Medieval Latin was the form of Latin used in the Middle Ages, primarily as a medium of scholarly exchange and as the liturgical language of the medieval Roman Catholic Church, but also as a language of science, literature, law, and administration. Despite the clerical origin of many of its authors, Medieval Latin should not be confused with Ecclesiastical Latin. There is no real consensus on the exact boundary where Late Latin ends and Medieval Latin begins. Some scholars have their surveys of it begin with the rise of early Christian Latin in the middle of the 4th century, others around the year 500.^[1] Lingua franca, literally Frankish language in Italian, was originally a mixed language consisting largely of Italian plus a vocabulary drawn from Turkish, Persian, French, Greek and Arabic and used for communication throughout the Middle East. ... An extinct language is a language which no longer has any native speakers, in contrast to a dead language, which is is a language which has stopped changing in grammar, vocabulary, and the complete meaning of a sentence. ... Renaissance Latin is a name given to the distinctive form of Latin style developed during the European Renaissance of the fourteenth to sixteenth centuries, particularly by the humanist movement. ... Current distribution of Human Language Families A language family is a group of related languages said to have descended from a common proto-language. ... The Indo-European languages comprise a family of several hundred related languages and dialects [1], including most of the major languages of Europe, as well as many spoken in the Indian subcontinent (South Asia), the Iranian plateau (Southwest Asia), and Central Asia. ... The Italic subfamily is a member of the Centum branch of the Indo-European language family. ... The Latino-Faliscan languages are a group of languages that belong to the Italic language family of the Indo-European languages. ... ISO 639-1 is the first part of the ISO 639 international-standard language-code family. ... ISO 639-2 is the second part of the ISO 639 standard, which lists codes for the representation of the names of languages. ... ISO 639-3 is an international standard for language codes. ... Articles with similar titles include the NATO phonetic alphabet, which has also informally been called the “International Phonetic Alphabet”. For information on how to read IPA transcriptions of English words, see IPA chart for English. ... Unicode is an industry standard allowing computers to consistently represent and manipulate text expressed in any of the worlds writing systems. ... Latin is an ancient Indo-European language originally spoken in Latium, the region immediately surrounding Rome. ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ... A sacred language is a language, frequently a dead language, that is cultivated for religious reasons by people who speak another language in their daily life. ... Topics in Christianity Movements · Denominations Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer Music · Liturgy · Calendar Symbols · Art · Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul · Church Fathers Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Luther Calvin · Wesley Arius · Marcion of Sinope Pope · Archbishop of Canterbury Patriarch of Constantinople Christianity Portal This box:      The Roman Catholic Church or Catholic... The term Ecclesiastical Latin (sometimes called Church Latin) refers to the Latin language as used in documents of the Roman Catholic Church and in its Latin liturgies. ... Vulgar Latin (in Latin, sermo vulgaris) is a blanket term covering the vernacular dialects of the Latin language spoken mostly in the western provinces of the Roman Empire until those dialects, diverging still further, evolved into the early Romance languages — a distinction usually assigned to about the ninth century. ... As a means of recording the passage of time, the 4th century was that century which lasted from 301 to 400. ... Events Possible date for the Battle of Mons Badonicus: Romano-British and Celts defeat an Anglo-Saxon army that may have been led by the bretwalda Aelle of Sussex (approximate date; suggested dates range from 490 to 510) Note: This battle may have influenced the legend of King Arthur. ...

Page with medieval Latin text from the Carmina Cantabrigiensia (Cambridge University Library, Gg. 5. 35), 11. cent.

Image File history File links Download high resolution version (625x932, 177 KB) Carmina Cantabrigiensia Manuscript C, folio 436v, 11th century (Cambridge University Library, Gg. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (625x932, 177 KB) Carmina Cantabrigiensia Manuscript C, folio 436v, 11th century (Cambridge University Library, Gg. ...

