Lingua ignota in Western texts

Mnemonics

Odo of Cluny

10th century

Patrologia Latina 133: 755-58.

“Odo of Cluny (d. 942) offers another very tempting ‘clue’. In his section concerning the eight tones, the chordæ bear such names as buq, re, schembs, cæmar, neth uciche (uiche), caphe (kaphe?), asel, suggesse (successe) and nar. Many of these names have a decided Semitic physiognomy, and several are unmistakably Arabic.” H. G. Farmer, Historical Facts for the Arabian Musical Influence, London, 1930, p 31.

Text

buq re schembs cæmar neth uciche caphe asel suggesse nar

Guido of Arezzo

11th century

“The six notes of a hexachord are named after the first syllables of the lines of the hymn Ut queant laxis: ut, re, mi, fa, sol, la. The concept of the hexachord as a mnemonic device for teaching plainchant melodies was first described by Guido of Arezzo…” Grove’s Dictionary of Music s.v. Hexachord.

Text

ut re mi fa sol la

Cisiojanus

13th century.

Cisiojanus is a Latin mnemonic for the holy days of the church year, preserved in different versions in many manuscripts. I reproduce the text linked to by German Wikipedia. Hermann Grotefend, Zeitrechnung des deutschen Mittelalters und der Neuzeit, Lemma Cisiojanus, Online-Version von H. Ruth. (Weblink, 13-01-2007.) Thanks to Nick Pelling for pointing Cisiojanus out to me.

Text

Cisio Janus Epi sibi vendicat Oc Feli Mar An Prisca Fab Ag Vincen Ti Pau Po nobile lumen.
Bri Pur Blasus Ag Dor Febru Ap Scolastica Valent Juli conjunge tunc Petrum Matthiam inde.
Martius Adria Per decoratur Gregorio Cyr Gertrud Alba Bene juncta Maria genetrice.
April in Ambrosii festis ovat atque Tiburci Et Valer sanctique Geor Marcique Vitalis.
Philip Crux Flor Got Johan latin Epi Ne Ser et Soph Majus in hac Serie tenet Urban in pede Cris Can
Nic Marcelle Boni dat Jun Primi Ba Cyrini Vitique Mar Prothas Al sancti Johan Jo Dor Le Pe Pau.
Jul Proces Udal Oc Wil Kili Fra Bene Margar Apost Al Arnolfus Prax Mag Ap Christ Jacobique Sim Abdon.
Pe Steph Steph Protho Six Don Cyr Ro Lau Tibur Hip Eus Sumptio Agapiti Timo Bartholo Ruf Aug Coll Aucti.
Egidium Sep habet Nat Gorgon Protique Crux Nic Eu Lampertique Mat Mauricius et Da Wen Mich Jer.
Remique Franciscus Marcus Di Ger Arteque Calix Galle Lucas vel Und Se Seve Crispine Simonis Quin.
Omne Novembre Leo Qua Theo Martin Bricciique Post haec Elisa Ce Cle Crys Katharina Sat An.
December Barba Nico Concep et alma Lucia Sanctus abinde Thomas modo Nat Steph Jo Pu Thomae Sil.

Barbara celarent

14th century.

ca 1300-1350

William of Shyreswood, Introductiones in Logicam, Paris Bibliothèque Nationale Cod. Lat. 16617. William Kneale and Martha Kneale, The Development of Logic, Oxford 1962, p 231-3.

The mnemonic verses used in mediaeval logic.

Text

Barbara celarent darii ferio baralipton
Celantes dabitis fapesmo frisesomorum;
Cesare campestres festino baroco; darapti
Felapton disamis datisi bocardo ferison.

Lorem Ipsum

ca. 1500

From Wikipedia.

The meaningless text used to display printed type. Discussed in an article by Richard McClintock.

Text

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

Fiction

Hypnerotomachia

1499.

The polyglot romance Hypnerotomachia, possibly by Leon Battista Alberti, is written in Latinate Italian. The story often makes mention of monumental inscriptions which appear in the illustrations: these are in Latin, Greek, Arabic and what is purported to be Egyptian hieroglyphics. The Latin and Greek are certainly correct and the Arabic appears to be: the hieroglyphs are not real Egyptian but an invention.

