Not much is currently known about Ottavio Tempini (1880–1945) from Capo di Ponte (Brescia). Having finished his degree in literature from the University of Bologna (1903), he declined several offers for academic positions and preferred to teach at public high schools. In 1908, he entered the Order of the Salesians of Don Bosco and, after a thorough theological training, was ordained a priest in Turin in 1913 (Franzoni 1997: 200–201). During the First World War, he served as an army chaplain. After the war, he taught in the schools of the Salesian Order. Tempini was a prolific writer of educational material for Greek and Latin, including Alma Roma (in 4 volumes published between 1925 and 1930) and Manuale di conversazione latina (1936), which included passages on Fascist subjects such as the March on Rome. Some of his textbooks were in use until the 1970s (Franzoni 1997: 201). He also wrote several musical compositions, including hymns, motets, and a mass. More research on Tempini is needed.

Bibliography

Latin texts

Tempini, Ottavio. 1936a. Alma Roma: esercizi latini, con particolare riguardo alla vita e alle instituzioni romane, in correlazione alla grammatica latina del medesimo autore. Vol. 1–4. Turin: Società Editrice Internazionale.

———. 1936b. Manuale di conversazione latina: per tutte le scuole medie inferiori e superiori. Turin: Società Editrice Internazionale.

Secondary literature

Franzoni, Oliviero. 1997. “Il Salesiano don Ottavio Tempini, sacerdote ed educatore. Appunti per una ricerca.” Ricerche Storiche Salesiane 16 (30): 198–202.

Sacré, Dirk. 2020. “De colloquiis quibusdam scholasticis intra vicennium fascale conscriptis.” Conventiculum anni 2019 Latinum.

 Erlend Myklebust