When in Rome, do as the Romans do

Posted by ESC on June 15, 2006

In Reply to: When in Rome, do as the Romans do posted by Smokey Stover on June 15, 2006

: : : : when you are in rome be as a romanian - I need the meaning for this proverb.

: : : I'm assuming you mean: When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Romanians are from Romania, not Rome. In it's simplest forms, it means you should follow local customs, eat local food, try to fit in where you are. Sometimes it's used humorously or as an excuse to try something wild.

: : See: www.phrases.org.uk bulletin_board 6 messages 571.html

: I find myself using that phrase fairly often in the emended version, simply because so many do not honor it who ought to. But back to the Romanians. That nation came to life as a nation only when the Romans gave it existence and a name (not always the same name). It was a part of the Empire whose inabitants were recognized as Roman citizens, even though they were an extremely mixed population. When the Romanian language was finally given a name, it turned out to be the most Roman of any of the Romance languages in terms of retention and proportion of L@tin vocabulary (although with some shifts in spelling and pronunciation). I'm inclined to agree, though, that there was no local code among the Romanians that said, "Remember now, when you go to Rome, act Romanian."
: W Z

I find myself saying, whatever.