Lingua ignota

{{Short description|Mystical 12th-century language created by St. Hildegard of Bingen}} {{italic title}} {{for|the musician who formerly used the stage name "Lingua Ignota"|Kristin Hayter}} {{Infobox language |name = {{lang|la|Lingua ignota}} |pronunciation = {{IPA|[ˈlinɡwa iŋˈnoːta]}} |image = Hildegard von bingen - litterae ignotae.jpg |imageheader = |imagescale = 1.45 |imagecaption = St. Hildegard's 23 {{lang|la|litterae ignotae}} |creator = Hildegard of Bingen |setting = |speakers = |date = 1078-1179 |ref = |speakers2 = |fam2 = artistic language |posteriori = |ancestor = |dialects = |agency = |script = |iso3 = none |lingua = |linglist = |glotto = none |glottorefname = |ietf = [https://www.kreativekorp.com/clcr/ art-x-ignota] |notice = IPA }} {{Infobox writing system | type = Alphabet | mode = | name = {{lang|la-x-medieval|Litterae ignotae}} | altname = | sample = | alt = | caption = | creator = Hildegard von Bingen | date = | time = 12th century | status = | fam1 = | family = | direction = left-to-right | language = Lingua ignota }} {{Christian mysticism}}

A '''{{lang|la|lingua ignota}}''' (Latin for 'unknown language') was described by the 12th-century abbess Hildegard of Bingen, who apparently used it for mystical purposes. It consists of vocabulary with no known grammar; the only known text is individual words embedded in Latin. To write it, Hildegard used an alphabet of 23 letters denominated {{lang|la|litterae ignotae}} (Latin for 'unknown letters').<ref>{{cite book |last1=Bingensis |first1=Hildegardis |url=http://dfg-viewer.de/show/?tx_dlf%5Bid%5D=http%3A%2F%2Fdokumentserver.hlb-wiesbaden.de%2FHS_2%2Fmets17.xml&tx_dlf%5Bpage%5D=934&tx_dlf%5Bdouble%5D=0&cHash=16dea2091d5605fe4f100c3fd07fdab5 |title=Riesencodex |date=1175–1190 |pages=934, 464v |access-date=2014-08-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141220122843/http://dfg-viewer.de/show/?tx_dlf%5Bid%5D=http%3A%2F%2Fdokumentserver.hlb-wiesbaden.de%2FHS_2%2Fmets17.xml&tx_dlf%5Bpage%5D=934&tx_dlf%5Bdouble%5D=0&cHash=16dea2091d5605fe4f100c3fd07fdab5 |archive-date=2014-12-20 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

== History and corpus ==

Hildegard partially described the language in a work titled {{lang|la|Ignota lingua per simplicem hominem Hildegardem prolata}}, which survived in two manuscripts, both dating to {{circa|1200}}, the ''Wiesbaden Codex'' and a Berlin MS (Lat. Quart. 4º 674), previously {{lang|la|Codex Cheltenhamensis}} 9303, collected by Sir Thomas Phillipps.{{sfnp|Roth|1895|pp=390-404}} The text is a glossary of 1011 words in Lingua ignota, with glosses mostly in Latin, sometimes in Middle High German; the words appear to be {{lang|la|a priori}} coinages, mostly nouns with a few adjectives. Grammatically it appears to be a partial relexification of Latin, as in, a code or language formed by substituting new vocabulary into an existing grammar.<ref>{{cite book |last=Jeskalian |first=Barbara Jean |title=Hildegard of Bingen: the creative dimensions of a Medieval personality |publisher=Graduate Theological Union}}</ref> Many words have ambiguous forms, such as either {{Lang|art-DE|Zizain}} or {{Lang|art-DE|Zizam}} meaning "dish". Likewise, occasional typos appear in the manuscript, such as glossing {{Lang|art-DE|Kulzphazur}} as ''attavus'' instead of {{Lang|la|atavus}} (ancestor) or {{Lang|art-DE|Maiz}} as ''maler'' instead of {{Lang|la|mater}} (mother). As a personal language, Hildegard does not describe an invented culture or history along with it.

The purpose and creation history of {{lang|la|lingua ignota}} is unknown, and it is not known who, besides its creator, was familiar with it. In the 19th century some{{who|date=July 2018}} believed that Hildegard intended her language to be an ideal, universal language.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Zui |date=18 July 2020 |title=Lingua Ignota — The Earliest Known Constructed Language? |url=https://thelanguagecloset.com/2020/07/18/lingua-ignota-the-first-constructed-languages/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190208092421/http://www.unmasqued.com/eclecticify/ignota.php |archive-date=2019-02-08 |access-date=2022-08-29 |website=The Language Closet |language=en}}</ref> However, in the 21st century it is assumed that Lingua ignota was devised as a secret language; like Hildegard's "unheard music", she would have attributed it to divine inspiration. To the extent that the language was constructed by Hildegard, it may be considered one of the earliest known constructed languages.