Changes in vocabulary, syntax, grammar and orthography

Influences

Medieval Latin was characterized by an enlarged vocabulary, which freely borrowed from other sources. It was heavily influenced by the language of the Vulgate, which contained many peculiarities alien to Classical Latin that were the consequence of more or less direct translation from the Greek and Hebrew; these peculiarities were mirrored not only in its vocabulary, but also in its grammar and syntax. The Greek brought much of the technical vocabulary of Christianity. The various Germanic languages spoken by the Germanic tribes, who invaded western Europe, were also major sources of new words. Germanic leaders became the rulers of western Europe, and as such words from their languages were freely imported into the vocabulary of law. Other more ordinary words were replaced by coinages from Vulgar Latin or Germanic sources because the classical words had fallen into disuse. The Vulgate Bible is an early 5th century version in Latin, partly revised and partly translated by Jerome on the orders of Pope Damasus I in 382. ... The word Hebrew most likely means to cross over, referring to the Semitic people crossing over the Euphrates River. ... Christianity percentage by country, purple is highest, orange is lowest Topics in Christianity Movements · Denominations Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer Music · Liturgy · Calendar Symbols · Art · Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul · Church Fathers Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Wycliffe Tyndale · Luther · Calvin · Wesley Arius · Marcion of Sinope Pope · Archbishop of Canterbury Patriarch... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Vulgar Latin, as in this political graffito at Pompeii, was the speech of ordinary people of the Roman Empire — different from the classical Latin used by the Roman elite. ...

Latin was also spread to areas such as Ireland and Germany, where Romance languages were not spoken and which had never known Roman rule. Works written in these lands where Latin was a learned language with no relation to the local vernacular also influenced medieval Latin's vocabulary and syntax. The Romance languages (sometimes referred to as Romanic languages) are a branch of the Indo-European language family, comprising all the languages that descend from Latin, the language of the Roman Empire. ... Motto Senatus Populusque Romanus (SPQR) The Roman Empire at its greatest extent. ...

Since abstract subjects like science and philosophy were communicated in Latin, the Latin vocabulary developed for them is the source of a great many technical words in modern languages. English words like "abstract", "subject", "communicate", "matter", "probable" and their cognates in other European languages generally have the meanings given to them in medieval Latin. Cognates are words that have a common origin. ...

An illuminated manuscript of a Book of Hours contains prayers in medieval Latin.

Image File history File links Download high resolution version (979x791, 128 KB)Two page from a Book of Hours (Milan, Biblioteca Trivulziana, Cod. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (979x791, 128 KB)Two page from a Book of Hours (Milan, Biblioteca Trivulziana, Cod. ... In the strictest definition of illuminated manuscript, only manuscripts decorated with gold or silver, like this miniature of Christ in Majesty from the Aberdeen Bestiary (folio 4v), would be considered illuminated. ... These two pages from a Book of Hours in the Biblioteca Trivulziana contain a miniature of the Annunciation to the Shepherds and a decorated initial. ...

Influence of Vulgar Latin

The influence of Vulgar Latin was also apparent in the syntax of some Medieval Latin writers, although Classical Latin continued to be held in high esteem and studied as models for literary compositions. The high point of development of medieval Latin as a literary language came with the Carolingian renaissance, a rebirth of learning kindled under the patronage of Charlemagne, king of the Franks. Alcuin was Charlemagne's Latin secretary and an important writer in his own right; his influence led to a rebirth of Latin literature and learning after the depressed period following the final disintegration of Roman authority in Western Europe. Vulgar Latin, as in this political graffito at Pompeii, was the speech of ordinary people of the Roman Empire — different from the classical Latin used by the Roman elite. ... For other uses, see Syntax (disambiguation). ... Sample of Carolingian minuscule, one of the products of the Carolingian Renaissance. ... Charlemagne and Pippin the Hunchback. ... This article is about the Frankish people and society. ... Rabanus Maurus (left), supported by Alcuin (middle), presents his work to Otgar of Mainz Flaccus Albinus Alcuinus or Ealhwine (c. ...

Although it was simultaneously developing into the Romance languages, Latin itself remained very conservative, as it was no longer a native language and there were many ancient and medieval grammar books to give one standard form. On the other hand, strictly speaking there was no single form of "Medieval Latin." Every Latin author in the medieval period spoke Latin as a second language, to varying degrees of fluency, and syntax, grammar, and vocabulary were often influenced by an author's native language. This was especially true beginning around the 12th century, after which the language became increasingly adulterated: late-medieval Latin documents written by French speakers tend to show similarities to medieval French grammar and vocabulary; those written by Germans tend to show similarities to German, etc. For instance, rather than following the classical Latin practice of generally placing the verb at the end, medieval writers would often follow the conventions of their own native language instead. Whereas Latin had no definite or indefinite articles, medieval writers sometimes used forms of unus as an indefinite article, and forms of ille (reflecting usage in the Romance languages) or even "quidam" (meaning "a certain one/thing" in Classical Latin) as something like a definite article. Unlike in classical Latin, where esse ("to be") was used as the only auxiliary verb, Medieval Latin writers might use habere ("to have"), as Germanic and Romance languages do. The accusative infinitive construction in classical Latin was sometimes ignored, in favour of introducing a subordinate clause with the word "quod" (or occasionally "quia"). This is almost identical, for example, to the use of "que" in similar constructions in French.

Changes in orthography

The most striking differences between classical and medieval Latin are found in orthography. Some of the most frequently occurring differences are:

• The diphthong ae is usually collapsed and simply written as e (or "e caudata", ę); for example, puellae might be written puelle (or puellę). The same happens with the diphthong oe, for example in pena, Edipus, from poena, Oedipus.
• Because of a severe decline of the knowledge of Greek, in loanwords and foreign names from, or transmitted through Greek, y and i might be used more or less interchangeably: Ysidorus, Egiptus, from Isidorus, Aegyptus.
• h might be lost, so that habere becomes abere, or mihi becomes mi (the latter also occurred in Classical Latin); or, mihi may be written michi, indicating the h came to be pronounced as k, which is its pronunciation even today in Ecclesiastical Latin (this pronunciation is not found in Classical Latin).
• The loss of h in pronunciation also led to the addition of h in writing where it did not previously belong, especially in the vicinity of r, such as chorona for corona, a tendency also sometimes seen in Classical Latin.
• -ti- before a vowel is often written as -ci-, so that divitiae becomes diviciae (or divicie), tertius becomes tercius, vitium vicium.
• The combination mn might have another plosive inserted, so that alumnus becomes alumpnus, somnus sompnus.
• Single consonants were often doubled, or vice versa, so that tranquillitas becomes tranquilitas and Africa becomes Affrica.
• vi, especially in verbs in the perfect tense, might be lost, so that novisse becomes nosse (this occurred in Classical Latin as well but was more frequent in Medieval Latin).

These orthographical differences were often due to changes in pronunciation or, as in the last example, morphology, which authors reflected in their writing. By the 16th century, Erasmus complained that speakers from different countries were unable to understand each other's form of Latin.^[2] It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Ogonek. ... The term Ecclesiastical Latin (sometimes called Church Latin) refers to the Latin language as used in documents of the Roman Catholic Church and in its Latin liturgies. ... Desiderius Erasmus in 1523 Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (also Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam) (October 27, probably 1466 – July 12, 1536) was a Dutch humanist and theologian. ...

The gradual change of Latin did not escape the notice of contemporaries. Petrarch, writing in the 14th century, complained about this linguistic "decline", which helped fuel his general dissatisfaction with his own era. From the c. ...

Medieval Latin literature

The corpus of Medieval Latin literature encompasses a wide range of texts, including such diverse works as sermons, hymns, hagiographical texts, travel literature, histories, epics, and lyric poetry. A sermon is an oration by a prophet or member of the clergy. ... See also hymn - a program to decrypt iTunes music files. ... Hagiography is the study of saints. ... Travel literature is literature which records the people, events, sights and feelings of an author who is touring a foreign place for the pleasure of travel. ... Early 18th century novels and romances were still not considered part the world of learning, hence, not of part of literature; they were market goods. ... The Experimental Physics and Industrial Control System (EPICS) is a software environment used to develop and implement distributed control systems to operate devices such as particle accelerators, telescopes and other large experiments. ... omg holy crap| cellpadding=4 cellspacing=0 style=width:270px; margin: 0 0 1em 1em; background:#FFFFFF; border: 0px #aaaaaa solid; border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 85%; float:right; | // |- |} Lyric be excepted. ...