List of illustrations containing inscriptions

33 Latin
37 Greek, Arabic
38 Hieroglyphs
39 Hebrew, Greek, Latin
40 Hebrew, Greek, Latin
41 Hieroglyphs, Latin
55 Greek
69 Latin, Hieroglyphs
73 Greek
85 Greek
98 Latin
100 Latin
129 Greek
133 Hieroglyphics
135 Arabic, Hebrew, Greek, Latin
160 Latin
169 Greek
172 Latin
214 Greek, Latin
243 Hieroglyphics
244 Hieroglyphics, Latin
245 Hieroglyphics, Latin
246 Latin
248 Latin
252 Latin
253 Latin
254 Latin
255 Latin
256 Latin
257 Latin, Greek
258 Latin
259 Latin
260 Latin, Greek
261 Latin
262 Hieroglyphics
263 Latin
264 Latin
267 Greek
268 Latin
271 Latin (+hieroglyphs?)
285 Latin (+ hieroglyphs?)
311 Latin (map / circle diagram)
323 Latin
324 Latin
328 Latin
329 Latin
331 Greek
340 Greek
341 Greek
373 Greek
375 Latin

Utopia

1515

The introduction to Thomas More’s Utopia contains a poem (the Tetrastichon) in the invented Utopian language and a Latin translation of it. A Latin Hexastichon has no Utopian original. The Utopian Tetrastichon is written in classical hexameters whereas the Latin translations are in prose.

Text

HEXASTICHON ANEMOLII POETAE LAV
REATI, HYTHLODAEI EX SORO-
RE NEPOTIS IN VTOPI-
AM INSVLAM

Vtopia priscis dicta, ob infrequentiam,
Nunc ciuitatis aemula Platonicae
Fortasse uictrix (nam quod illa literis
Deliniauit, hoc ego una praestiti,
Viris & opibus, optimisque legibus)
Eutopia merito sum uocanda nomine.

VTOPIENSIVM ALPHABETVM

a b c d e f g h i k l m n o p q r s t u x y
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

TETRASTICHON VERNACVLA VTO-
PIENSIVM LINGVA

Vtopos ha Boccas peula chama
****** ** ****** ***** *****
polta chamaan.
***** *******.
Bargol he maglomi baccan
****** ** ******* ******
soma gymnosophaon.
**** ************.
Agrama gymnosophon labarem
****** *********** *******
bacha bodamilomin.
***** ***********.
Voluala barchin heman la
******* ******* ***** **
lauoluola dramme pagloni.
********* ****** *******.

HORVM VERSVVM AD VERBVM HAEC
EST SENTENTIA

Vtopus me dux ex non insula fecit insulam.
Vna ego terrarum omnium absque philosophia.
Ciuitatem philosophicam expressi mortalibus.
Libenter impartio mea, non grauatim accipio meliora.

Rabelais, Gargantua et Pantagruel

1532

Rabelais, Gargantua et Pantagruel, book II, chapter 9, contains sequences in various unfamiliar looking languages. Most of these have been identified as real human languages but the Antipodean, Lanternois and Utopian languages are believed to be inventions. The sequences in known languages do not have the same meaning as each other.

Rabelais Antipodean

Al barildim gotfano dech min brin alabo dordin falbroth ringuam albaras. Nin porthzadilkin almucathim milko prin al elmin enthoth dal heben ensouim; kuthim al dum alkatim nim broth dechoth porth min michais im endoth, pruch dal maisoulum hol moth dansrilrim lupaldas im voldemoth. Nin hur diavosth mnarbotim dal gousch palfrapin duch im scoth pruch galeth dal chinon, min foulchrich al conin butathen doth dal prin.

Rabelais Lanternois

Prug frest strinst sorgdmand strochdt drhds pag brleland Gravot Chavigny Pomardière rusth pkalhdracg Devinière près Nays. Bouille kalmuch monach drupp delmeupplistrincq dlrnd dodelb up drent loch minc stzrinquald de vins ders cordelis hur jocststzampenards.

Rabelais Utopian

Agonou dont oussys vou denaguez algarou, nou den farou zamist vous mariston ulbrou, fousquez vous brol tam bredaguez moupreton del goul houst, daguez daguez nou croupys fost bardounnoflist nou grou. Agou paston tol nalprissys hourtou los ecbatonous, prou dhouquys brol panygou den bascrou noudous caguons goulfren goul oust troppassou.

Magic

Ghent Invocations

16th century.

Ghent Universiteitsbibl. hs. 1021a (‘G4’)

W. Braeckman, Middeleuwse witte en zwarte magie in het nederlands taalgebied, Ghent 1997 p. 474-6.

From a compendium of magical invocations. Words of an unknown language, to be said 24 times over a seal of Solomon.

Text

hyr hensym caulesym schemim beneim lechelimurietin cellen hierfaucim elfiramhi faraym mynclmensy henylcaly huheydem letu metemie ylle calle