In a letter to Hildegard, her friend and provost Wolmarus, fearing that Hildegard would soon die, asks {{lang|la|ubi tunc vox inauditae melodiae? et vox inauditae linguae?}} ({{harvp|Descemet|1882|p=346}}; "where, then, the voice of the unheard melody? And the voice of the unheard language?"), suggesting that the existence of Hildegard's language was known, but there were no initiates who would have preserved its knowledge after her death.

== Sample text ==

The only extant text in the language is the following short passage: {{blockquote|{{lang|la-x-medieval|O '''{{lang|art-DE|orzchis}}''' Ecclesia, armis divinis praecincta, et hyacinto ornata, tu es '''{{lang|art-DE|caldemia}}''' stigmatum '''{{lang|art-DE|loifolum}}''' et urbs scienciarum. O, o tu es etiam '''{{lang|art-DE|crizanta}}''' in alto sono, et es '''{{lang|art-DE|chorzta}}''' gemma.}}}} These two sentences are written mostly in Latin with five key words in Lingua ignota; as only one of these is unambiguously found in the glossary ({{lang|art-DE|loifol}}, "people", a likely portmanteau from German "{{lang|de|Leute}}" and "{{lang|de|Volk}}"), it is clear that the vocabulary was larger than 1011 words. ({{harvp|Higley|2007}} finds probable correspondences for two other words.)

{{blockquote|"O {{lang|art-DE|orzchis}} Ecclesia, girded with divine arms, and adorned with hyacinth, you are the {{lang|art-DE|caldemia}} of the wounds of the {{lang|art-DE|loifols}}, and the city of sciences. O, o, and you are the {{lang|art-DE|crizanta}} in high sound, and you are the {{lang|art-DE|chorzta}} gem."}} {{lang|art-DE|Loifol}} "people" is apparently inflected as a third declension Latin noun, yielding the genitive plural {{lang|art-DE|loifolum}} "of the peoples".

{{harvp|Newman|1987}} conjectures the translation: {{blockquote|"O ''measureless'' Church, / girded with divine arms / and adorned with jacinth, / you are the ''fragrance'' of the wounds of ''nations'' / and the city of sciences. / O, o, and you are ''anointed'' / amid-noble sound, / and you are a ''sparkling'' gem."}}

== Orthography and phonology == Hildegard wrote the language with its own alphabet, Litterae Ignotae, which covers the same letters as the contemporary Latin alphabet rather than any peculiar sounds. The Litterae Ignotae letters also do not appear to have names of their own. Per 1100s Latin writing, the letters <Uu>, <Vv>, and <Ww> were not distinguished, nor were <Ii> and <Jj>. <Qq> has a separate letter, despite rarely appearing in Lingua Ignota words. Additionally, each word takes an initial capital, fitting the way nouns are capitalized in High German. Punctuation is seldom seen and not described.

Modern latinizations often write <Vv> and <Jj> before a vowel but <Uu> and <Ii> elsewhere. Doubled <Uu> or <Vv> is common and is frequently transliterated as <Ww>. Other writers use conventions of the time (writing <Vv> initially and <Uu> elsewhere), while some use <Ii> and <Uu> or <Vv> in all cases. The use <Vv>, <Ww>, and <Jj> before consonants is not clear, nor are sequences of <uv> as opposed to <w>.

Hildegard never described the pronunciation of the language but seemingly follows conventions of her native Middle High German, such as using the letter <Zz> much more than <Ss>. Lingua Ignota <Zz> could have represented {{IPA|/s~z/}} or {{IPA|/ts/}}, or perhaps both depending on the word. <Ss> in turn likely represents something like {{IPA|/ʂ/}} or {{IPA|/ʃ/}}. Overall, however, what sounds are represented by each letter and in which word is not always clear.

Lingua Ignota uses frequent multigraphs such as <sch>, <nowiki><th>, <ph>, <sz>, <ei>, among others. It is not clear how many denoted unique sounds not covered by the standard alphabet, nor if any sounded the same as specific single letters or other multigraphs. Like the singular letters, their consistency in pronunciation is not known. </nowiki>

== Vocabulary ==

The glossary is in a hierarchical order ({{lang|la|scala naturae}}), first giving terms for God and angels, followed by terms for human beings and terms for family relationships, followed by terms for body-parts, illnesses, religious and worldly ranks, craftsworkers, days, months, clothing, household items, plants, and a few birds and insects. Terms for mammals are absent (except for the bat, {{lang|art-DE|Valveria}}, and the gryphon, {{lang|art-DE|Argumzio}}, a half-mammal, both listed among the birds). Also lacking are most adjectives, numbers, and grammatical terms, as well as any verbs, adverbs, pronouns, or function words.