Early period

The first half of the 5th century saw the literary activities of the great Christian authors Jerome (c. 347-420) and Augustine of Hippo (354-430), whose texts had an enormous influence on theological thought of the Middle Ages, and of the latter's disciple Prosper of Aquitaine (c. 390-c. 455). Of the later 400s and early 500s, Sidonius Apollinaris (c. 430-after 489) and Ennodius (474-521), both from Gaul, are well-known for their poems, as is Venantius Fortunatus (c. 530-600). This was also a period of transmission: the Roman patrician Boethius (c. 480-524) translated part of Aristotle's logical corpus, thus preserving it for the Latin West, and wrote the influential literary and philosophical treatise De consolatione Philosophiae; Cassiodorus (c. 485-c. 585) founded an important library at the monastery of Vivarium near Squillace where many texts from Antiquity were to be preserved. Isidore of Seville (c. 560-633) collected all scientifical knowledge still available in his time into what might be called the first encyclopedia, the Etymologiae. Europe in 450 The 5th century is the period from 401 to 500 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian Era. ... “Saint Jerome” redirects here. ... “Augustinus” redirects here. ... Saint Prosper of Aquitaine (c. ... Early 407 — Constantine III seizes control of the Roman garrison in Britain, declares himself emperor, and crosses into Gaul. ... Centuries: 5th century - 6th century - 7th century Decades: 450s - 460s - 470s - 480s - 490s - 500s - 510s - 520s - 530s - 540s - 550s Years: 500 501 502 503 504 505 506 507 508 509 510 Events and Trends: Clovis I, king of the Franks, defeats the Visigoths at the battle of Vouille in 507... Gaius Sollius Modestus Sidonius Apollinaris (c. ... Magnus Felix Ennodius (474 - July 17, 521), Bishop of Pavia, Latin rhetorician and poet. ... Venantius Honorius Clementianus Fortunatus (c. ... Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew from a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula circa the 9th century BC to a massive empire straddling the Mediterranean Sea. ... There are several persons called Bo thius: Philosophers: Anicius Manlius Severinus thius - to many scholars this is the Bo thius, a late-Roman writer best known for his works in philosophy and theology. ... Aristotle (Greek: AristotélÄ“s) (384 BC – 322 BC) was a Greek philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. ... Logic (from ancient Greek λόγος (logos), meaning reason) is the study of arguments. ... This early printed book has many hand-painted illustrations depicting Lady Philosophy and scenes of daily life in fifteenth-century Ghent (1485) Consolation of Philosophy (Latin: Consolatio Philosophiae) is a philosophical work by Boethius written in about the year 524 AD. It has been described as the single most important... Cassiodorus at his Vivarium library ( in Codex Amiatinus, 8th century). ... Coat of arms of Comune di Squillace Squillace (Latin: Scyllaceum or Scalacium) is an ancient seaside town in the southern Italian region of Calabria facing the Golfo di Squillace. ... Saint Isidore of Seville (Spanish: or ) (c. ... Brockhaus Konversations-Lexikon, 1902 An encyclopedia, encyclopaedia or (traditionally) encyclopædia[1] is a comprehensive written compendium that contains information on all branches of knowledge or a particular branch of knowledge. ... First printed edition of 1472 (by Guntherus Ziner, Augsburg), title page of chapter 14 (de terra et partibus), illustrated with a T and O map. ...

