One of the most well-known papal documents of the twentieth century is the encyclical, Humanae Vitae: On Human Life. Notable for its orthodox treatment of the sanctity of marriage, human sexuality and life, it was written by Pope Paul VI and promulgated in 1968.

As with all encyclicals, its name is taken from the first few words of the Latin text; in this case, Humanae Vitae. While the title in English is usually rendered, “On the Regulation of Human Births” or “On Human Life”, the direct translation of the Latin is “of human life.”

vita, vitae is a first declension noun and genitive form, vitae, means “of life.” Since it is feminine, vita must be accompanied by a feminine adjective.

The feminine form of the adjective humanus, humana, humanum, meaning “human”, is humana. Its genitive form is humanae, meaning “of human”.

Here is the full Latin text of the first sentence. Since it is rather long, it has been split into two separate sentences in the English, as given below the Latin.

Humanae vitae tradendae munus gravissimum, ex quo coniuges liberam et consciam Deo Creatori tribuunt operam, magnis semper ipsos affecit gaudiis, quae tamen aliquando non paucae difficultates et angustiae sunt secutae.

“The transmission of human life is a most serious role in which married people collaborate freely and responsibly with God the Creator. It has always been a source of great joy to them, even though it sometimes entails many difficulties and hardships.”

IMAGE SOURCE: Marcus Gheeraerts the Younger, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons