The dead language that was discarded as being outdated and no longer useful is getting a resurgence in school. Students are now learning Latin to prepare for the SAT test, be different from their classmates, or indulge their curiosity after reading Harry Potter’s Latin spells. Successful Latin era films such as “Gladiator” and “Troy” have also generated interest.

Students in the US taking the National Latin Exam have risen consistently from 101,000 in 1998, 124,000 in 2003, to now more than 134,000 students. Those taking the AP Latin exam have doubled over the past ten years to 8,654 in 2007.