Expert: Maria - 11/11/2008

Question
I found a silver ring with the inscription "Dilectus meus mihi et ego Illi"  It also has a small cross.  What does this mean and what is its significance?  Is this a common type of ring or unusual?

Answer
Hello,

The Latin  inscription "Dilectus meus mihi et ego Illi"  is nothing but a quotation from  “The Song of Songs” by Solomon 2:16, where a bride says  that her bridegroom is hers and she is his.

In fact the meaning of "Dilectus meus mihi et ego Illi"  is the following:

“My beloved is mine  and I am his”
(See below for grammatical analysis).

As for the small cross, it indicates the Christian faith of the possessor of the silver ring which can be an  engagement ring or a wedding ring.

Best regards,
Maria

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-DILECTUS (past participle used as an adjective in the nominative masculine) = beloved

-MEUS (possessive in the masculine  agreed with DILECTUS) = my

-MIHI (dative of the 1st.person pronoun) = mine.
Note that Latin uses the dative of possession which denotes the possessor of a certain object and is usually accompanied by the verb “Sum”(I am ) which is implied here.

-ET = and

-EGO  = I

-ILLI (dative of possession of the pronoun ILLE ) = his