List of Classical Colloquia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This page lists colloquies (Latin colloquia), which are scripted dialogues (a form of textbook) written for language instruction and practice in Classical languages such as Latin or Ancient Greek.[1][2][3][4]
This list includes colloquies from any time period: ancient, medieval, Scholastic, Renaissance, or later times including the present day.
For the purpose of this list, we use the same definition of "Classical languages" as is used at Classics departments at major European and North American universities, and indeed the same definition used at the Wikipedia Classics page: Latin and Ancient Greek.
However, colloquies in other classical languages can also be listed here, provided that they take the same form: a scripted dialogue whose main purpose is to show examples of useful phrases in the target language, for pedagogical purposes.
Especially significant or influential works and authors are highlighted in yellow, below.
| Year | Author | Titles | Lat | Grk | Other lang | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 900 | Ælfric of Eynsham | Ælfric's Colloquy[5][6] | yes | no | Old Eng. | |
| 200 | anonymous | Hermeneumata Pseudodositheana[7] ; Ἑρμηνεύματα | yes | yes | Parts were attributed to Dositheus Magister, hence the name Pseudodositheana.[8] Composed as a Greek-Latin schoolbook in late antiquity, probably around the third century CE. The work was originally composed to help Greeks learn Latin, but in the medieval West, it came to be widely used as a source for Latin-literate authors to learn about Greek.[9] | |
| 1400 | anonymous | Manuale Scholarium[10] | yes | no | German | Latin dialogues between medieval university students (primarily two students, Camillus and Bartoldus) partly insulting and rowdy.[11] |
| 1518 | Desiderius Erasmus | Colloquies[12]
Colloquia familiaria; |
yes | no | Often cited with the simple title "Colloquies" or as Colloquia familiaria | |
| 1594 (2020) | Gretser, Jacob (1594) and Fergus Walsh (ed., 2020) | Four Greek Dialogues[13][14]
Progymnasmata Latinitatis |
no | yes | English | Translated by Jacob Gretser (1594) from Pontanus' Progymnasmata Latinitatis (1578)[14] |
| 1587 | Posselius, Johannes (Senior) | De formulis colloquiorum quotidianorum[15]
De formulis colloquiorum quotidianorum libellus[15] ; |
yes | no | This work was later expanded by Posselius's son, Posselius, Johannes (Junior), and published under the title Familiarium Colloquium Graece et Latine Libellus, with added dialogues and material.[16][17] | |
| 1656 (2017) | Posselius, Johannes (Junior) (1656); bedwere (ed., 2017) | Book of Domestic Dialogues[18][19]
Book of Domestic Dialogues in Greek and Latin[18][19] ; |
yes | yes | English | Familiarium Colloquium Graece et Latine Libellus is generally ascribed to Johannes Posselius (Junior). However, some sources suggest this work is an expansion of an earlier work titled Καθημερινῆς ὁμιλίας βιβλίον (De formulis colloquiorum quotidianorum libellus) written by his father Johannes Posselius (Senior). The younger Posselius is credited with the definitive and widely published versions that circulated during the 16th and 17th centuries, often with added dialogues and material.[16][17] |
| 1871 | Blackie, John Stuart | Greek and English Dialogues, for Use in Schools and Colleges[20][21] | no | yes | English | |
| 1657 | Corderius, Maturinus, Charles Hoole (trnsl.) | School Colloquies[22][23][24]
"Colloquia" ; "Colloquiorum scholasticorum libri quatuor";[25] |
yes | Corderius possessed special tact and liking for teaching children, and wrote several books for them; the most famous is his Colloquia (Colloquiorum scholasticorum libri quatuor), which has passed through innumerable editions, and was used in schools for three centuries after his time.[25] | ||
| 1533 (?) | Maturinus Corderius | Distichs of Cato[26]
"The Cato" ; |
yes | no | French | Latin collection of proverbial wisdom and morality by an unknown author from the 3rd or 4th century AD. The Cato was prized not only as a Latin textbook, but as a moral compass. Cato was in common use as a Latin teaching aid in the 18th century when it was used by Benjamin Franklin. It was one of the best-known books in the Middle Ages and was translated into many languages. It was still used in schools in parts of Britain in the 19th century.[27] Corderius made the French translation, enriching it with commentaries on classical authors. His work was aimed at children with a summary, verses and an analysis of the structure. It was actually a grammatical treatise.[28][29] |
| 1659 | Charles Hoole | Pueriles Confabulatiunculæ[30]
"Children's Talk. English and Latin" |
yes | no | English | Charles Hoole also translated Cordier's Disticha Catonis into English |
| 1525 | Schottenius, Hermann | Colloquia Sive Confabulationes Tyronum Literatorum[31][32]
Tyronum literatorum colloquia, sive Confabulationes |
yes | no | ||
| 800 | anonymous | De raris fabulis
"On uncommon tales";[33] |
yes | no | Glosses in: Old Cornish Old Welsh Old English |
Purpose was teaching spoken Latin to monastic oblates.[36] For this reason they mostly concern daily life in a monastic environment,[37] although there are also references to trade and pilgrimage.[36] |
| 800 | anonymous | Colloquia e libro De raris fabulis retractata | yes | no | This is a new set of colloquies, based edits to De raris fabulis[38] |
Recent Editions of Classical Colloquia
Listed here are editions that were recently published and/or translated and/or digitally transcribed, in a convenient format for modern readers.
| Year or century | Orig. Author |
Title | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1929 | anonymous | De raris fabulis | Stevenson, W. H., ed. (1929). "De raris fabulis". Early Scholastic Colloquies. Clarendon Press. pp. 1–10. |
| 2004 | anonymous | De raris fabulis | Gwara, Scott, ed. (2004). De Raris Fabulis, "On Uncommon Tales": A Glossed Latin Colloquy-Text From a Tenth-Century Cornish Manuscript. University of Cambridge, Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse & Celtic. |
Older Editions and Archives
Listed here are references or links to older books or archived books, which are probably available only as digital scans or in hard copy. (See above for a separate list of recent published editions.)
- De raris fabulis: Stokes, Whitley (1860–1861). "Cambrica". Transactions of the Philological Society. 7: 204–249, 288–293. (at pp. 238–249)
