or Assyrians .

[@rifkifanani3694]

i like to think 'census' exist since the dawn of organized society

[@camrendavis6650]

This is something that I've always wondered, not just with Rome, but all ancient civilized superpowers. If you look at China or India, for example, tons of different people groups tons of completely different languages and yet they are all United under one crown. How do they get the word out so effectively? The emperor lives up in the north but they speak a different language in the south it... it's just.....wow. and how do they pick each other's languages up so quickly? At least enough to where they can get their points across?

[@horsenuggets1018]

At least in China the language itself was the same in a literary sense but there was an official dialect spoken for administration for each dynasty

[@camrendavis6650]

@@horsenuggets1018 exactly, and with it constantly changing with every dynasty, it's amazing how they managed to keep the communication going

[@JayzsMr]

Because they had a lingua franca. It's the same today ,just look at what language we are using here and how many of us are not native speakers, I am not for example.

[@camrendavis6650]

@@JayzsMr still though, the idea is amazing to me

[@Jattmafia313]

Well India was never really untied except a few times in history. Under the Mauryan dynasty (325BC-185BC), Mughals (1500s-1700s) and British (1800s-1947).

[@atomic_wait]

Dude in the thumbnail looks like he's telling the audience that aliens did it.

[@denizmetint.462]

Giorgio Tsoukalos, who himself speaks Greek, English, German, French and Italian fluently.

[@sabirrugunate1286]

Is that even possible? ( suspense pause) it may just be.... Aliens

[@Dankschon]

Epstein non sibi mortem.

[@andresvalverde5182]

@@Dankschon nice

[@KilledByThatTrain]

General: New recruits, do you understand my orders? Soldiers: Fo shizzle my nizzle!

[@stephenkenney8290]

Some days Rome regrets conquering the hood.

[@hunterzolomon1303]

@@stephenkenney8290 😂😂😂

[@procrastinator99]

@@stephenkenney8290 BY JUPITER, MY SIDES!!

[@williamchamberlain2263]

@@stephenkenney8290 best

[@ronjayrose9706]

@@procrastinator99 By Odin My Ears

[@scyllah4931]

In Pompeii one of the brothels has paintings of different uh positions, and one thought is it was so people could just point at what they want and bingo bango bongo language barrier problem solved.

[@banananotebook3331]

It's like how today, there are pictures and numbers in fast food restaurants above the ordering counter, which must serve the same purpose. The more things change...

[@MelkromisteinWeeb]

Nice. Asterix the Legionary is also one of my favourites.

[@FirstNameLastName-tg3rc]

For me I really enjoyed reading as a kid (and also watching it as well).

[@casparvoncampenhausen5249]

They're awesome

[@FirstNameLastName-tg3rc]

@@casparvoncampenhausen5249 Agreed.

[@cactuslietuva]

Im just surprised how far it is known. Im from eastern Europe and also know about asterix and obelix

[@FirstNameLastName-tg3rc]

@@cactuslietuva I'm from Australia - and I know it was around when my parents were children as well.

[@adventuresincrt1376]

Gaul officer to Roman translator: We go across the ridge of those mountains. Roman translator to Roman general: What Captain Goobledygook here was trying to say was...

[@senpainoticeme9675]

Last Time I was this early, Aenas was trying to escape from Troy.

[@Ermagron]

Last time i was this early Venus was fucking with a random man.

[@orrorsaness5942]

@@Ermagron If Venus exists, wouldn't she be doing so right now? Do you have any idea how little that narrows it down?

[@davidmoser3535]

Boring

[@senpainoticeme9675]

@@davidmoser3535 yeah like your Mom

[@Fatherofheroesandheroines]

2:28 a little shade on the History channel I see

[@winniepooh4630]

You know that ancient aliens built the pyramids, and they were present also present in the first thanksgiving.

[@Baamthe25th]

The Astérix reference take this video to new heights

[@viktorkukuruzovic5332]

asterix novels are amazing, the use of different fonts to show that characters are speaking in different languages is hilarious

[@ballapeti]

That’s how the Legion Etrangere deals with communication today. You join, you learn french.

[@Dovahhatty]

neat vid

[@pedrosalvador1146]

Caralho, o dovahatty comentando em um canal que só fala de Roma? Que coisa estranha! Kkkkk

[@pedrosalvador1146]

Inclusive, parabéns pelo conteúdo cara, um dos melhores do KZbin.

[@JuiceStainded]

Looking forward to your video on Justinian!

