Proceedings of the
British Academy 206

British Academy/OUP
April 2017

£80

234×156mm
xvi + 358pp
3 b&w illustrations

ISBN: 9780197266083

Latin continued to be used across Europe long after the end of the Roman Empire. This collection considers key issues arising from the use of Latin in Britain from the 6th to the 16th centuries. Latin in this period was not the native language of its users but was nevertheless used extensively for a wide variety of functions from religion, literature, and philosophy to record-keeping and correspondence. It existed alongside a number of everyday native spoken languages, including English, French, and Welsh. The chapters in this collection consider Latin with regard to the various contexts in which it was used, looking beyond narrow comparisons with its Roman ancestor to see what medieval users did with Latin and the changing effects this had on the language.

The fifteen chapters by expert contributors are divided into three parts. The chapters of the first part consider important examples of Latin usage in Britain during four successive periods, the pre-Conquest period, the 12th century, the long 14th century, and the 15th and 16th centuries. In the second part, different spheres of use are considered, including the law, the church, music, and science. In the final part the use of Latin is considered alongside the many spoken native languages of medieval Britain, looking at how the languages had different roles and how they influenced each other. In all the many contexts in which Latin was used, this use reveals continuity matched with adaptation to circumstance, not least in the development of new vocabulary for the language. Between these two poles, users of Latin steered a course that suited their own needs and those of their intended audience.

This volume follows from the conference under the same title held in 2013 to celebrate the completion of the Dictionary.

The contributors are:

Richard Ashdowne, Former Editor, Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources
Paul Brand FBA, Emeritus, All Souls College, University of Oxford
Charles Burnett FBA, Warburg Institute, University of London
Wendy Childs, Emeritus, University of Leeds
Philip Durkin, Deputy Chief Editor, Oxford English Dictionary
Leofranc Holford-Strevens, former Consultant Scholar-Editor, Oxford University Press
David Howlett, Former Editor, Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources
Paul Russell, University of Cambridge
Samantha Schad, Oxford English Dictionary
Richard Sharpe FBA, Wadham College, University of Oxford
Robert Swanson, University of Birmingham
†David Trotter, Aberystwyth University
Carolinne White, former Assistant Editor, Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources
Laura Wright, University of Cambridge
Neil Wright, Girton College, University of Cambridge

The book can be ordered directly from OUP or from all good booksellers. An extract (the editors' introduction) can be downloaded from the OUP website.