By Álvaro Pires
Core Features of Medieval Latin Syntax Common in the Gesta Francorum
- ML often uses the gerund in the ablative of attendant circumstances, similar to how CL would use the present participle.
- E.g., 4.11.7, illīcque habuimus omnem cōpiam, expectandō dōnec venīret domnus Boamundus. (CL would have expectantes)
- ML often uses past tenses of esse (e.g., erat/fuit) with the perfect passive participle in order to form the perfect passive conjugations of verbs, where CL would use present tense forms of esse.
- The perfect passive participle can occur predicatively after habēre or tenēre to form a transitive perfect tense. This construction likely entered into use in Latin through imitation of vernacular languages.
- The pronouns iste, ille, and ipse tend to lose their specific nuances from CL, instead functioning as simple demonstrative pronouns. Iste often lacks the scorn or contempt conveyed in its CL usage, while ipse loses the emphatic sense (“himself”) found in CL.
- ML usage of the reflexives sē and suus is often careless by CL standards.
- ML regularly expresses indirect discourse (after verbs of saying, thinking, discovering, etc.) with quod, quia, or quoniam plus a finite verb (whether indicative or subjunctive), where CL would use the accusative and infinitive construction.
- E.g., 2.6.2, Dīcent quoniam necessitāte compulsī, nōlentēs volentēsque, humiliāvērunt sē ad nēquissimī imperātōris voluntātem
- E.g., 2.8.6, Videntēs autem Turcī quod nullātenus ex suīs exercitibus adiūtōrium habēre possent, lēgātiōnem mandāvērunt imperātōrī quia cīvitātem sponte redderent, sī eōs omnimodō abīre permitteret cum mulieribus et fīliīs et omnibus substantiīs suīs.
- Prepositions are used in ML where CL would rely on case endings alone. For example, dē is used to cover many functions of the genitive and of English “of,” while ad often means “at.”
- ML uses the infinitive of purpose frequently.
- ML often uses quatinus and quo plus the subjunctive to introduce purpose clauses.
Key ML Vocabulary for the Gesta Francorum:
feria, -ae: day of the week (secunda f.=Monday, tertia f.=Tuesday, quarta f.=Wednesday, quinta f.=Thursday, sexta f.=Friday)
civitas, -tatis: “city” (in contrast to CL meaning of “state, body-politic, citizenship”)
gens, gentis: often (but not always) means “army, men-at-arms” in the GF, referring to the entire Crusader army or to the retinue of fighting men serving under a specific leader.
Romania, -ae: The Byzantine Empire, especially its core territory in Asia Minor and the southern Balkans (Romania= lit., “Land of the Romans,” since the Byzantine Empire was the medieval continuation of the Eastern Roman Empire).
seniores, -um: “leaders” (refers to superior status, not necessarily to age); cf. French sieur, English “sir,” etc.
maiores, -um: “leaders”
imperator, -oris: “emperor,” specifically the Byzantine emperor (in contrast to CL “general, commander-in-chief”)
comes, comitis: “count”
dux, ducis: “duke”
episcopus, -i: “bishop”
dom(i)nus, -i: “lord,” but often Dominus= “The Lord,” i.e., God, or Jesus Christ
martyrizo, -are, -avi, -atus: transitive: “to martyr;” intransitive: “to suffer martyrdom, die as a martyr”
miles, militis: typically “knight,” especially in contrast to pedes, peditis (“common foot-soldier”).
peregrinus, -i: pilgrim
burgus, -i: outlying part of a city or town, beyond the walls; cf. French “faubourg” (used in this sense, e.g., at 2.6.4: erat hospitatus extra civitatem in burgo).
castrum, -i: fortress, castle, settlement fortified with defensive walls
(Sanctum) Sepulchrum, -i: The Holy Sepulcher, place in Jerusalem where Jesus is believed to have been crucified, entombed, and resurrected; one of the holiest sites in Christianity, and a central destination for Christian pilgrims to the holy land during the Middle Ages.
Hierosolyma: Jerusalem
Saracenus, -i: “Saracen,” a term used in medieval Europe to refer to Arab people, and also more generally to Muslims or non-Christians.