The Language of the Papyri
T. V. Evans
Language: English
Pages: 380
ISBN: 0199237085
Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub
The modern rediscovery of the Greek and Latin papyri from Egypt has transformed our knowledge of the ancient world. We cannot, however, make the same claim in the specific area of language study. Although important studies of the language of the papyri have appeared sporadically over the past century, we are still dealing today with a linguistic resource of extraordinary richness which has hardly begun to be explored. Every scrap of papyrus and every ostracon (potsherd) or tablet unearthed has the potential to change some aspect of the way we think about the Greek and Latin languages. This book demonstrate that potential, by gathering together essays from seventeen scholars who present a variety of perspectives and methodological approaches. The Language of the Papyri charts current directions of international research, and will also provide a stimulus for future work.
The End of Dialogue in Antiquity
excellent example of the possibilities. With regard to Greek the continuing lack of a syntax volume in Gignac’s Grammar of the Greek Papyri of the Roman and Byzantine Periods is keenly felt, while Mayser’s treatment of the Ptolemaic material is inevitably dated. The need for future work in this area is pressing. In fact syntactic, and indeed all spheres of research will now proWt from our growing sensitivity to the process of linguistic change over the 21 See T. V. Evans, ‘Standard Koine Greek in
men in question have not received it; I defy the defendants to prove it. If they have the effrontery to assert it, they will be acting dishonourably (trans. C. A. Vince). As we can see from the above examples (1) and (3), in the standard grammatical structure ŒÆºH# ðïØÞ#åØ# took the aorist participle as its verbal complement. In the Mons Claudianus letters a more or less standard request or order usually has the same structure 5. O. Claud. III 492 (ad 141), ll. 1–6 —ôïºåìÆE# ¯NæÅíÆÁ ßÁïı
22. O. Claud. II 259, ll. 6–8 lekg#›jty #oi ðåæd zí #ïØ KíåôåغÜjìÅí (an interesting third-person structure). Do take care of the things I told you to do. 23. O. Claud. II 249, ll. 6–8 (Plate 6.3) cq›xym j ðåæd ôB# #ïôÅæßÆ# #ïı. KææH#ŁÝ #å åhå[ïìÆØ]. j pe†lxym ìïØ ìØŒŒeí ŒÜæäÆìøí äØa ¸ïª[ªAôï#]. _ 14 For example P. Mich. VIII 479, ll. 9–10 (a letter of Claudius Terentianus): ŒÆºH# ïsí ðïØÞ#åØ# ôÆåýôåæüí ìïØ Imticq›xai ðåæd ôB# #øôÅæßÆ# #ïı. P. Oxy. LIX 3998, 11.25–6: ŒÆºH# ï[sí] ðïØ[Þ#]åØ# kabEm
ðÆæ[ü] _ __ íôøí ìÆæô[ý] _ KðåæåıôÅŁåd# (sic) æøí, ‰ìïºüªÅ#Æ __ _ _ åØíf‰ìïºüªÅ#Æg. ôÆFŁ’ïoôø#ååØí äþóåØí ðïØåEí çıºÜôôåØí åN# ðÝæÆ# ¼[ª] _ _ _ äÅìï#ßøí _ _ __ ðÆíôe# ôïF ehdgkom äb ‹ôØ ôHí ôïF ÆPôïF ŒôÞìÆôï# ðÆæfiøåÅŒüôï# ôæüðïı (L åæüíïı) ìÝ[åæ]Ø ôB# ð[Ææ]ïýóÅ# ðÝìðôÅ# Níä(ØŒôßïíï#) ŒÆd ___ ÆPôB#, í ôå óßôfiø ŒÆd [[ . . . ]] _ _ __ _ _ __ _ _ _ 16 The text and translation given here are based on Porten’s interpretation and version of this document as D 25 in B. Porten, The Elephantine Papyri in
fourth volume of the Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum.3 A minor portion, the so-called dipinti, were skilfully painted on the walls; but the vast majority, the graffiti, were simply scratched into their surface.4 Most of the texts were of course written in Latin, but there are also Greek and Oscan ones. The value of these inscriptions (and I now concentrate on the Latin ones) has long been recognized and appreciated.5 Let me give a brief list of the most important aspects: (a) Unlike what happened