There is no direct equivalent in English. Although generally taken to mean 'dignity', it includes the sum of a man's influence, power and achievements throughout his life, as well as reputation, moral standing and entitlement to respect.
Dignitas
Fact of the Day
Sir Charles Isham introduced garden gnomes to England in 1847 hoping to attract real gnomes to his garden.
Quote of the Day
"He so beautified the city [Rome] that he justly boasted that he found it brick and left it marble.
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~ Suetonius on Augustus
On This Day
1846 Scottish surgeon Robert Liston was the first European to use anaesthesia during an amputation. He could amputate a leg in two and a half minutes.
1898 Scientists Pierre and Marie Curie discovered the radioactive element radium.
1937 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs', the world's first full-length animated film, premiered in the USA
1946 A tsunami caused by an undersea earthquake killed at least 1,362 and left thousands homeless in Japan.
1967 Louis Washkansky, the first man to undergo a heart transplant, died in Cape Town, South Africa, 18 days after his operation.
1988 Pan Am Flight 103 exploded as it was flying over Lockerbie, Scotland. All 243 passengers and 16 crew, and 11 residents of Lockerbie were killed