The place of Latin and the heritage of the ancient Roman world
Latin developed from a local dialect of central Italy to become the official language of ancient Rome, transmitting Roman law, government, literature and social and cultural knowledge and values throughout much of Europe, North Africa and West Asia during the period 753 BCE – 476 CE. The period for the study is 1st century BCE to 1st century CE when some of the most influential Latin literature extant was written.
