拉丁语的历史及其对现代语言的影响

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The history of the Latin language and its Impact on Modern Languages

拉丁语的历史及其对现代语言的影响

Tatiana Osoblivaia

01/02/2023

Language and Culture

The Latin language has a rich and fascinating history. It has played a significant role in shaping Western culture, and it continues to be a crucial language for a variety of academic and cultural pursuits. It is the root language for many modern European languages, including English, Spanish, French, and Italian. Different fields of study (including medicine, philosophy, theology, history, and literature) have developed under the direct influence of the Latin language. In this blog post, we will look at the origination of the Latin language, its evolution over time, and its lasting impact on the modern world.
拉丁语有着丰富而迷人的历史。它在塑造西方文化方面发挥了重要作用，并继续成为各种学术和文化追求的重要语言。它是许多现代欧洲语言的根语言，包括英语、西班牙语、法语和意大利语。不同的研究领域（包括医学、哲学、神学、历史和文学）在拉丁语的直接影响下得到了发展。在这篇博文中，我们将了解拉丁语的起源、它随着时间的推移而演变以及它对现代世界的持久影响。

The Origins of Latin 拉丁语的起源

Latin is an Indo-European language that originated in the Latium region of central Italy. It was the language of ancient Rome and was used throughout the Roman Empire for communication, administration, and literature.
Latin evolved from the dialects of the Italic peoples of ancient Italy, and its earliest written records date back to the 7th century BCE.
This ancient language was spoken by the people who resided in central Italy during the Iron Age (1200-700 BCE). It is considered that these Proto-Italic speakers were descended from two Bronze Age populations who had migrated to Italy from northern Europe. From Proto-Italic evolved Old Latin (750-100 BCE) which would eventually become Classical Latin (100 BCE - 450 CE).
Over time, Latin absorbed elements from other languages, such as Etruscan and Greek, and it became the main language of the western Mediterranean.
As the Roman Empire expanded, Latin spread throughout the empire and became the lingua franca of the western world. It was used for religious, legal, and administrative purposes, and it became the basis for many of the Romance languages, including Italian, Spanish, French, and Portuguese.
拉丁语是一种印欧语系语言，起源于意大利中部的拉齐奥地区。它是古罗马的语言，在整个罗马帝国用于交流、管理和文学。 拉丁语是从古意大利意大利人的方言演变而来的，其最早的书面记录可以追溯到公元前 7 世纪。 这种古老的语言是铁器时代（公元前 1200-700 年）居住在意大利中部的人们所说的。据认为，这些说原始意大利语的人是从北欧移民到意大利的两个青铜时代人群的后裔。从原始意大利语演变而来的古拉丁语（公元前 750-100 年），最终成为古典拉丁语（公元前 100 年至公元 450 年）。 随着时间的推移，拉丁语吸收了伊特鲁里亚语和希腊语等其他语言的元素，成为西地中海的主要语言。 随着罗马帝国的扩张，拉丁语传播到整个帝国，成为西方世界的通用语言。它被用于宗教、法律和行政目的，并成为许多罗曼语的基础，包括意大利语、西班牙语、法语和葡萄牙语。

Evolution of Latin 拉丁语的演变

After the fall of the Roman Empire in 476 CE, Classical Latin evolved into what is now known as Vulgar or Medieval Latin (500-1500 CE). It was an informal form of Latin used by commoners, while Classical Latin remained a language reserved for scholars and educated elites. During this period, Vulgar or Medieval Latin underwent significant changes, including a shift in pronunciation and an increase in regional dialects. Later in 1500 CE, Renaissance Humanists began to revive Classical Latins - the period known as Neo-Latin (1500–present day). This new form of classical Latin saw an increase in scientific writings, and literature written for a popular audience, like comedies and tragedies.
公元 476 年罗马帝国灭亡后，古典拉丁语演变成现在被称为通俗拉丁语或中世纪拉丁语（公元 500-1500 年）。它是平民使用的一种非正式拉丁语形式，而古典拉丁语仍然是为学者和受过教育的精英保留的语言。在此期间，通俗拉丁语或中世纪拉丁语发生了重大变化，包括发音的转变和地区方言的增加。公元 1500 年晚些时候，文艺复兴时期的人文主义者开始复兴古典拉丁语 —— 这一时期被称为新拉丁语（1500 年至今）。这种新形式的古典拉丁语见证了科学著作和为大众读者创作的文学作品（如喜剧和悲剧）的增加。

