Latin was the universal language of western civilization for nearly two thousand years. Many of the greatest books of literature, history, science, philosophy, and theology were written in it; until less than a hundred years ago, educated people in every country knew Latin, and through it classical Greek and Roman culture, and this knowledge influenced everything they wrote. A student who learns to read Latin can engage directly with this immense part of our western heritage without relying solely on translations. Latin has supplied more than 60% of the vocabulary of modern English, so a student who learns Latin will be better equipped to read and write English. Studying any new language requires rigor and precision of thought, so a student who learns Latin will be better able to think carefully and logically; as Latin begins to regain its old standing in the schools, more studies show that learning Latin improves SAT and other achievement test scores. Finally, since such languages as Spanish, Italian, and French, are direct descendants of Latin, a student who learns Latin will have an excellent groundwork for studying those modern tongues.