Latin translation

[Rosepink22]

Hi there, does anyone know the meaning of the Latin phrase - salvete in mundo domi vostrae estis - please? I keep seeing it on the pictures in Novotel hotel rooms. Thanks.

[Leo-Ireland]

Wherever you are in the world, our Lord is there also. I'd guess.

[Quizmonster]

Sounds more like "You are welcome to your elegant home" to me! Presumably a bit of self-praise for the standard of their accommodation.

[Rosepink22]

Thanks for replies. Not sure which is right, I should had paid more attention in Latin classes at school!

[ladyalex]

I would go with Quizmonster.....he's usually right.
Also, I seem to remember that 'salvete' means 'hello' or 'greetings'or 'welcome'

[Quizmonster]

I think Leo's answer probably confused domi - relating to home - with domini - relating to lord and the noun mundus - world - with the adjective mundus - elegant.
Having said that, I'm no total expert on Latin, despite Ladyalex's very kind comment...thank you, ma'am. However, as she says, salvete means hail or hello.

[Rosepink22]

Thanks to everyone, I'll run with Quizmonster's translation. I had assumed it was a deeply philisophical saying, rather than 'welcome to your novotel hotel room'!!

[Quizmonster]

From your question, RP, it seems you often find yourself in Novotels. Next time, it might be an idea to ask the manager...it's just possible that, somewhere in their management handbook, the answer is to be found. Good luck.

[fredpuli47]

I'm sure QM has the right idea (as usual) As it happens the phrase 'in mundo' means 'in readiness' and it's tempting to think that the guests are being told that their room has been prepared for them However, the rest of the grammar doesn't fit that statement. No, it's " Welcome. You are in your neat/clean/ elegant/ room" Why they wish to state that is not clear, but it looks good in Latin!

[fredpuli47]

Note:Domus [domi] really means 'home' , but I've freely translated it as 'room' in the context of it being in a hotel . QM has it correctly as 'home' and Novotel might prefer it read as 'home' , literally,with the suggestion that their hotel or hotel room is like home . Then it's 'Welcome. You are in your neat/clean/elegant home'

[Rosepink22]

Thanks FP, now I know what it means, I may test QM's suggestion that I ask the hotel manager next time I stay in a Novotel. Although, as it's likely to be in France, I may end up with the French translation! Fortunately my French is better than my Latin. Many thanks to all who have contributed on this.

[fredpuli47]

A pleasure, Rosepink. Novotel, from their name and this bit of Latin they use [ 'novo' is 'I make new' and 'novus' is 'new'' in Latin] may fancy themselves as classicists.If they went the whole way, they'd be calling themselves 'Novahospitalia' , 'hospitalia' being ' rooms or apartments for guests' in Latin, but ,I dare say, if nothing else, they might not fancy that name sounding like 'hospital' and the connotation of you're being ill if you're there !

[webbo3]

i did a search and found this.

to be well upon to clean at home vostrae are

it comes from this website.

http://www.translation-guide.com/free_online_t ranslators.php?from=Latin&to=English

Dave.

[mallam]

Wow! "So much for translation websites" is what I hope you mean by that.

But this Latin is a bit impenetrable, isn't it? Not really as welcoming as presumably intended, is it? Punctuation might help. Was there any? It doesn't even seem to be specific to Novotel if the break is after the greeting Salvete: "Greetings! (Anywhere) in the world, you are in your own home (here?)"

Perhaps it is not even competent. Perhaps they do somehow intend the meaning "in readiness/waiting for you" for "in mundo".

[Rosepink22]

Hi there, thanks for answer. The latin quotation appears at the bottom of an abstract painting in each Novotel room. The lower half of the letters aren't shown, so there's no punctuation to help with the meaning. Thanks again.

[robin74]

Actually, 'mundus' cannot be an adjective modifying 'domus'. 'Domus' is in sing. genitive, and it would have to be 'mundae domi', just as we have 'vostrae domi' here. And since the latter part is in genitive, it modifies 'mundus'. So 'mundus' is a noun for world here and it all would more or less mean "Welcome, you (plural) are in a world of your home".

[undecisive]

So... having stared at this for half an hour and with all my GCSE Latin grade D, my best translation is:
Salvete - You are all Welcome! Be well!
In mundo - coming out from being in the world
Domi - home
Vostrae - yours
Estis - is

So, rearranged and anglified, I think it's something along the lines of "your home is the safe space/welcome away from the world"

[NovotelConundrum]

"Welcome to your home [wherever] you are in the world" - this is an idiomatic translation to capture Novotel's assumed intent for anyone still wondering in 2024..!

Salvete is an imperative (you plural) commonly used as a greeting - "welcome, be well", in mundo - "in the world" (in + ablative), domi - "at home" (a rare locative case which arguably makes more sense here than genitive), vostrae - "your" (presumably intended to be "your home" although the cases are poorly rendered), estis - "you (plural) are". Probably Google Translate into Latin! Makes sense in context