How Latin influenced the modern languages we all speak today 拉丁语如何影响我们今天都说的现代语言

Latin is a fascinating language that has had a prominent influence on many of the languages we speak today. It has played a significant role in Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Romanian and Catalan development. Latin is still used in the Catholic Church and is considered a vital part of the religious heritage of Western Christianity.
拉丁语是一种迷人的语言，对我们今天所说的许多语言产生了重大影响。它在意大利、西班牙、葡萄牙、法国、罗马尼亚和加泰罗尼亚的发展中发挥了重要作用。拉丁语仍在天主教会中使用，并被认为是西方基督教宗教遗产的重要组成部分。

As we mentioned above, its origins and the road the Latin made from being used by small groups of people in the Mediterranean region around 3,000 years ago to spreading all over the region and adopting quite a few dialects and regional variants, made its evolution extraordinary, transforming it in a very distinct language with unique characteristics and vocabulary.
正如我们上面提到的，它的起源和拉丁语从大约 3,000 年前被地中海地区的一小群人使用到传播到整个地区并采用相当多的方言和地区变体，使其演变非同寻常，将其转变为一种非常独特的语言具有独特的特征和词汇。

Let us look at some examples.
让我们看一些例子。

For instance, **Vulgar Latin (**a version of Latin used during the Middle Ages) is considered to stay at the origins of Romance languages. Words from Vulgar Latin were afterwards borrowed by other languages such as English, German and Dutch which explains why there are so many similarities between them.
例如，通俗拉丁语（中世纪使用的拉丁语版本）被认为是罗曼语的起源。通俗拉丁语中的单词后来被英语、德语和荷兰语等其他语言借用，这解释了为什么它们之间有这么多相似之处。

Another example would be Spanish and French. Spanish has kept most of its words from Vulgar Latin, while in French, more than half of words originate from this period in history. The influence of Latin can also be noticed in areas like grammar, where many European languages use concepts like gender for nouns or conjugation for verbs that come directly from Latin.
另一个例子是西班牙语和法语。西班牙语保留了大部分通俗拉丁语的单词，而在法语中，超过一半的单词起源于这一历史时期。拉丁语的影响也可以在语法等领域注意到，许多欧洲语言使用性别等概念来表示名词或直接来自拉丁语的动词的变位。

English also has been influenced by Latin. A large number of English words have their roots in either classical or medieval Latin language, including words like “animal”, “decide”, and “individual”.
英语也受到拉丁语的影响。大量的英语单词起源于古典或中世纪拉丁语，包括 “animal”、“decide” 和 “individual” 等单词。

In addition to its influence on modern-day language, Latin continues to be widely used by academics, scientists and scholars who often use it as a tool for precision when discussing complex topics or ideas. For example, scientific terminology is often used in Latin because it provides greater clarity in describing specific concepts or phenomena. It means that anyone with knowledge of the language can understand these terms no matter what country they’re from or what native language they speak – making communication easier for everyone involved in these conversations.
除了对现代语言的影响外，拉丁语还继续被学者、科学家和学者广泛使用，他们在讨论复杂的话题或想法时经常将其用作精确工具。例如，科学术语经常用于拉丁语，因为它在描述特定概念或现象时提供了更清晰的信息。这意味着任何了解该语言的人都可以理解这些术语，无论他们来自哪个国家或说什么母语 —— 使参与这些对话的每个人都能更轻松地进行交流。

