Il latino come lingua di comunicazione tra le case monastiche nelle Terre ceche

Abstract

The present study explores sources which cast light on the usage of Latin in everyday communication within communities of religious orders, observing the particular choice of Latin rather than vernacular languages for certain types of communication. Linked to the currently running research of narrative and biographical sources written in the 17th and 18th century in the Czech Lands, the study briefly maps the language usage in the society and its specific forms in the communities of religious orders, especially with regard to the limited knowledge of Latin among its members. The study outlines the types of texts written for the needs of the communities, which are included in a wide range of chronicles, annals, catalogues, necrologies, collections of rules, and institutional or personal diaries. The last part of the study examines selected sources which reveal details about the features of the common spoken Latin of the time.

Keywords

• religious orders
• narrative sources
• communication
• spoken Latin
• vernacular languages
• 17th–18th century
• Czech Lands