Translate into English:
Hippopotamī ā nōnnūllīs Aegyptiīs sacrī habentur; ab reliquīs vērō nōn sacrī. Hōrum nātūra atque speciēs tālis est. Quadrupēs animal, bisulcum, ungulīs bovīnīs, sīmō nāsō, iubā equīnā, dentibus prōminentibus, caudā et vōce equīnā: magnitūdine taurīs sunt similēs.
Vocabulary
bisulcus, -a, -um: cloven (of a hoof)
bovīnus, -a, -um: pertaining to oxen, cattle, cows; Engl. deriv. bovine
cauda, -ae [1/f]: tail
iuba, -ae [1/f]: mane (of, for example, a horse)
quadrupēs, quadrupidis: four-footed
sīm(i)us, -a, -um: snub-nosed; sīmia, -ae [1/f]: monkey
ungula, -ae [1/f]: hoof; claw, diminutive form (ungula) of unguis, -is [3/m]: fingernail; toenail
Notes
[1] ablative of description / quality
This list of adjectives and nouns uses the ablative of description
… ungulīs bovīnīs, sīmō nāsō, iubā equīnā, dentibus prōminentibus, caudā et vōce equīnā
Also known as the ablative of quality, it is used to describe a person’s personal qualities or physical features; English conveys this idea with the prepositions with and of, for example ‘a man of great wisdom’ or ‘a man with long hair’. This is generally expressed in Latin by using a noun and an adjective in the ablative case:
nāsus: nose > vir ¦ magnō nasō: a man ¦ with a big nose
barba; capillus > vir ¦ [i] barbā albā et [ii] capillō prōmissō: a man ¦ [i] with a white beard and [ii] long hair
oculī > fēmina ¦ oculīs caeruleīs: a lady ¦ with blue eyes
prudentia: wisdom > vir ¦ magnā prudentiā: a man ¦ of great wisdom
Discussed here:
https://adckl.blogspot.com/2024/04/080324-ablative-of-description-quality.html
https://www.facebook.com/groups/latinforstarters/posts/403980555546552/
[2] ablative of respect
magnitūdine ¦ taurīs sunt similēs │ they are similar to bulls ¦ > in what respect? > in (terms of) size
The ablative of respect is used to indicate in what respect something ‘is’ or is done:
virtūte praecēdunt │ they excel in courage
Corpore senex esse poterit, animō numquam erit. │ He may be an old man in (terms of) body [with respect to his body], he never will be [old] at heart.
maior ¦ nātū: greater with respect to age = older
minor nātū: younger
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Hippopotami are held sacred by some Egyptians, but not sacred by the rest. Their nature and appearance are as follows. (It is) a four-footed animal, with cloven hoof, the hooves of oxen, a snub nose, the mane of a horse, projecting teeth, the tail and voice of a horse: in size they resemble bulls.