Gregory of Tours (c. 538-594) wrote a lengthy history of the Frankish kings. Gregory came from a Gallo-Roman aristocratic family, and his Latin, which shows many aberrations from the classical forms, testifies to the declining significance of classical education in Gaul. At the same time, good knowledge of Latin and even of Greek was being preserved in monastic culture in Ireland and was brought to England and the European mainland by missionaries in the course of the 6th and 7th centuries, such as Columbanus (543-615), who founded the monastery of Bobbio in Northern Italy. Ireland was also the birthplace of a strange poetic style known as Hisperic Latin. Other important Insular authors include the historian Gildas (c. 500-597) and the poet Aldhelm (c. 640-709). Benedict Biscop (c. 628-690) founded the monastery of Wearmouth-Jarrow and furnished it with books which he had taken home from a journey to Rome and which were later used by Bede (c. 672-735) to write his Ecclesiastical History of the English People. Saint Gregory of Tours (c. ... Statue of Charlemagne (also called Karl der Große, Charles the Great) in Frankfurt, Germany. ... Monasticism (from Greek: monachos—a solitary person) is the religious practice of renouncing all worldly pursuits in order to fully devote ones life to spiritual work. ... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem No official anthem - the United Kingdom anthem God Save the Queen is commonly used England() – on the European continent() – in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto)1 Unified  -  by Athelstan 927 AD  Area  -  Total... A missionary is a propagator of religion, often an evangelist or other representative of a religious community who works among those outside of that community. ... The 6th century is the period from 501 - 600 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian Era. ... The 7th century is the period from 601 - 700 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian Era. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Stone arch bridge over the Trebbia river Bobbio is a city in the Piacenza province of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. ... Hiberno-Latin, also called Hisperic Latin, was a playful and learned sort of Latin literature created and spread by Irish monks during the period from the sixth century to the tenth century. ... Gildas (c. ... Saint Aldhelm (c. ... Benedict Biscop (628?-690), also known as Biscop Baducing, English churchman, was born of a good Northumbrian family and was for a time a thegn of King Oswiu. ... Wearmouth-Jarrow Abbey is a twin-founation abbey located on the River Wear at Wearmouth and the River Don at Jarrow respectively, in the Kingdom of Northumbria (now in County Durham). ... Nickname: Motto: SPQR: Senatus Populusque Romanus Location of the city of Rome (yellow) within the Province of Rome (red) and region of Lazio (grey) Coordinates: Region Lazio Province Province of Rome Founded 21 April 753 BC Government  - Mayor Walter Veltroni Area  - City 1,285 km²  (580 sq mi)  - Urban 5... Bede (IPA: ) (also Saint Bede, the Venerable Bede, or (from Latin) Beda (IPA: )), (ca. ... Folio 3v from Codex Beda Petersburgiensis (746) The Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum (in English: Ecclesiastical History of the English People) is a work in Latin by the Venerable Bede on the history of the Church in England, and of England generally; its main focus is on the conflict between Roman...

Important medieval Latin authors

4th-5th centuries

• Aetheria (fl. 385)
• St Jerome (c. 347-420)

In early Chistian history, Egeria, also known as Aetheria, is the name of a woman who made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land about 381–384, taking about four years to do it, and who wrote a long letter to her beloved circle of women at home (probably along the... “Saint Jerome” redirects here. ...

6th-8th centuries

• Gildas (d. c. 570)
• Venantius Fortunatus (c. 530-c. 600)
• Gregory of Tours (c. 538-594)
• Isidore of Seville (c. 560-636)
• Bede (c. 672-735)

Gildas (c. ... Venantius Honorius Clementianus Fortunatus (c. ... Saint Gregory of Tours (c. ... Saint Isidore of Seville (Spanish: or ) (c. ... Bede (IPA: ) (also Saint Bede, the Venerable Bede, or (from Latin) Beda (IPA: )), (ca. ...

9th-10th centuries

• Ratherius (890-974)
• Thietmar of Merseburg (975-1018)

Ratherius (890-974) was a teacher, writer, and bishop. ... Thietmar (Dietmar or Dithmar) of Merseburg (July 25, 975 - December 1, 1018), German chronicler, was a son of Siegfried, count of Walbeck, and was related to the family of the emperor Otto the Great. ...

Eleventh century

• Marianus Scotus (1028-1082)
• Adam of Bremen (fl. 1060-1080)

Marianus Scotus (1028-1082 or 1083), chronicler (who must be distinguished from his namesake Marianus Scotus, d. ... Adam of Bremen (also: Adam Bremensis) was one of the most important German medieval chroniclers. ...

