Utinam repotia laeta sint et matrimonium felix sit!

Utinam is a particle used to express a wish: if only, would that, or more naturally in English here, something like may ....

So Utinam ... sint ... sit! means the speaker is not simply stating a fact, but expressing a hope or wish.

It is very common for utinam to be used with the subjunctive, which is exactly what happens here.

Because this is a wish, Latin uses the subjunctive mood rather than the ordinary indicative.

• sint = present subjunctive of sum for they may be
• sit = present subjunctive of sum for it may be

Compare:

• repotia laeta sunt = the celebrations are joyful (statement of fact)
• utinam repotia laeta sint = may the celebrations be joyful (wish)

So the subjunctive here is not random: it is required by the sense of hoping or wishing.

Because the two subjects have different numbers:

• repotia is plural, so it takes sint = may they be
• matrimonium is singular, so it takes sit = may it be

Latin verbs must agree with their subjects in number, just as in English:

• the celebrations are
• the marriage is

And in the subjunctive:

• repotia ... sint
• matrimonium ... sit

Because laeta agrees with repotia in gender, number, and case.

Here:

• repotia is neuter plural
• so the adjective must also be neuter plural
• laeta is the neuter plural form of laetus, laeta, laetum

So repotia laeta means joyful celebrations or let the celebrations be joyful.

A learner may notice that laeta could also be feminine singular, but here the noun repotia tells you it must be neuter plural.

Felix is a third-declension adjective, and its nominative singular form is felix for both masculine and feminine, and also for neuter nominative singular.

Since matrimonium is:

• nominative singular
• neuter

the correct agreeing adjective is still felix.

So:

• matrimonium felix = a happy marriage / the marriage may be happy

This is different from adjectives like laetus, which change more obviously by gender and number.

They are both in the nominative case, because they are the subjects of their verbs:

• repotia ... sint
• matrimonium ... sit

Even though the sentence is a wish, the grammar of subject + verb still works normally. The thing being wished about appears in the nominative.

Repotia is normally used as a plural noun. It refers to wedding festivities or celebrations, something naturally thought of as a set of festive events rather than a single item.

So even if English might say the wedding feast or the celebrations, Latin uses repotia as a plural word, and that is why the verb is plural too: sint.

Repotia is a neuter plural noun. It refers to wedding festivities, nuptial celebrations, or a wedding banquet/feast depending on context.

A learner might be surprised because the ending -a often suggests singular feminine in first-declension nouns, but here it is actually neuter plural.

That is why:

• the adjective is laeta
• the verb is sint

All of that fits a neuter plural subject.

Latin could sometimes share a verb across coordinated elements, but here the sentence gives each subject its own verb:

• repotia laeta sint
• et matrimonium felix sit

This makes the structure very clear and balanced:

• may the celebrations be joyful
• and may the marriage be happy

It has a formal, almost ceremonial feel, which suits this kind of good wish.

Not in standard grammar, because sint is plural and would not agree properly with the singular matrimonium if each subject is being treated separately with its own predicate adjective.

The actual sentence avoids that problem by giving each subject its own verb:

• plural repotia ... sint
• singular matrimonium ... sit

That is the cleanest way to express the wish.

Latin word order is flexible, so repotia laeta and matrimonium felix are both perfectly normal.

Putting the adjectives after the nouns is a very common and straightforward pattern. It can sound neat and balanced here:

• repotia laeta
• matrimonium felix

Because Latin relies on endings more than English does, word order often serves style and emphasis rather than basic grammar.

Yes. Et links the two wished-for ideas:

• may the celebrations be joyful
• and may the marriage be happy

It joins two parallel clauses, each with its own subject, adjective, and subjunctive form of sum.

In this sentence, may be is usually the best translation.

With utinam + present subjunctive, Latin commonly expresses a wish for the present or future:

• Utinam ... sint
• Utinam ... sit

So the sense is:

• May the wedding festivities be joyful
• and may the marriage be happy

Would that ... were would suggest a different kind of wish, usually involving an imperfect or pluperfect subjunctive.

Because the sentence is an expression of feeling: a warm wish or blessing.

Even without punctuation in ancient manuscripts, the sense is clearly exclamatory. In modern edited Latin, an exclamation mark fits well because the sentence is not a neutral statement but an enthusiastic hope.

Yes. Utinam does not make the clause incomplete. It introduces a full wish-clause, and the rest of the sentence is grammatically complete:

• repotia laeta sint
• et matrimonium felix sit

So the sentence is fully self-contained. It is not waiting for another main clause.