Latin Language and Literature
Why Latin?
Latin is the language of Ancient Rome, its empire, and its successors. Learning Latin allows you to get to know the Ancient Romans in their own words, read the Latin language works of the Middle Ages and Renaissance, and understand the origins of many modern European languages.
Latin at KU
Latin (LAT) is offered at all levels by the Department of Classics. If you’ve never taken the language before, this is a perfect place to start! If you’ve already taken some Latin in high school, we offer a full range of intermediate and advanced courses which will allow you to consolidate your language skills and read a wide variety of Latin texts. We also offer retroactive college-level credit for students who have taken two or more years of Latin at high school and complete a Latin course at KU.
Beginner
If you have not studied Latin before, the best place to start is by enrolling in our beginners’ course, LAT 104/105 Elementary Latin I. This course is the first part of a two-semester introduction to Latin grammar and its core vocabulary, which is completed by taking LAT 108/109.
Intermediate
When you have completed our introductory sequence, you will have the language skills necessary to enroll in our first intermediate course, LAT 112/113, where you will read selections from authors such as Cicero, Caesar, and Catullus in the original language. The next course in our Latin sequence is LAT 200/201 on Vergil's Aeneid. On completion of this course, students will meet the CLAS language proficiency requirement.
Advanced
300-level Latin courses are advanced undergraduate courses. These courses typically focus on a particular author or genre of Latin literature. In these courses, we focus not only on the language of the texts, but also on their literary style and historical significance.
Graduate
700-level Latin courses are graduate level courses. Advanced undergraduates may enroll in these courses with the permission of the instructor.
Not every course is offered every semester. Check our current course list to see which courses are currently being offered.