Twelfth century

• Pierre Abélard (1079-1142)
• Geoffrey of Monmouth (c. 1100-c. 1155)
• Otto of Freising (c. 1114-1158)
• Peter of Blois (c. 1135-c. 1203)
• Walter of Châtillon (fl. c. 1200)
• The Archpoet (fl. 1159-1167)

Abaelardus and Heloïse surprised by Master Fulbert, by Romanticist painter Jean Vignaud (1819) Pierre Abélard (in English, Peter Abelard) or Abailard (1079 – April 21, 1142) was a French scholastic philosopher. ... Geoffrey of Monmouth (in Welsh: Gruffudd ap Arthur or Sieffre o Fynwy) (c. ... Otto of Freising Otto of Freising Otto von Freising {Otto Frisingensis) (c. ... Peter of Blois (1135 (?) - 1203 (?)) was a French poet and diplomat who wrote in Latin. ... Walter of Châtillon was a 12th century French writer and theologian who wrote in the Latin language. ... The Archpoet, or Archipoeta, is a name given to the bibulous and boastful anonymous author of many of the poems contained in the Carmina Burana collection of mediæval Latin verse. ...

Thirteenth century

• Giraldus Cambrensis (c. 1146-c. 1223)
• Saxo Grammaticus (c. 1150-c. 1220)
• Thomas of Celano (c. 1200-c. 1265)
• Albertus Magnus (c. 1200-1280)
• Roger Bacon (c. 1214-1294)
• St Thomas Aquinas (c. 1225-1274)
• Siger of Brabant (c. 1240-1280s)
• Duns Scotus (c. 1266-1308)

Giraldus Cambrensis (c. ... Saxo, etching by the Danish-Norwegian illustrator Louis Moe (1857 – 1945) Saxo Grammaticus (estimated. ... Thomas of Celæno, also known as Thomas of Celano (around 1200 - around 1255), was a Franciscan monk and hymnodist whose chief claim to fame is his authorship of the Dies Iræ. Thomas was one of the first disciples of St Francis of Assisi and joined the order around 1215. ... Albertus Magnus (b. ... For the Nova Scotia premier see Roger Bacon (politician). ... Saint Thomas Aquinas (also Thomas of Aquin, or Aquino; c. ... Siger de Brabant (also Sigerus, Sighier, Sigieri or Sygerius), ( 1240–1280s), was a 13th century philosopher from the southern Low Countries. ... Blessed John Duns Scotus (c. ...

Medieval Latin literary movements

• Goliards
• Hiberno-Latin

The Goliards were a group of clergy who wrote bibulous, satirical Latin poetry in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. ... Hiberno-Latin, also called Hisperic Latin, was a playful and learned sort of Latin literature created and spread by Irish monks during the period from the sixth century to the tenth century. ...

Important medieval Latin works

• Carmina Burana
• Pange Lingua
• Summa Theologiae
• Etymologiæ
• Dies Iræ
• Decretum Gratiani

Carmina Burana (IPA: ; note that the stress is on the first syllable of Carmina, not the second) also known as the Burana Codex is a manuscript collection, now in the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich, of more than 1000 poems and songs written in the early 13th century. ... Pange Lingua is a hymn written by St. ... Summa theologiae, Pars secunda, prima pars. ... First printed edition of 1472 (by Guntherus Ziner, Augsburg), title page of chapter 14 (de terra et partibus), illustrated with a T and O map. ... For the Polish death metal band Dies Irae, see Dies Irae (band). ... The Decretum Gratiani is a collection of canon law written around 1140 by Gratian. ...

Notes

Reference

• K. P. Harrington, J. Pucci, and A. G. Elliott, Medieval Latin (2nd ed.), (Univ. Chicago Pres, 1997) ISBN 0-226-31712-9

External links

• Wright, Thomas, ed. A Selection of Latin Stories, from Manuscripts of the Thirteenth and Founteenth Centuries: A Contribution to the History of Fiction During the Middle Ages. (London: The Percy Society. 1842.)
• Mental furniture from the philosophers, article on the influence of medieval Latin on modern technical vocabulary.