Les Noms de la langue en latin

Abstract

This article is devoted to the study of the names for language in Latin. Two Latin words appear to designate language, sermo and lingua. The first is used for language as a means of communication, the second relates to a more theoretical level. To name Latin, the Romans created two series of expressions : the family of Latium and that of Roma. The first, the more important, designates the language of Rome in a neutral way, the second, which appears later, often has a political dimension and designates Latin as the language of the Imperium Romanum. The words belonging to the Latin series are often associated with a normative value, as shown by the study of the adverb Latine in two rhetorical treatises by Cicero, De oratore and Brutus.

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