Gift und Gegengift

Lorenzo Valla is renowned for his attempt to revitalise the classical language of ancient Rome, the ‚golden Latin‘ of Cicero’s epoch and the ‚silver Latin‘ from the time of Seneca and Tacitus. And indeed, he succeeded in restoring an antiquated style of prose writing and pompous speech, which might be satirised as ‚Neusilberne Latinität‘ ( ‚nickel silver Latin‘ ). But his linguistic efforts aspired to higher aims, namely to plough up ( repastinatio ) every field of medieval erudition, scholastic philosophy and theology as well as history and jurisprudence. His famous quarrel with Poggio Bracciolini may serve as a proof of the Latin schoolmaster’s ambition to bring about a cultural revolution by grammar and vocabulary.