The Languages of Early Medieval Charters: Latin, Germanic Vernaculars, and the Written Word

This is the first major study of the interplay between Latin and Germanic vernaculars in early medieval records. Building on previous work on the uses of the written word in the early Middle Ages, which has dispelled the myth that this was an age of ‘orality’, the contributions in this volume bring to the fore the crucial question of language choice in the documentary cultures of early medieval societies. Specifically, they examine the interactions between Latin and Germanic vernaculars in the Anglo-Saxon and eastern Frankish worlds and in neighbouring areas. The chapters are underpinned by an important comparative dimension on account of the two regions’ shared linguistic heritage and numerous cross-Channel links.

Contributors are: Stefan Esders, Albert Fenton, Robert Gallagher, Wolfgang Haubrichs, Charles Insley, Kathryn A. Lowe, Rosamond McKitterick, Rory Naismith, Janet L. Nelson, Edward Roberts, Annina Seiler, Marco Stoffella, Francesca Tinti, Kate Wiles, Bernhard Zeller.

See inside the book.

Robert Gallagher is Lecturer in Early Medieval History at the University of Kent. His primary research focus is the politics and textual cultures of early medieval Britain, with special interests in documentary activity, multilingualism, Latin verse, and manuscript use.
Edward Roberts is Lecturer in Early Medieval History at the University of Kent. He specializes in the history of Carolingian and Ottonian Europe, with particular interests in historical writing, legal culture, charters, bishops, and institutional change.
Francesca Tinti is Ikerbasque Research Professor at the University of the Basque Country, UPV/EHU. She has published widely on early medieval religious, social, and cultural history, with a special focus on Anglo-Saxon England, its documentary culture, and its relations with the European continent.