[@full-timepog6844]

Patricians in the comment section.

[@Y_Surniaiev]

The auxiliaries were at it again.

[@swissmith1]

One thing I love about Asterix & Obélix is how it gets better the more you know about ancient history. I’m still getting new jokes over twenty years after first reading them.

[@dpeasehead]

@Swissmith: I still remember reading one issue during my childhood in which the two wound up in a city in southern Gaul and everyone but them had a deep tan..

[@gerardosalazar161]

This reminds me of Fanagalo, a common language developed in South Africa long time ago for miners to be able to communicate among themselves; it contains around 2,000 words and it is a mix of several languages with a predominance of Zulu.

[@diegovarela8097]

Last time I was this early Cicero still had a head

[@MrAwrsomeness]

Cicero still had hands.

[@diegovarela8097]

@Anessen All three of them! Definitely before he got his tongue pierced by Fulvia

[@diegovarela8097]

@@MrAwrsomeness I think he is referring to how Antony ordered Cicero's hands to be cut (as well as his head) and be brought to the speaking platform he used, as revenge for Cicero's criticism towards him. I am probably wrong though

[@mrrandom1265]

We have the same issue nowadays. The French foreign legion is made of soldiers from all over the world and they learn French very fast.

[@SonsOfLorgar]

Or, they start racking up diciplinary infractions for misunderstanding orders fast...

[@zeriyx]

considering the absolute abysmal pay for the french foreign legion, recruits must primarily come from the third world or from people seeking EU citizenship. money is a great motivator.

[@taoliu3949]

@@zeriyx That's so not true. Majority of legionnaires today are from Europe or North America. It usually has to do with countries downsizing their militaries, a bunch of unemployed ex-military on the market looking for new work. And legionnaire pay is not that bad, it's on par with that of the US army.

[@zeriyx]

@@taoliu3949 it's less than the US army and it scales more slowly, unless it has recently changed.

[@taoliu3949]

@@zeriyx A brand new Legionnaire makes 1348Euro/1636USD a month, which is about the same as a brand new E1 in the US Military. Pay goes up significantly if you're in a Para regiment, moreso than US Army Jump Pay. The same goes for deployment pay too. Pay does scale slower with rank, but by then we're not talking about new joins anymore.

[@thelegend_doggo1062]

I really wanna see more films and shows like Barbarian, that show what things were actually like on the ground, cause most people when thinking of the Roman Empire and its military just think of a bunch of squares on a map.

[@junior1497]

*Historia Civillis has entered the chat*

[@yagollopart897]

At last a worthy book! You gained instant respect with those images from the Asterix the legionary comic hahahaha best Asterix & Obelix ever. Great video btw!

[@petermacolino8275]

One note worth mentioning: In the Netflix show Barbarians, while the Germanic tribes to speak German, they speak modern German and not early CE German.

[@stephentroake7155]

peter macolino yup.

[@dinodinoslav]

The show is German and so are actors portraying Germanic people. There is almost no evidence about language of Germanic people at the time of events depicted by the show, only speculative linguistic theories based on later historical sources.

[@sualtam9509]

@@dinodinoslav linguistics "theories" are not speculative, but logical derivations in the sense of a mathematical proof. That's why they are no theories, but laws.

[@dinodinoslav]

@@sualtam9509 "Logical derivation" is what kind of nonsense? Linguists can only speculate about their language, there is no historical evidence in written form and no living speakers... Even if they spend lifetime doing this, they will only have unprovable theory at best - bullshit science.

[@sualtam9509]

@@dinodinoslav No because you can also predict real languages before you find the textual evidence. For example Mycenean was for a long time a reconstructed language of Ancient Greek until the Linear B script was decoded and it could be read.

[@Samsok013]

Asterix and obelix, mmm you have my respect, by Toutatis!

[@GrandChat]

This was very insightful. Occasional speculation due to lack of understandable evidence was acknowledged and sources and background made me appreciate your program even more. Kudos!

[@dsw1664]

Not even 3 minutes in and I'm crying that the Library at Alexandria burned to the ground. 😥

[@badartgallery9322]

Me too.

[@zainmudassir2964]

😭😭😭😭🔥

[@blockmasterscott]

My heart is broken every time I see a video about it.

[@edp445fanaccount9]

Me as a history geek 😢

[@marcusviniciusmagalhaesdea3779]

Even the Varangian Guard had a greek commander.