The powerful effect Latin has had on modern-day language and culture worldwide is evident and continues to influence the way we think, communicate, and understand the world around us. Its impact can be seen in many aspects of our lives, from language and education to science and religion. While some may view learning Latin as an outdated practice – its importance in understanding how modern languages evolved cannot be denied making it an essential part of any linguist’s education.
拉丁语对全世界现代语言和文化的强大影响是显而易见的，并继续影响着我们思考、交流和理解周围世界的方式。它的影响可以在我们生活的许多方面看到，从语言和教育到科学和宗教。虽然有些人可能认为学习拉丁语是一种过时的做法，但它在理解现代语言如何演变方面的重要性是不可否认的，使其成为任何语言学家教育的重要组成部分。

Latin legacy is still alive today through modern European languages such as Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, French, and Romanian.
今天，通过西班牙语、意大利语、葡萄牙语、法语和罗马尼亚语等现代欧洲语言，拉丁遗产仍然存在。

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via:

• The History of the Latin language and its Impact on Modern Languages | PoliLingua

  https://www.polilingua/blog/post/history-of-latin-language-impact-on-modern-languages.htm

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Latin Language History: A Guide For Curious Latin Learners 拉丁语历史：好奇的拉丁语学习者指南

by Olly Richards
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So we know Latin is ancient, right? It’s a dead language! But part of what makes Latin so interesting is Latin language history. While no-one uses Latin in day-to-day communication, it still has such an important role today as it did in the past.
所以我们知道拉丁语是古老的，对吧？这是一门死语言！但拉丁语如此有趣的部分原因是拉丁语的历史。虽然没有人在日常交流中使用拉丁语，但它今天仍然像过去一样发挥着如此重要的作用。

Instead of focusing on how to learn and use Latin, I’ll be focusing on Latin language history. Its history is not only interesting. But it will also help you understand how important Latin is for western history and today’s society.
我不会专注于如何学习和使用拉丁语，而是专注于拉丁语历史。它的历史不仅有趣。但它也将帮助您了解拉丁语对西方历史和当今社会的重要性。

This article will help you to understand:
本文将帮助您了解：

• where Latin came from, how it developed
  拉丁语从何而来，它是如何发展的
• why it was important, what its role was as a European lingua franca
  为什么它很重要，它作为欧洲通用语的作用是什么
• why Ecclesiastical Latin was important
  为什么教会拉丁语很重要
• how it later developed
  它后来是如何发展的
• and what Latin’s role is today
  以及拉丁语在今天的作用

So let’s take a look at Latin language history.
那么让我们来看看拉丁语的历史。

Where Did Latin Come From And How Did It Develop? 拉丁语从何而来，又是如何发展的？

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The exact origin of Latin is unknown. Think about it. The Latin associated with Caesar, is what is considered “Classical Latin” used around the 2nd and 1st century BCE. This is by no means the earliest form of the language.
拉丁语的确切起源尚不清楚。想想吧。与凯撒相关的拉丁语是公元前 2 世纪和 1 世纪左右使用的被认为是 “古典拉丁语” 的东西。这绝不是该语言的最早形式。

Latin is considered to be one of the oldest Indo-European languages. The Indo-European language family includes Greek, Sanskrit, and Germanic languages.
拉丁语被认为是最古老的印欧语系语言之一。印欧语系包括希腊语、梵语和日耳曼语。

Latin’s oldest version is known as “Archaic Latin”. It was spoken around the lower parts of the Tiber River, including where modern Rome lies.
拉丁语最古老的版本被称为 “古拉丁语”。它在台伯河下游地区使用，包括现代罗马所在的地区。

As the city of Rome developed and eventually gained power, other languages of the Italian peninsula impacted Latin. One such example is Etruscan. This language is a mystery in itself as it does not seem to be related to other known languages beyond its influences on Latin.
随着罗马城的发展并最终获得权力，意大利半岛的其他语言也影响了拉丁语。伊特鲁里亚 （Etruscan） 就是这样一个例子。这种语言本身就是一个谜，因为除了它对拉丁语的影响之外，它似乎与其他已知语言无关。

Due to the geographic proximity, Etruscan had a very large influence on the development of Archaic Latin, both spoken and written, around the 7th century BCE.
由于地理位置接近，伊特鲁里亚人在公元前 7 世纪左右对古拉丁语的发展产生了非常大的影响，包括口语和书面语。

