La terminologie grecque et latine du plurilinguisme

Abstract

The aim of this article is to study the words and expressions in Greek and Latin relating to multilingualism, especially the compounds in -φωνος and in -γλωσσος in Greek and those in -lingua in Latin. I start by examining some texts related to the awareness of the linguistic diversity and multilingualism in Greece, Rome, and in the Jewish- Christian thought, from Homer to Augustine. Next, after having studied the terminology in Greek and Latin, I discuss some case studies of inter-linguistic communication and multilingualism in Greek and Latin authors. In the conclusion, I compare the ancient terminology of multilingualism with some aspects of the modern terminology in French.

DOI: 10.4424/lam72018-8