For my dauther: My Daughter Eternally Beloved

[Anonymous]

Please please please need help with a translation. I guess this is the one reason for translation that everyone must hate on the forum.

I have "lost" my daughter. I want to get a tattoo as a reminder, a declaration of my love I dont know, pain to heal the pain if you like.

I want to have tattoo'd the words "My Love For Eternity". I think that this should be "Amicus Mea in Aeternam" but want to be sure before going ahead. WIll someone please help me?

Thanks In Advance ..... Brett

 

[Iynx]

Re: For My Daughter

Amicus Mea in Aeternam

Please allow me to express my sympathy. What can be worse than the loss of a child?

I will do my best to answer your enquiry.

In aeternum is, I think, what you want, rather than in aeternam.

Amicus is masculine, and even if we used the feminine equivalent, amica, it would likely be read as "friend" or "girlfriend".

I would suggest taking our cue from the Gospels. When the Father speaks of Christ as "my beloved Son" He calls Him in the Vulgate Filius meus dilectus, except in Mark IX: 6 (IX: 7 in the King James'), where He is Filius meus charissimus.

Charissimus is a superlative: "most dear" or "most beloved". It might be as well to avoid such expressions unless you have no other daughter, and are sure you will have none.

I might suggest one of the following:

Filia mea dilecta in aeternum = "My beloved daughter forever"
Filia mea dilectissima in aeternum = "My most beloved daughter forever"
Filia mea chara in aeternum = "My dear daughter forever"
Filia mea charissima in aeternum = "My dearest daughter forever"

Aeternum is also an adverb, so one might, I think, in any of these, omit the in and place the aeternum before the adjective, for example:

Filia mea aeternum dilecta = "My daughter eternally beloved"

Please note that the h in chara /charissima is "optional"; I included it because it is in the verse from Mark that I cited, but a classicist would, I think, prefer cara /carissima.

I hope this is helpful to you, and that some of my colleagues here will chime in now with their views, so that you need not depend on mine alone.

I must also point out that a tattoo is a permanent thing, and ask you to refer to the Disclaimer at the head of this Section.

Once again permit me to express my sincerest sympathy

--Iynx--

 

[cinefactus]

I would agree with Iynx on all points. I would have translated amica mea in aeternum, as, "My lover eternally"...

My preference is for, "Filia mea aeternum dilecta", or "Filia carissima aeternum dilecta" (Dearest daughter beloved forever).

I have children too. I am really sorry...

JD

 

[Akela]

Brett asked me to post the following in the forum:

1.the picture of the tattoo:

No matter how I tried to stand in the picture the words look crooked (they are not).

2. thanks to those who helped him:

My thanks to everyone who posted in response to my request. Originally I had requested a translation but someone suggested alternate wording which worked better in latin (somewhat biblical "œeternally beloved"). It is perfect and it enables me to carry that message for the rest of my life.