[Ansteorra] "Autocrat" (was: found keys at BG30)

[John Atkinson]

On Mon, Oct 26, 2009 at 6:39 AM, Chris Zakes <dontivar at gmail.com> wrote:


> Robin: (Is everyone keeping up? There may be a quiz later.)
>>
>> True, but we don't speak Greek.
>
> *We* may not speak Greek, but an educated person in the Middle Ages or
> Renaissance probably would (along with Latin and the language of their
> homeland.)

Depends on when and where.  For the majority of the 'Middle Ages',
knowledge of Greek was more or less lost among the less civilized
former provinces of the Roman Empire.  Knowledge of written Greek was
entirely lost until the Italians started learning it again from Greeks
fleeing the Turk.  Which is why many Greek philosophers were known in
the West from Latin translations of Arabic translations of their
works.

Within the Empire, of course, it was a different story.

My persona would certainly have spoken Greek, most likely Armenian and
Arabic, and possibly Turkish, and likely be literate in Greek.
Literacy was far more widespread in civilized Europe.

Ioannes Dalassenos
who wishes to call attention to the fact that the word civilized
literally means 'dwelling in cities' and that really only applies to
the East after Old Rome collapsed into a village after being sacked
repeatedly during the Gothic Wars.
-- 
"Thousands of Sarmatians, Thousands of Franks, we've slain them again
and again.  We're looking for thousands of Persians."
--Vita Aureliani