The Περὶ ἀντιστοίχων in MS. Barocci 10 and MS. Barocci 48: An indirect witness to Pseudo-Zonaras’ Lexicon?
Summary
This article brings to light an unpublished treatise on orthographically different but phonetically identical vowels entitled Περὶ ἀντιστοίχων and transmitted in manuscripts Barocci 10 (14th/15th century) and Barocci 48 (15th century), both kept in the Bodleian library in Oxford. The Περὶ ἀντιστοίχων is one of the many orthographical works composed to help with the spelling problems that arose in the Greek language due to the fact that over the centuries the sound of certain Greek vowels became identical, thus making the spelling of words a real challenge. As well as providing the editio princeps for this text, this article discusses its history and background, its features, and its relationship with other grammatical and lexicographical sources, primarily with Pseudo-Zonaras’ Lexicon, and suggests that the Περὶ ἀντιστοίχων is possibly an indirect witness to Pseudo-Zonaras’ Lexicon.
Publication history
Table of contents
Over the centuries, certain Greek vowels had fallen together in pronunciation due to various phonological developments (including iotacism, monophthongization of ancient Greek diphthongs, and loss of vowel length distinctions). More specifically, ει ⁓ ι ⁓ η came to be pronounced as [i], ε ⁓ αι came to be pronounced as [e], ο ⁓ ω came to be pronounced as [o], and υ ⁓ οι came to be pronounced as [y] and later as [i]. Despite the uncertainty regarding the chronology of some of these phonological developments and although they did not happen simultaneously, most of them were already completed by the end of the Koine Greek period. Despite these changes in the pronunciation of the vowels, the traditional spelling conventions were maintained, thus making the spelling of words a difficult task. To help with this problem, a number of orthographical treatises were composed in the Byzantine period. From the fifth century until the ninth century various grammarians, including Timotheus of Gaza, Arcadius, John Charax, John Philoponus, Choeroboscus, and Theognostus, composed treatises on orthography. Aside of the treatises on orthography written by these grammarians (most of which are entitled Περὶ ὀρθογραφίας), some further (usually anonymous) orthographical treatises, entitled Ἀντιστοιχάριον or Ἀντιστοιχικόν or Περὶ ἀντιστοίχων or Ἑρμηνεία περὶ ἀντιστοίχων or Τεχνολογία περὶ ἀντιστοίχων or Σύνοψις περὶ ἀντιστοίχων πρὸς ἰδιώτας εἰς τὸ γράφειν, have come down to us. The titles of these orthographical works contain either a form of the adjective ἀντίστοιχος (‘corresponding’) or a word derived from it. In this context and at the period that these treatises are being written, the term ἀντίστοιχος refers to orthographically different but phonetically identical vowels (i.e. ει ⁓ ι ⁓ η pronounced as [i], ε ⁓ αι pronounced as [e], ο ⁓ ω pronounced as [o], and υ ⁓ οι pronounced as [y] and later as [i]). These treatises usually juxtapose words which sounded similarly or identically at the time but were spelled differently. Such a treatise on orthographically different but phonetically identical vowels is the one entitled Περὶ ἀντιστοίχων and transmitted in two Oxford manuscripts, namely in the 14th/15th century MS. Barocci 10 (fol. 160r–169r) and the 15th century MS. Barocci 48 (fol. 20r–22r), both kept in the Bodleian Library. Apart from providing a discussion of the manuscript tradition and the first edition of this hitherto unpublished treatise, this article will discuss its dating and authorship, its relationship with other grammatical and lexicographical sources (especially with Pseudo-Zonaras’ Lexicon), and some pieces of evidence suggesting that the compiler of the Περὶ ἀντιστοίχων was a reader of Pseudo-Zonaras’ Lexicon.
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