The Multilingualism of the Early Middle Ages: Evidence from Peripheral Regions of the Regnum orientalium Francorum

Wolfgang Haubrichs

Jump to Content

Chapter 3 The Multilingualism of the Early Middle Ages: Evidence from Peripheral Regions of the Regnum orientalium Francorum

In: The Languages of Early Medieval Charters

Author:

Wolfgang Haubrichs

Wolfgang Haubrichs
Search for other papers by Wolfgang Haubrichs in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed

Type:: Chapter

Pages:: 68–116

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004432338_004

Purchase instant access (PDF download and unlimited online access):

€42.00€35.00 excl. VAT

Add to Cart

Redeem Access Token

Abstract

Recent research has shown clearly that the different Germanic-speaking gentes established inside the former Roman Empire (such as the Goths, Franks, Burgundians, and Lombards) were linguistically and culturally integrated with the Latin- or Romance-speaking majority within one or two centuries. Yet it is often forgotten that precisely the reverse happened in the eastern and northern periphery of the western empire. Over a period of several hundred years, numerous former Roman provinces became linguistically ‘germanized’ to differing extents. Long-lasting ‘interference zones’ emerged, characterized by multilingual situations which placed in direct contact three linguistic worlds: Latin, the emerging Romance languages, and the Germanic vernaculars. These interference zones developed, for example, in Roman civitates along the Rhine limes, and along a wide frontage in Lorraine along the upper Saar and in the Moselle valley, the Mosella Romana. This chapter explores varieties of linguistic evidence from these and other zones, such as the regions between the Danube limes and Salzburg and between Lake Constance and Chur.

Scholarly work over the last few decades has demonstrated the existence of these interference zones on former Roman soil through intensive analysis of pre-Germanic toponyms and of Romance and Frankish loanwords. They are further corroborated by original inscriptions from the Rhine-Moselle area and the appearance of vernacular legal terms in law codes. In addition, the examination of charters can cast significantly more light on these areas of linguistic interaction. These documents all display ‘Romancisms’ and ‘Germanisms’. The orthography of texts produced in interference zones furnishes important evidence of linguistic contact. This chapter therefore demonstrates the great extent to which the relationship between the written and the spoken word in the former Roman border regions was predicated on a fundamental multilingualism during the early Middle Ages. The chapter concludes by reflecting on the widely documented multilingualism of the upper classes between the eighth and tenth centuries.

Citation Info

Save
Cite
Email this content

Share link with colleague or librarian

You can email a link to this page to a colleague or librarian:
Email this content
or copy the link directly:

https://brill.edhh.ma/abstract/book/9789004432338/BP000011.xml
The link was not copied. Your current browser may not support copying via this button.

Link copied successfully

Collapse
Expand

The Languages of Early Medieval Charters

Latin, Germanic Vernaculars, and the Written Word

Series: Brill's Series on the Early Middle Ages, Volume: 27

Cover The Languages of Early Medieval Charters

E-Book ISBN:: 9789004432338

Publisher:: Brill

Print Publication Date:: 16 Nov 2020

Subjects
- History
- Languages and Linguistics
  - Historical and Comparative Linguistics & Linguistic Typology
  - Multilingualism & Language Contact

Front Matter

Back Matter

Metrics

	All Time	Past 365 days	Past 30 Days
Abstract Views	1797	631	55
Full Text Views	47	7	0
PDF Views & Downloads	67	7	0

African Studies	Education	Media Studies
American Studies	History	Middle East and Islamic Studies
Ancient Near East and Egypt	Human Rights and Humanitarian Law	Musicology
Art History	International Law	Philosophy
Asian Studies	International Relations	Religious Studies
Biblical Studies	Jewish Studies	Slavic and Eurasian Studies
Biology	Languages and Linguistics	Social Sciences
Book History and Cartography	Life Sciences	Theology and World Christianity
Classical Studies	Literature and Cultural Studies

Subjects

Authors

Open Access

Product Information

Company

Contact

Chapter 3 The Multilingualism of the Early Middle Ages: Evidence from Peripheral Regions of the Regnum orientalium Francorum

Abstract

Citation Info

Share link with colleague or librarian

The Languages of Early Medieval Charters

Latin, Germanic Vernaculars, and the Written Word

Table of Contents

Metrics

Metrics