[@CDNShuffle]

@@swissmilitischristilxxii3691 Nero had a thing for greeks

[@badartgallery9322]

@@CDNShuffle me too

[@marcusviniciusmagalhaesdea3779]

@Marcelo Henrique Soares da Silva Yes, in the XI century. In the beginings, when the Varengians where really Varengians, and not exiled Saxons, the commander was a greek Akolouthos.

[@Fenniks-]

I hope in the future you might do a video about Romanization, And the lands where a lot of the Roman veterans settled.

[@SecretTapeworm]

Been following the channel for a while and the artwork has improved immensely over time.

[@TJPenitencia]

Very interesting video! I studied interpreters and translators between the papacy and the Mongols in the 13th Century after becoming frustrated with the secondary resources so easily glossing over the fact that history's main characters often did not come from the same language groups. Thank you for your work on this!

[@ZephLodwick]

Today's, the 24th of January, is Hadrian's birthday. Happy birthday, Princeps!

[@Yorgar]

Insults, drink, and how to get a woman. the first things a soldier learns

[@arx3516]

@CipiRipi00 those are essential, but a soldier still needs to ask for the prices at the local brothel, and must be able to insult the owner for the bad wine/beer.

[@johnsierra3537]

Lmao cringe

[@florinivan6907]

Soldiers have been drunks and skirt chasers since forever. Its pretty much a rule. Any soldier that says 'the guys in my platoon are not like that' is either lying or he's incredibly naive about the people he's dealing with.

[@thebluesmurfdude]

The first thing I learned was how to do a four count push up. Only later was I told about the four fundamentals of the army. 1. Find oil. 2. Secure oil. 3. Buy a Dodge Charger. 4. Marry a stripper. But “corrective training” comes first.

[@spongmongler6760]

1 call them a soldier, 2 punch a liver beforehand and 3 they don't have a choice. soldiers, everyone!

[@robertsuhren3543]

Thanks for all the videos man. This is so well researched and i got such a different understanding of the roman empire because of you

[@petyreaper]

I love this kind of video explain the history behind the history, like the one that um talk about the laws in the ancient rome and how they organize the march of the legions and the resources, it is so good to learn this simply things that happen in that time, and few of us have acess to

[@dsw1664]

I'd have a guess that it's similar to how the French Foreign Legion teach today where people from 140 countries come together and speaking a single language (French). You need to know how to understand orders and the names of the parts of your equipment, but you don't need to be able to have an advanced indepth talk of socioeconomic policies. But everyone sticks to their own (mafia) or speaking group in their spare time Francophones, Eastern Bloc, Spanish, Anglophones don't often mix.

[@CivilWarWeekByWeek]

They didn't have google translate?

[@mdstanton1813]

Bad wifi on the fringes of the empire

[@thelegend_doggo1062]

They did, but they would’ve had to use 5G, and we all know how that causes cancer.

[@chienbanane3168]

Dude are you for real? Google didn't even exist in this time! They probably used Bing or something...

[@JerichoJulius0]

@@chienbanane3168 Pretty sure the root of the problem is that they had to use the ancien "Internet Explorer", and we all know how horrendous it runs.

[@cmelton6796]

Their GPS was bogus too. Everywhere said "hic sunt leones"

[@RossHbn]

I appreciate your informative and high quality videos.

[@jamesnincross]

That was incredible. Not long enough. Thank you!

[@keselekbakiak]

That asterix comic was my favourite one. I enjoy seeing their commander keep getting angry

[@BIGJATPSU]

I'm almost positive sticking the sharp pointy end in the other man IS a universal language no matter the time period. 😂

[@denizmetint.462]

Unfortunately, yeah.

[@ronjayrose9706]

Or their wive/women screaming

[@BIGJATPSU]

@@ronjayrose9706 lmao

[@SeanDunkley]

Fascinating and educational as always! Thank you!

[@eyeballpapercut4400]

I was not expecting Asterix. That flung me waaaaay back into very old nostalgic memories.

[@mateusz73]

I think others in addition to myself would like sources or at least some references what is discussed in the videos in the description or a pinned comment or something. For example, I'm 90% sure you referenced Apuleius's the golden ass. As to the plays you mentioned I have no idea so giving examples of such thing to us would be neat for those of us who would like to research more on our own and use your videos as a diving board. Anyways if you refer to things in the video but do not directly mention them please mention or list them in the description, it's a move other historical youtube channels have been doing for a while whether it be mhv/drach/mah to world war 2 channel to atun-shei and I think it is sorely missed for this channel as well. Please consider

[@jefffinkbonner9551]

2:40 “but can only communicate with broken Greek; and violence.” 💀💀💀

[@kodylee5915]

Great topic. Never really thought about it but this is huge.

