Catullus 16
Updated: 12/11/2025, 3:54:58 PM Wikipedia source
Catullus 16 or Carmen 16 is a poem by Gaius Valerius Catullus (c. 84 BC – c. 54 BC). The poem, written in a hendecasyllabic (11-syllable) meter, was considered to be so sexually explicit following its rediscovery in the following centuries that a full English translation was not published until the 20th century. The first line, Pēdīcābō ego vōs et irrumābō ('I will sodomize and face-fuck you'), sometimes used as a title, has been called "one of the filthiest expressions ever written in Latin—or in any other language". Carmen 16 is significant in literary history not only as an artistic work censored for its obscenity, but also because the poem raises questions about the proper relation of the poet, or his life, to the work. Subsequent Latin poets referenced the poem not for its invective, but as a work exemplary of freedom of speech and obscene subject matter that challenged the culturally prevalent decorum or moral orthodoxy of the period. Ovid, Pliny the Younger, Martial, and Apuleius all invoked the authority of Catullus in asserting that while the poet himself should be a respectable person, his poetry should not be constrained.
Tables
· Latin text and translation
1
1
Line
1
Latin text
Pēdīcābō ego vōs et irrumābō,
English translation
I will sodomize you and face-fuck you,
2
2
Line
2
Latin text
Aurēlī pathice et cinaede Fūrī,
English translation
bottom Aurelius and catamite Furius,
3
3
Line
3
Latin text
quī mē ex versiculīs meīs putāstis,
English translation
you who think, because my poems
4
4
Line
4
Latin text
quod sunt molliculī, parum pudīcum.
English translation
are sensitive, that I have no shame.
5
5
Line
5
Latin text
Nam castum esse decet pium poētam
English translation
For it's proper for a devoted poet to be moral
6
6
Line
6
Latin text
ipsum, versiculōs nihil necesse est;
English translation
himself, [but] in no way is it necessary for his poems.
7
7
Line
7
Latin text
quī tum dēnique habent salem ac lepōrem,
English translation
In point of fact, these have wit and charm,
8
8
Line
8
Latin text
sī sint molliculī ac parum pudīcī
English translation
if they are sensitive and a little shameless,
9
9
Line
9
Latin text
et quod prūriat incitāre possunt,
English translation
and can arouse an itch,
10
10
Line
10
Latin text
nōn dīcō puerīs, sed hīs pilōsīs
English translation
and I don't mean in boys, but in those hairy old men
11
11
Line
11
Latin text
quī dūrōs nequeunt movēre lumbōs.
English translation
who can't get it up.
12
12
Line
12
Latin text
Vōs, quod mīlia multa bāsiōrum
English translation
Because you've read my countless kisses,
13
13
Line
13
Latin text
lēgistis male mē marem putātis?
English translation
you think less of me as a man?
14
14
Line
14
Latin text
Pēdīcābō ego vōs et irrumābō.
English translation
I will sodomize you and face-fuck you.
| Line | Latin text | English translation |
| 1 | Pēdīcābō ego vōs et irrumābō, | I will sodomize you and face-fuck you, |
| 2 | Aurēlī pathice et cinaede Fūrī, | bottom Aurelius and catamite Furius, |
| 3 | quī mē ex versiculīs meīs putāstis, | you who think, because my poems |
| 4 | quod sunt molliculī, parum pudīcum. | are sensitive, that I have no shame. |
| 5 | Nam castum esse decet pium poētam | For it's proper for a devoted poet to be moral |
| 6 | ipsum, versiculōs nihil necesse est; | himself, [but] in no way is it necessary for his poems. |
| 7 | quī tum dēnique habent salem ac lepōrem, | In point of fact, these have wit and charm, |
| 8 | sī sint molliculī ac parum pudīcī | if they are sensitive and a little shameless, |
| 9 | et quod prūriat incitāre possunt, | and can arouse an itch, |
| 10 | nōn dīcō puerīs, sed hīs pilōsīs | and I don't mean in boys, but in those hairy old men |
| 11 | quī dūrōs nequeunt movēre lumbōs. | who can't get it up. |
| 12 | Vōs, quod mīlia multa bāsiōrum | Because you've read my countless kisses, |
| 13 | lēgistis male mē marem putātis? | you think less of me as a man? |
| 14 | Pēdīcābō ego vōs et irrumābō. | I will sodomize you and face-fuck you. |
References
- "Catullus Purified: A Brief History of Carmen 16"http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1001&context=classicsfacpub
- Harry Mount, "Mark Lowe is right: The Romans said it better," Telegraph 25 Nov 2009, online. Archived 14 April 2018 at thttps://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/6649756/Mark-Lowe-is-right-The-Romans-said-it-better.html
- The Times Literary Supplementhttps://web.archive.org/web/20100709130934/http://timesonline.typepad.com/dons_life/2009/11/pedicabo-ego-vos-et-irrumabo-what-was-catullus-on-about.html
- Ovid, Tristia 2.353–354.
- Pliny the Younger, Epistulæ 4.14.
- Martial, Epigrams 1.36.10–11.
- Apuleius, Apologia 11.3.
- Arethusahttp://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1001&context=classicsfacpub
- "Publisher references censorship for consideration of decency in former edition"http://www.hup.harvard.edu/loeb/author.html#C
- The Carmina of Caius Valerius Catullus by Gaius Valerius Catullus, published in 1894http://www.gutenberg.org/files/20732/20732-h/20732-h.htm#page31
- "NPR on Naughty Catullus Poem: Alea Redacta Est"http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/artsdesk/books/2009/12/14/npr-on-naughty-catullus-poem-alea-redacta-est/
- Innovations of Antiquityhttp://plaza.ufl.edu/ranchild/lnw2630/selden.pdf
- Love and Betrayal: A Catullus Reader
- "list of poems that Furius is in"http://www.vroma.org/~hwalker/VRomaCatullus/Furius.html
- "list of poems that Aurelius is in"http://www.vroma.org/~hwalker/VRomaCatullus/Aurelius.html
- The Poems of Catullus: A Teaching Texthttps://books.google.com/books?id=bJnv7VmIo2oC&pg=PA143
- Catullus and his World: A Reappraisalhttps://books.google.com/books?id=-d3hFC_nAEAC&pg=PA122
- Roman Homosexualityhttps://books.google.com/books?id=JoS4ffPU1-0C&pg=PA181
- "Dictionary"https://web.archive.org/web/20060618211448/http://lysy2.archives.nd.edu/cgi-bin/words.exe
- "Translation #1"http://www.vroma.org/~hwalker/VRomaCatullus/016x.html
- "Translation #2"http://rudy.negenborn.net/catullus/text2/e16.htm
- The New College Latin & English Dictionaryhttps://archive.org/details/bantamnewcollege00john_0
- Literally, "who can't get their inflexible loins to move." Although lumbus, singular, can sometimes be a euphemism for t
- Literally, "many thousands of kisses," usually taken as a reference to Carmina 5, Vivamus mea Lesbia atque amemus, and 7
- When the Lamp Is Shattered: Desire and Narrative in Catullushttps://books.google.com/books?id=5gG9Zcc6aeUC&pg=PA45
- Forberg 1824, pp. 80–189
- Forberg 1824, p. 80
- Forberg 1824, pp. 190–261
- Forberg 1824, pp. 190–191
- A Concise Guide to Teaching Latin Literaturehttps://books.google.com/books?id=pcx_B_iOFw8C&pg=PA17
- Bury, Laurent (2013) "Carmina Catulli; Praise, Lesbie, Diane et caetera" (forumopera, 11 September 2014)