Priscian grammarian and his heritage

Abstract

The article discusses the activities of Constantinople intellectuals of the 6th century, who worked on systematization and preservation of the Antique cultural heritage. It is demonstrated that their activities were in many aspects similar to those of the so-called “last Romans” in the West, who were trying to “save” the cultural heritage on the eve of the Middle Ages. The difference between the East and theWest was in the role of the Eastern Roman empire in this cultural process, as well as the role of the Latin language, which still was used in Constantinople as a language of administration and legislation. In this regard, the attempts to systematize Latin grammatical knowledge undertaken by Priscian of Caesarea under the emperor Anastasius I are quite indicative. The role of Priscian as the scholar, responsible for the final phase of development of Latin grammatical studies in the East, was revealed in a period when Latin was rapidly losing its position as a living (spoken) language. The analyzes of Priscian’s grammatical treatises shows that his works were composed not exclusively for students but also to officials (whose native language was Greek). They helped them to master Latin and to the level, which allowed the use of this language when performing their official duties. It is shown that the main treatise of Priscian — a systematic study of Latin grammar entitled “Institutiones Grammaticae”, was based on the preceding grammatical tradition, traced back to Greek (Herodianus and Apollonius Discolus) and Latin authors (Donatus, Probus, Servius, Charisius). The influence of Priscian as a teacher and theoretical researcher was felt in the West in the following centuries.

Keywords

• Priscian
• Priscian grammarian