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Karthago

Historical Location
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Latin name for Carthage, Phoenician-founded city in North Africa and Rome’s rival

Detailed Definition
Karthago was Rome’s great antagonist in the Punic Wars. Its destruction in 146 BCE became a symbol of total victory and cautionary hubris (“Carthago delenda est”). Poets use Karthago to explore enmity, cultural clash, and the moral ambiguity of annihilation—often as a mirror to Rome’s own imperial fate.
Example
Example in poetry:
Virgil’s Aeneid casts Karthago (Carthage) as doomed rival where Dido’s love turns to ash; A Roman elegist curses Karthago as “delenda” — emblem of existential threat; In a modern Tunisian poem, Karthago reclaims its Phoenician roots beyond Roman vilification; A postcolonial lyric contrasts Karthago’s ruins with Tunis’ vibrant present; A minimalist verse reduces Karthago to salted earth and broken treaty.
Additional Notes
Karthago (Carthage), founded by Dido in Virgil’s Aeneid, embodies both tragic love and geopolitical rivalry; its destruction in 146 BCE became a Roman moral exemplum, while its Phoenician roots highlight Mediterranean cultural entanglement—essential for understanding how poetry transforms historical enemies into mythic figures.
Also Known As
Carthage
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