Expert: Maria - 4/2/2009

Question
In starting a not-for-profit association we require a Motto in Latin that is equivalent to the English version of: “Excellence gained through Association”.  Your help on this matter would be greatly appreciated. We’ve tried other translation site and have drawn a blank or a translation that did not sound right.  Currently we have: “Virtus Lucrum Per Concilium”. It sounds great but the other sites do not confirm our translation, namely the word Virtus does not equal Excellence and Concilium is at times not recognised. Does our translation come close to the English version? As for the word “gained”, we are willing to use “achieved” instead.

Answer
Hello,

The correct Latin version of “Excellence gained through Association” as well as of "Excellence achieved through Association" is the following:

-“Excellentia per Congregationem adepta”.
(See below for grammatical analysis).

Anyway, if you want a more concise translation, you can say :
-“Per Congregationem Excellentia”
where I omitted the past participle which in Latin can be understood, without modifying the sense of the motto.

With regard to  “Virtus Lucrum Per Concilium”, I am sorry, but it is absolutely wrong.(See below for learning more).

Best regards,
Maria
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Note that:

-Excellence = EXCELLENTIA (nominative case, feminine noun, 1st.declension)

-gained = ADEPTA (nominative feminine agreed with EXCELLENTIA).  This is the past participle of the deponent verb ADIPISCOR, whose past participle can be used also in the  passive meaning)

-through  = PER ( preposition which takes the accusative  )

-Association = CONGREGATIONEM (accusative of CONGREGATIO, 3rd.declension).
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As for “Virtus Lucrum Per Concilium”, I have to point out that:

1-VIRTUS (nominative) can mean :“virtue”, “valour “, “courage”, but not “excellence” in the sense you say.

2-LUCRUM (nominative neuter, 2nd.declension) means:” gain”, “profit”, “avarice”.

3-PER is the only one correct word

4-CONCILIUM (accusative neuter, 2nd.declension) means
:” Assembly”, “council”, not “Association” in the sense you say.

In short, “Virtus Lucrum Per Concilium “ could be translated  as :“Virtue/ valour  Profit through Council/ Assembly” which makes no sense at all, as you can see.

Hope I made myself understood. Feel free however to ask me again.