The Transformation of Latin Through the Ages
How did Latin Change Through Time?
Latin is a language with deep historical roots which has undergone significant evolution over centuries. Today I'll delve into the rich history of Latin, tracing its journey from its early inception in the small region of Latium to its development into the Romance languages and beyond.
Origin Story
To understand how Latin developed, you have to know where it came from. Latin originated in Latium, a small region on the west coast of Italy, where Rome is now located. The language of this area, influenced by Etruscan, Phoenician, Greek, and Celtic settlers, eventually became what we know today as Latin. It has bits of the native Italian language and parts of speech from northern tribes, languages from northern Africa and the Levant, as well as taking heavily from Greek. As Rome's influence grew, its language evolved, differentiating itself from the other languages in the region.
Vulgar Latin
Across the whole span of the Roman Empire we have Vulgar Latin. This, the spoken language of the Roman Empire, spanned from the 8th century BC, around the time Rome was founded in 753 BC, to the 6th century AD, after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. Unlike the highly stylised written Latin, Vulgar Latin was more accessible and fluid, as you would expect from a spoken language. Some schoolbooks offer insights into the differences between written and spoken Latin, in terms of admonishing students for using colloquial language/grammar in their formal writing. Unfortunately, most records that survived are in stylised written Latin, leaving us with limited evidence of the spoken form.
Archaic Latin:
Archaic Latin covers the period from the 8th century BC to the early 1st century BC, encompassing the Monarchic and the Republic periods of Rome’s history.
It is influenced heavily by Greek, which can be seen in the way that the words end. So for example, instead of -us and -um in the nominative and accusative second declension, it's actually -os and -om, which sounds very Greek.
Archaic Latin is primarily found in inscriptions, such as on tombstones, with a few pieces of later literature written in this style (almost like if you were writing a book in the 15th century, you might use Shakespearean language). But most of what we have is inscriptional, which changes when we get to Classical Latin.
Classical Latin
Classical Latin is divided into two stages: the Golden Age and the Silver Age.
The Golden Age
This is from the 1st century BC to the 1st century AD, and is considered the peak of Latin literature. This period includes the Ciceronian era (from the 70s to the, let's say, 40s BC) and the Augustan period, with notable writers like Cicero, Virgil, Horace, and Ovid writing their most important and influential works. This is the time that most scholars agree was the peak of Latin literature. The Renaissance greatly prized this era, ensuring the preservation of much of its literature.
The Silver Age
From the 2nd to 3rd century AD, this period followed the death of Augustus. From Tiberius’ reign, giving speeches became dangerous due to the increasing power of the emperors. Emphasis shifted to stories, poems, satire, and history, with writers like Martial, Juvenal, Tacitus, and the Plinys (Elder and Younger) becoming prominent.
Late Latin
Then, after the 3rd century, we move into Late Latin. It's quite a divisive topic, actually. People can't decide when it started or when it ended. The general consensus is that it starts in the 3rd century and it goes all the way through to the 10th century AD, significantly outlasting the fall of the Western Roman Empire. This period saw the emergence of the Romance languages - Italian, French, Spanish, Romanian and all the others. While Late Latin continued to be influenced by Classical Latin, it began diverging into distinct languages across different regions. There was no longer the cohesion of the empire to keep these languages as one.
Ecclesiastical Latin:
Also known as Church Latin, Ecclesiastical Latin extended from Late Latin to the present day. There are differences in grammar between Classical and Ecclesiastical Latin. Although it shares many similarities with Classical Latin, there are notable grammatical differences, often surprising those familiar with both forms. If any people have studied Latin, then go to church and expect Catholic churches to use usual Latin, they get a little bit of a surprise, but it's very similar in lots of ways.
The Roman Catholic Church adopted Latin for its services to create a uniform worship experience worldwide. And so they picked Latin because Christianity began in the Roman Empire, so they wrote their services in Latin and they could give it to lots of different people and everyone would have the same way to worship, whether in Spain or Constantinople.
Medieval Latin
Medieval Latin, heavily influenced by Ecclesiastical Latin, was primarily used for legal and administrative purposes. This period saw wild discrepancies in the language’s usage, as it was adapted in various ways by different regions and associations, making it less formulaic and harder to read than earlier Latin.
It does have links to Church Latin, but mainly it links to Classical Latin. It's trying really hard to be back in the golden age of Latin literature, but with the great differences, unfortunately it can be quite difficult to read some of this medieval Latin.
Neo Latin
From the Renaissance to the modern day, Neo Latin played a crucial role in scientific vocabulary, especially in Central European culture. Scholars of the Renaissance wanted to utilise the idea that Europeans had the same culture, and capitalise on that. They sought to emulate the Golden Age of Latin literature, that of Virgil and Cicero and Horace and be very highfalutin in the language they were using. The reason I have mentioned it is that it is very important for scientific vocabulary: this style of Latin was used to name new species of plants and animals. This revival ensured that Latin continued to have a place in scientific classification and literature.
Latin’s journey from the small region of Latium to its influence on modern languages and scientific vocabulary is a testament to its enduring legacy. If you’re interested in learning more about Latin, you can download my free guides on Latin verbs and nouns by entering your email address below, and receive them directly in your inbox.
I hope you found this exploration of Latin as intriguing as I did! Thank you for reading, and I look forward to next time on bambasbat!