[@EerieV23]

This is fascinating. I never really read or thought about this idea.

[@robinaboy]

I think the use of trumpets and banners to signal manoeuvres and orders was also a way to overcome language barriers.

[@89tonstar]

From what I understand, even in the late empire, latin was still the primary language of the army. Commands, ranks, honors remained in Latin for hundreds of years.

[@helgaioannidis9365]

The late army spoke Greek as the Roman empire had developed into the Byzantine empire.

[@helgaioannidis9365]

@LegoGuy87 Latin was dropped in the Byzantine empire over 1000 years ago. As the so called Byzantine empire actually was called "the Roman empire", because it was a continuation of it. Whatever they were called or called themselves, the language they spoke was Greek. Also many people seem not to know that the Roman empire turned into the greco-roman empire after Greek territories were conquered. Greek was one of the two official languages of the Roman empire, the Roman elite spoke Greek as well as Latin. It was common for Roman noble families to send their sons to study in Greece or have them educated by a Greek teacher. Greek was used in Roman administration and military already when the republic ended . There is though an area where Latin was in use until not many centuries ago, which is the German speaking world.

[@averageguy1261]

Thanks for the content, very interesting!

[@ducomaritiem7160]

This content is much appreciated!

[@gideon9096]

Last time I was this early, Gaul was still in its entirety divided into three parts.

[@brokenbridge6316]

I've seen the Netflix series Barbarians. And it was a delight to watch. I would love to see some of what was mentioned in this video in a season 2 of that series.

[@alejandrosakai1744]

3:40, it was fantastic, that you chose Metellus' situation with Segimer and his tribe!

[@Mulambdaline1]

Another creative video! Loved it!

[@user-ge8yn4ql4i]

I like how at 4:41 the Netherlands are shown with our modern land-sea borders. :3

[@lamykaswiccanpodcast]

I really enjoyed this one!! Language and culture are so important especially when trying to navigate and lead a cohesive military force (much less a country or empire).

[@richardcharay7788]

Interesting. Enjoyed. Thanks!

[@ItsJoKeZ]

I HAVE BEEN WONDERING FOR SO LONG THANK YOU

[@collinsagyeman6131]

I also love Asterix and Obelix. The Indomitable Gauls

[@mlvcsj]

Im proud to be here when it was uploaded 3 minutes ago.

[@jwayk9750]

I had no idea Arminius and Flavius met again! That story of them talking at the river is fascinating and very humanizing of a great historical event.

[@ScrubbyBubbles]

Man... when invicta puts up a video on Rome you KNOW its gonna be good lol.

[@Sadistic-Pickle]

Last time I was this early Romans were dying at Cannae.

[@_raresis5405]

too soon

[@PowerSkiff12]

@@_raresis5405 just like that assault

[@davidmoser3535]

Boring

[@Rohilla313]

My favourite Asterix - Asterix the Legionary ❤️❤️❤️

[@AngelkissDj]

I applaud u for ur great work👌

[@shawnbeckett1370]

Awesome as always

[@todo9633]

I always assumed it involved a lot of grunting, pointing and charades. Also the Romans would definitely have forced others to learn Roman to communicate with them, that's just such a Roman thing to do.

[@chrisdominguez5097]

After all, it's "Integrate or suffer" kind of a world. Very objective. Very pragmatic. Something we can all pick up right now.

[@SuperEone1]

the roman language is called latin

[@nothingtoospiffy7913]

Did you put a picture of Dickon Tarly as Flavus? 😆

[@clovispadilha3237]

Rickon?!

[@Meirstein]

@@clovispadilha3237 Dickon *Bronn laughs*

[@ThePalarax]

Great video! Thank you! Can I request a link to a map of the Roman Empire? It's the best I've ever seen!

[@hankwilliams150]

An extremely interesting video and SO nice not to be interrupted by ads!!!

[@inpito]

Alexander the Great spread Greek culture when he went conquering.

[@-haclong2366]

09:20 In the Netherlands we still have issues with arrogant people from Holland (the region), in fact the reason most foreigners call our entire country "Holland" is because of their arrogance.

[@zeriyx]

in english, the netherlands is an odd name for a country, and it seemingly has nothing to do with the demonym "dutch". "holland" is just easier on the ears.

