1.1

Rome Founded, 753 BCE. Romulus, 753–716 BCE

(1) quō: "than which," ablative of comparison (AG 406).

neque ab exōrdiō ūllum ferē minus neque incrēmentīs tōtō orbe amplius hūmānā potest memoriā recordārī: Order: ferē neque ūllum (imperium) potest recordārī hūmānā memoriā tōtō orbe minus ab exōrdiō, neque (ullum imperium potest recordārī) amplius incrēmentīs."Practically no (empire) can be recalled in human memory in the whole world (which was) smaller (than this) in its beginnings, nor larger in its increase." fere softens the categorical hyperbole. toto orbe might be taken with ullum (none in the whole world), or with incrementis (its growth in the whole world).

ā Rōmulō: The founding of Rome has a rather fanciful beginning, as Florus recounts:

quī: supply Rōmulus

Vestālis virginis: The Vestals were a kind of nuns, six in number, who were priestesses of Vesta. It was their duty to keep the fire on the altar in her temple in the Forum burning constantly. Her altar, with its ever-burning fire, was the family hearth of the state, from which the household fires were kindled at certain dates (Hazzard).

fīlius: in apposition with quī, subject of editus est (Hazzard)

quantum putātus est: "so far as he was thought" = "as it was thought." Note that Latin prefers the personal construction where we prefer the impersonal (Hazzard).

(2) Is: Rōmulus

cum ... latrōcinārētur: "while he was leading the life of a robber." cum is circumstantial (AG 546).

decem et octō annōs nātus: "having been born eighteen years" = "eighteen years old." The more common expression for the numeral is duodēvīgintī (Hazzard). natus comes from nascor.

in Palātīnō monte: the Palatine Hill, one of the seven hills of Rome. The remains of this city are still found on this hill (Hazzard).​​​​ The other hills were the Capitoline, Quirinal, Aventine, Esquiline, Viminal, and Caelian (Hazzard).

XI Kal. Māiās: April 21. The full expression would be ante diem ūndecimum Kalendās Māiās. In the Roman calendar it coincided with the Palilia (Parilia) or feast of Pales, the guardian divinity of shepherds (Hazzard).

Olympiadis: the Greeks reckoned time by periods of four years, called Olympiads from the Olympian Games, which were celebrated at that interval. The starting point was 776 BCE. Hence the third year of the sixth Olympiad would be 753 BCE. Some prefer to recognize 754 BCE as the date of the founding of the city (Hazzard).

post Trōiae excidium: the Romans attributed their origin to Aeneas, a Trojan prince whose adventures led him to Italy.

ut qui plurimum minimumque tradunt: "as (those) who relate the most and least (say)," i.e., "more or less." (See LS trado II.B.2.b.) The expression occurs again at Brev. 10.18, but not elsewhere in attested Latin prose. It seems to be the ancestor of the Italian expression più o meno (Bordone).