As Rome continued to develop, by the late 6th century BCE when Rome had become a republic after overthrowing its kings, Latin had been developing as well.
随着罗马的不断发展，到公元前 6 世纪后期，罗马在推翻国王后成为共和国，拉丁语也一直在发展。

Classical Latin 古典拉丁语

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By the time of the later 2nd century and early 1st century BCE, Latin had developed into what is known as “Classical Latin.”
到公元前 2 世纪末和 1 世纪初，拉丁语已经发展成为所谓的 “古典拉丁语”。

Typically, this form of Latin is the Latin associated with the golden age of Latin literature from Roman poets, philosophers, and orators, such as Ovid, Virgil, and Cicero.
通常，这种形式的拉丁语是与罗马诗人、哲学家和演说家（如奥维德、维吉尔和西塞罗）的拉丁文学黄金时代相关的拉丁语。

Thus, this is the form of Latin schools most often teach. That means the Latin people have in mind when thinking of Ancient Rome are thinking of a language that is already at least 600 years old!
因此，这是拉丁学校最常教授的形式。这意味着拉丁人在想到古罗马时，想到的是一种至少有 600 年历史的语言！

Vulgar Latin 通俗拉丁语

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Latin was spoken in all parts of Europe, the Mediterranean, and the Near East due to military expansion. In the 2nd century, Latin started changing and developing into what is known as “Vulgar Latin”.
由于军事扩张，拉丁语在欧洲、地中海和近东各地都使用。在 2 世纪，拉丁语开始发生变化并发展成为所谓的 “通俗拉丁语”。

This is a form of Latin infused with aspects of other European languages, such as Celtic, Gaelic, Germanic, and other local languages. This is the form of the language that will eventually evolve into Medieval Latin.
这是一种融合了其他欧洲语言的拉丁语形式，例如凯尔特语、盖尔语、日耳曼语和其他当地语言。这就是最终演变成中世纪拉丁语的语言形式。

In the Medieval and Renaissance era, more educated classes and the church continued to use Latin. It remained the language of education as Latin and Greek were the languages of the Classical world.
在中世纪和文艺复兴时期，受教育程度更高的阶层和教会继续使用拉丁语。它仍然是教育语言，因为拉丁语和希腊语是古典世界的语言。

Thus Latin became lost to the common folk, leading to the development of local Romance languages. And Latin became the language of Christian texts, international relations, and for classical European education.
因此，拉丁语对普通人来说消失了，导致了当地罗曼语的发展。拉丁语成为基督教文本、国际关系和古典欧洲教育的语言。

Since fewer people were actually speaking in Latin, the language changed and often became altered to match the grammar and syntax of other European languages.
由于真正说拉丁语的人较少，因此该语言发生了变化，并且经常被改变以匹配其他欧洲语言的语法和句法。

These forms of Latin are different enough from Classical Latin that there are separate courses at the collegiate level for learning Medieval Latin.
这些形式的拉丁语与古典拉丁语有很大的不同，以至于在大学阶段有单独的课程来学习中世纪拉丁语。

New Latin 新拉丁语

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Evolving from Renaissance Latin, “New Latin” was developed in the 17th century CE and used specifically for intellectual works.
“新拉丁语” 是从文艺复兴时期的拉丁语演变而来的，发展于公元 17 世纪，专门用于智力作品。

This is part of the reason why the taxonomy of species and medical terms still uses Latin today. Much of scientific terminology today still use the New Latin roots.
这就是为什么物种分类学和医学术语今天仍然使用拉丁语的部分原因。今天，许多科学术语仍然使用新拉丁语的词根。

Eventually, Latin lost its role in science and education but still remained within the realm of Christianity, particularly Catholicism. Even today, Ecclesiastical Latin has continued to remain the language of the Catholic Church.
最终，拉丁语失去了它在科学和教育中的作用，但仍在基督教，尤其是天主教的范围内。即使在今天，教会拉丁语仍然是天主教会的语言。