[@nffctrickett]

The Dutch government only put actions to rebrand it as Netherlands from Holland only in 2019. So you can't say people are ignorant when your own government didn't make it clear. If you can't tell the difference between the UK, Great Britain and England then you are arrogant... Get off your pedestal lad, from a country that just has bikes and weed you need to chill.

[@Jack-Hands]

It's ironic really. Seeing as the batavians came from the southern regions of the Netherlands. So... Brabant. Which explains a lot.

[@zeus0710]

In Spanish we call the Netherlands Holanda. I learned something new now.

[@danshakuimo]

@@nffctrickett In some languages the UK is known as a rendition of England. In Mandarin Chinese the UK is still England and the Netherlands is still Holland.

[@paulosilva-fi6bq]

loved the video!

[@casualyoutubeviewer9198]

Would be really nice if you could link the sources for these! Really helpful for us researching for our finals

[@islagames]

British army is multiethnic. Scott: I'm de-highlandered fighting side by side with Asian mountain men. Gurkha: I'm feminized fighting side by side with soldiers in mini skirt.

[@user-uy1rg8td1v]

Lives in very windy lands. Decides that a mini skirt is acceptable wear for men. Spends their lives imitating Marylin Monroe. I will never understand Scottish men.

[@caesarshotdogchampion8738]

Attempt #8: What if Julius Caesar had survived Part 3 I know others share my sentiment. Like this so Invicta can see

[@MrAlepedroza]

This. Its been a year already

[@kirkmarrie8060]

Simply, awesome!

[@salsheikh4508]

Excellent Video

[@dyingearth]

I've always thought that the Roman upper class always record their writing in Greek in pre-Empire time. Caesar's commentary of Gaul was his way of communicating directly to the plebes back home and writing in Latin for ease of getting them to listen to (the vast majority of plebes would be illiterate).

[@michaelrenper796]

Romans wrote almost exclusively in Latin. Both the common person but also their literature! But the same educated Roman writing a discussion of law in Latin would pride himself with his command of Greek, knowledge of Homer, the great plays and geometry and happily enter a συζήτηση (διάλογος) in Greek.

[@aldosigmann419]

The Batavians were amazing swimmers too no bridges required. Rome's naval frogmen unit...

[@shrimpofdeath5199]

That's a great video about an underappreciated topic. Can you make a similar one about the armies of the 30-year War? With all the mercenaries, they were linguistically diverse as well and didn't have a powerful lingua franca like Latin for better cohesion.

[@cferolie]

I love your content and platform.

[@megamaniac76]

as a native English speaker I can understand the Roman's point of view very well

[@Palmieres]

Well, those of us whose native tongue isn't English, even though we can speak it well enough, will not mind indulging your ignorance at times. At other times we'll even celebrate it because we'll often have a serious advantage in being able to speak many languages, while you speak only your own. You'll have no idea what we're saying amongst ourselves. Imagine how dangerous that can become.

[@megamaniac76]

@@Palmieres wolves dont care what the sheep think

[@BoogieBubble]

@@megamaniac76 Είσαι μεγάλο τσόκαρο , βάρβαρε. :)

[@chaosinsurgency7133]

@@megamaniac76 touch some grass

[@xmaniac99]

Latin pidgin, still understood by Saracen and Arab pirates well into the 10th century.

[@abloodorange5233]

Really?

[@huriale1617]

Do you have any mention, article or book to support your point? and if you could also explain what you call 'a sarasin' or an 'arab pirate' in the 10th century that would be cool too.

[@DeepCFisher]

Fantastic is always man

[@lagelanden-5791]

Awesome! I never thought about this

[@thadsul]

Up to some point in the video I was still thinking "but how did the soldiers actually learn the language? Like, to execute orders properly?" Then I thought on how I dont speak japanese, but learned everything necessary for kendo practice: all the japanese vocabulary for the equipment, actions, names of exercises, directions, commands, rules for championships and even some abstract stuff. It's all picked up quite quickly actually, even more if you join the legion and has a military routine 24/7 based on latin/greek commands

[@SOLOMOOON1]

Great video, i noticed a visual mistake tho, when you talk about the batavians, the warior on the left is actually a Dacian noble.

[@usurum4898]

What minute is this in?

[@cortexavery1324]

Wow... a reference to Asterix in some of my usal englophone content ?! Wasn't expecting that.

[@josephquiggle6784]

Really interesting and insightful!! Was this the same case in the late imperial army (since they relied more heavily on foederati)?