The Original Language of the Muratorian Fragment

The issue of the original language of the Muratorian Fragment has never been conclusively resolved. Although there is general agreement in the scholarly literature that the Latin text which we know was in fact a translation from Greek, the idea that it was originally written in Latin has not ceased...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Guignard, Christophe 1974- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Check availability: HBZ Gateway
Interlibrary Loan:Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany)
Published: [2015]
In: The journal of theological studies
Year: 2015, Volume: 66, Issue: 2, Pages: 596-624
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Muratorian Fragment / Language / Archetype
IxTheo Classification:HC New Testament
KAB Church history 30-500; early Christianity
Online Access: Volltext (Publisher)
Volltext (doi)
Parallel Edition:Non-electronic
Description
Summary:The issue of the original language of the Muratorian Fragment has never been conclusively resolved. Although there is general agreement in the scholarly literature that the Latin text which we know was in fact a translation from Greek, the idea that it was originally written in Latin has not ceased to find advocates. This article reopens the question of the date of the Latin text and shows that the evidence points to the second half of the fourth century, well over 100 years after the date in which the Fragment is likely to have been drafted (i.e. the last decades of the second century), if one takes into account the Fragment’s content and the state of the New Testament canon to which it refers. The chronological gap between the Fragment’s content and the date of its Latin text is a first clue to its being a translation. This study also reviews anew the linguistic evidence in favour of a Greek original and shows that some features of the Latin text decisively support this hypothesis.
ISSN:1477-4607
Contains:Enthalten in: The journal of theological studies
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1093/jts/flv093