Due to the seat of the Catholic Church being located in Rome, Italy, Italian has had a great deal of influence on the pronunciation of Ecclesiastical Latin.
由于天主教会的所在地位于意大利罗马，意大利语对教会拉丁语的发音产生了很大影响。

Why Was Latin Important? 为什么拉丁语很重要？

Latin was important due to it being the language of the Roman Republic and the eventual Roman Empire. As the power of Rome expanded, so did the extent of the use of Latin.
拉丁语很重要，因为它是罗马共和国和最终罗马帝国的语言。随着罗马权力的扩大，拉丁语的使用范围也扩大了。

This is how Latin eventually became a lingua franca, the language of business, government, and general communication, in the ancient world.
这就是拉丁语最终成为古代世界通用语言（商业、政府和一般交流的语言）的原因。

In the vast reaches of the empire, inhabitants and Roman government officials and their law courts would have spoken Latin. Thus, in order to engage in business and politics, you needed to be able to speak Latin.
在帝国的广大地区，居民和罗马政府官员及其法院会说拉丁语。因此，为了从事商业和政治，您需要会说拉丁语。

What Was Latin’s Role As A European Lingua Franca? 拉丁语作为欧洲通用语的作用是什么？

Throughout the Roman Republic and Empire, Latin was the lingua franca. But even after Rome fell, Latin still remained a language of education as well as diplomacy between European powers.
在整个罗马共和国和帝国，拉丁语是通用语言。但即使在罗马沦陷后，拉丁语仍然是欧洲列强之间的教育和外交语言。

Regional languages continued to develop and become dominant. And Latin became less common within countries. That’s why Latin became the language of international communication between states.
地方语言继续发展并成为主导语言。拉丁语在国家内部变得不那么常见。这就是为什么拉丁语成为国家间国际交流的语言。

This use as a lingua franca continues past just a political language. It was also a language for intellectuals. Many works were written in Latin even through the 19th century CE.
这种作为通用语言的用法一直延续到一种政治语言之后。它也是一种知识分子的语言。即使在公元 19 世纪，许多作品也是用拉丁语写成的。

People who lived in various European countries who may not have spoken the same native language would still be able to read and write in Latin. And be able to communicate and understand various ideas of politics, science, and philosophy.
生活在不同欧洲国家的人，如果不是说同一母语，他们仍然可以用拉丁语阅读和写作。并能够交流和理解政治、科学和哲学的各种思想。

What Was Ecclesiastical Latin’s Role In History? 教会拉丁语在历史上的作用是什么？

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Ecclesiastical Latin actually has a unique role in history. While even today Latin is the language of the Catholic Church, in the past Latin language knowledge was often a way to control the knowledge of religion within Europe.
教会拉丁语实际上在历史上具有独特的作用。虽然即使在今天，拉丁语仍然是天主教会的语言，但在过去，拉丁语知识通常是控制欧洲宗教知识的一种方式。

Many people in Medieval and Renaissance Europe were illiterate. And likely had no knowledge of Latin due to a lack of comprehensive public education.
中世纪和文艺复兴时期的欧洲许多人是文盲。而且由于缺乏全面的公共教育，可能没有拉丁语知识。

Thus, followers of Christianity were unable to read the words of the Bible and other religious texts that were in Latin. This gave significant power to the churches and people who could read Latin, namely elites and ruling classes.
因此，基督教的追随者无法阅读圣经和其他拉丁语宗教文本的文字。这赋予了教会和能够阅读拉丁语的人，即精英和统治阶级的巨大权力。

With the reformation and emergence of new branches of Christianity in Europe, Latin was no longer the language of the Church. Many new branches allowed the Bible to be printed and mass to be held in local languages.
随着欧洲基督教的改革和新分支的出现，拉丁语不再是教会的语言。许多新的分会允许印刷圣经并以当地语言举行弥撒。

