Breakdown of Post scholam discipuli etiam in bibliotheca manent.
Questions & Answers about Post scholam discipuli etiam in bibliotheca manent.
Post is a preposition meaning after (in time) or behind (in space), and it always takes the accusative case.
- schola = school (nominative singular)
- scholam = school (accusative singular)
So post scholam literally means after the school (in the sense of after school as a time period).
scholam is accusative because it is the object of the preposition post.
Discipuli is the nominative plural of discipulus, discipuli (m.) = student, pupil.
- discipulus = a (male) student (nominative singular)
- discipuli = students / the students (nominative plural)
The -i ending here shows:
- case: nominative (subject of the sentence)
- number: plural
- gender: masculine (by default; could mean a mixed group)
In this sentence, discipuli is the subject of the verb manent:
discipuli manent = the students remain / stay.
In can take either the accusative or the ablative, with a change in meaning:
- in + accusative = motion into (into, onto)
- in + ablative = location in / on (in, on, at)
Here the meaning is “in the library” (location, not movement), so we expect the ablative.
Bibliotheca is a first-declension feminine noun:
- Nominative singular: bibliotheca
- Ablative singular: bibliotheca (same spelling; the difference is usually only in vowel length, which isn’t shown in normal spelling)
So in bibliotheca means in the library and uses in + ablative to express “being in a place.”
Manent comes from the verb maneo, manēre, mansi, mansum = to remain, stay.
- mane- = verb stem
- -nt = 3rd person plural present active ending
So manent is:
- tense: present
- voice: active
- person/number: 3rd person plural (they)
Meaning: they remain / they stay.
In natural English, this can be translated either as:
- they stay
- they are staying
Latin does not have a separate continuous form (are staying); the simple present covers both.
Etiam usually means also or even. Its position matters because it tends to emphasize or attach to the word or idea that follows it.
In Post scholam discipuli etiam in bibliotheca manent, some natural readings are:
- The students also stay in the library (after school).
→ emphasis: in the library is an additional place they stay - Or: After school, the students also stay in the library.
If we moved it:
- Etiam discipuli post scholam in bibliotheca manent.
→ Even the students stay in the library. (emphasis on discipuli) - Post scholam discipuli in bibliotheca etiam manent.
→ they stay there too (perhaps in addition to doing something else)
So here, etiam naturally gives the idea: they also stay (not just go home, for example).
Latin has no articles like English the or a/an. Nouns appear without articles, and you get the sense of definiteness from:
- Context (what has already been mentioned or is obvious)
- Possession, demonstratives, etc. (e.g. hi discipuli = these students)
So:
- discipuli can be students or the students
- bibliotheca can be a library or the library
In this sentence, English feels more natural with the:
After school, the students also stay in the library.
But the Latin itself does not force a vs the; it’s inferred from context.
Latin often uses a singular noun with post + accusative to mean “after (the period of) X”:
- post cenam = after dinner
- post meridiem = after midday / afternoon
- post scholam = after school (after the school day)
So scholam is grammatically a single school, but idiomatically it refers to the school session / school day, just as English after school does not literally mean “after one particular school building.”
In theory, post can mean:
- after (time)
- behind (place)
So post scholam could mean behind the school only if the context clearly talks about location rather than time.
However, in this sentence:
- We already have a location: in bibliotheca (in the library).
- The whole idea clearly describes when they stay in the library.
So the natural reading is after school, not behind the school.
If you specifically wanted “behind the school,” you’d help the reader with context or say post scholam aedificium or similar.
Latin indicates the subject mainly by case, not by position.
- discipuli = nominative plural → typical subject form
- bibliotheca = here ablative singular (after in) → object of the preposition, not the subject
- scholam = accusative singular (after post) → also object of a preposition
Since manent is 3rd person plural, its subject must be plural and in the nominative:
- discipuli manent = the students stay
So discipuli is the subject; scholam and bibliotheca are in prepositional phrases, not subjects.
Without etiam, the sentence would be:
- Post scholam discipuli in bibliotheca manent.
= After school, the students stay in the library.
This simply states a fact.
With etiam, you add the sense of “also” / “in addition”:
- They also stay in the library (maybe as well as doing some other after-school activity, or in addition to something already mentioned).
So etiam adds a nuance of addition or emphasis, but the basic structure and grammar of the sentence are the same.