As a result, more people were able to make their own interpretations of religious texts. And have greater knowledge of their religion. It was not until the mid-20th century that the Catholic Church allowed for mass in languages other than Latin.
因此，更多的人能够对宗教文本做出自己的解释。并且对他们的宗教有更多的了解。直到 20 世纪中叶，天主教才允许用拉丁语以外的语言进行弥撒。

How Did Latin Develop And What Is Its Role Today? 拉丁语是如何发展的，它在今天的作用是什么？

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Latin has an incredibly long history. And has had an immense role in influencing language and culture today. Through time Latin developed based on its role as a spoken lingua franca to being a written language and even to just the context of the Catholic Church.
拉丁语有着令人难以置信的悠久历史。并在影响当今的语言和文化方面发挥了巨大作用。随着时间的推移，拉丁语从其作为通用口语的作用发展成为一种书面语言，甚至仅仅是天主教会的背景。

As the wider population used Latin less, it began to change. And even lead to the creation of the Romance languages. Romance languages of Italian, French, Spanish, Romanian, and Portuguese all developed and derived from the later forms of Vulgar Latin.
随着更广泛的人口减少使用拉丁语，情况开始发生变化。甚至导致了罗曼语系语言的诞生。意大利语、法语、西班牙语、罗马尼亚语和葡萄牙语等罗曼语都是从后来的粗拉丁语形式发展而来的。

The other regional languages that existed throughout Europe merged with Vulgar Latin to eventually become independent Romance languages. Thus, one major role of Latin has been its place as a parent language to numerous modern European languages.
存在于整个欧洲的其他地区语言与通俗拉丁语合并，最终成为独立的罗曼语。因此，拉丁语的一个主要作用是它作为许多现代欧洲语言的母语言的地位。

Latin Language History: Where You’ll Find Latin Today 拉丁语历史：今天在哪里可以找到拉丁语

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In addition, people still use Latin in various ways today beyond the languages that derived from it. The Catholic Church still uses it to various degrees and depending upon the congregation.
此外，今天人们仍然以各种方式使用拉丁语，而不仅仅是源自拉丁语的语言。天主教会仍然在不同程度上使用它，具体取决于会众。

Many religious scholars and European historians of certain time periods still continue to learn Medieval Latin for reading older texts, such as Bibles, government documents, or even literature.
某些时期的许多宗教学者和欧洲历史学家仍然继续学习中世纪拉丁语以阅读较旧的文本，例如圣经、政府文件甚至文学作品。

Ancient historians continue to learn Classical Latin to read the works of Ovid, Cicero, Caesar, and many others. Even though born of New Latin, many individuals entering fields of law or medicine will learn Classical Latin to better understand the numerous terminologies that derive from Latin today.
古代历史学家继续学习古典拉丁语，以阅读奥维德、西塞罗、凯撒和许多其他人的著作。尽管诞生于新拉丁语，但许多进入法律或医学领域的人会学习古典拉丁语，以更好地理解今天源自拉丁语的众多术语。

You would not be hard-pressed to even find college diplomas that are written in Latin. This hearkens back to the importance of Latin within the institution of education.
您甚至不会很难找到用拉丁语写的大学文凭。这让人想起拉丁语在教育机构中的重要性。

For a dead language, Latin has had an incredible history and just won’t actually stay dead. With numerous usages even outside of the realm of history, Latin will continue to be an important language internationally and particularly in European countries.
对于一门已死的语言来说，拉丁语有着令人难以置信的历史，而且实际上不会一直死去。即使在历史领域之外，拉丁语也被广泛使用，它将继续成为国际上，尤其是欧洲国家的重要语言。

Now you know how Latin came into being and developed over time, why it was important in the past, its role as a lingua franca, how Ecclesiastical Latin was important in history, and how it developed even later until its use today.
现在你知道拉丁语是如何随着时间的推移而产生和发展的，为什么它在过去很重要，它作为通用语言的作用，教会拉丁语在历史上是多么重要，以及它是如何发展到今天使用的。

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via:

• Latin Language History: A Curious Learner’s Guide – StoryLearning

  https://storylearning/learn/latin/latin-tips/latin-language-history

本文标签： 拉丁语其对语言历史