The first 30 entries are (after {{harvp|Roth|1895}}): {| class="Wikitable sortable" |- ! {{numero}} !! {{lang|la|Lingua ignota}} !! Latin !! English |- | 1 || {{lang|art-DE|Aigonz}} || {{lang|la|deus}} || God |- | 2 || {{lang|art-DE|Aieganz}} || {{lang|la|angelus}} || angel |- | 3 || {{lang|art-DE|Zuuenz}} || {{lang|la|sanctus}} || saint |- | 4 || {{lang|art-DE|Livionz}}|| {{lang|la|salvator}} || savior |- | 5 || {{lang|art-DE|Diveliz}}|| {{lang|la|diabolus}} || devil |- | 6 || {{lang|art-DE|Ispariz}} || {{lang|la|spiritus}} || spirit |- | 7 || {{lang|art-DE|Inimois}} || {{lang|la|homo}} || human being |- | 8 || {{lang|art-DE|Jur}} || {{lang|la|vir}} || man |- | 9 || {{lang|art-DE|Vanix}} || {{lang|la|femina}} || woman |- | 10 || {{lang|art-DE|Pevearrez}}|| {{lang|la|patriarcha}} || patriarch |- | 11 || {{lang|art-DE|Korzinthio}} || {{lang|la|propheta}} || prophet |- | 12 || {{lang|art-DE|Falschin}} || {{lang|la|vates}} || soothsayer |- | 13 || {{lang|art-DE|Sonziz}} || {{lang|la|apostolus}} || apostle |- | 14 || {{lang|art-DE|Linschiol}} || {{lang|la|martir}} || martyr |- | 15 || {{lang|art-DE|Zanziver}}|| {{lang|la|confessor}} || confessor |- | 16 || {{lang|art-DE|Vrizoil}} || {{lang|la|virgo}} || virgin |- | 17 || {{lang|art-DE|Jugiza}} || {{lang|la|vidua}} || widow |- | 18 || {{lang|art-DE|Pangizo}} || {{lang|la|penitens}} || penitent |- | 19 || {{lang|art-DE|Kulzphazur}} || {{lang|la|atavus}}|| ancestor |- | 20 || {{lang|art-DE|Phazur}} || {{lang|la|avus}} || grandfather |- | 21 || {{lang|art-DE|Peveriz}}|| {{lang|la|pater}} || father |- | 22 || {{lang|art-DE|Maiz}} || {{lang|la|mater}} || mother |- | 23 || {{lang|art-DE|Hilzpeveriz}}|| {{lang|la|nutricus}} || stepfather |- | 24 || {{lang|art-DE|Hilzmaiz}} || {{lang|la|noverca}} || stepmother |- | 25 || {{lang|art-DE|Scirizin}} || {{lang|la|filius}} || son |- | 26 || {{lang|art-DE|Hilzscifriz}} || {{lang|la|privignus}} || stepson |- | 27 || {{lang|art-DE|Limzkil}} || {{lang|la|infans}} || infant |- | 28 || {{lang|art-DE|Zains}} || {{lang|la|puer}} || boy |- | 29 || {{lang|art-DE|Zunzial}} || {{lang|la|juvenis}}|| youth |- | 30 || {{lang|art-DE|Bischiniz}} || {{lang|la|adolescens}} || adolescent |}

Nominal composition may be observed in many words: {{lang|art-DE|peveriz}} "father" → {{lang|art-DE|hilz-peveriz}} "stepfather", {{lang|art-DE|maiz}} "mother" → {{lang|art-DE|hilz-maiz}} "stepmother", and {{lang|art-DE|scirizin}} "son" → {{lang|art-DE|hilz-scifriz}} "stepson". Suffixal derivation can be seen in {{lang|art-DE|peveriz}} "father" → {{lang|art-DE|pevearrez}} "patriarch". As with the orthography, Middle High German influence is evident, such as the word "grandfather" begetting the word for "ancestor": {{lang|art-DE|phazur}} → {{lang|art-DE|kulz-phazur}}.

A few terms have more than one Lingua Ignota word assigned to them, such as {{Lang|art-DE|abiza}} and {{Lang|art-DE|comizaz}} both meaning "house". Whether there is any distinction in use and what kind is not made clear.

== Editions ==

* {{harvp|Grimm|1848}}, listing only the 291 glosses with German translations. * {{harvp|Roth|1895}}, consisting of the 1011 glosses. * {{harvp|Descemet|1882}} listing only the 181 glosses giving the names of plants. * {{harvp|Portmann|Odermatt|1986}} * {{harvp|Higley|2007}}, ''Hildegard of Bingen's Unknown Language: An Edition, Translation, and Discussion'', the entire ''Riesencodex'' glossary, with additions from the Berlin MS, translations into English, and extensive commentary.

== See also ==

*Hiberno-Latin, a learned style of literary Latin spread by Irish monks during the period from the sixth century to the tenth century. It used unusual words and loanwords from Greek, Hebrew and Irish. *Hermeneutic style, a style of Latin in the later Roman and early medieval periods characterized by the extensive use of unusual and arcane words, especially derived from Greek. *Moselle Romance, an extinct Gallo-Romance language spoken in the region, with pockets surviving into the 11th century, to which ''lingua ignota'' is hypothesized to have links. *Glossolalia *Artistic language *Philosophical language

== Literature ==

{{refbegin}} * {{cite book |last1=Bollig |first1=Traude |title=Hildegard von Bingen, Heilwerden mit der Kraft ihrer Symbole |last2=Richter |first2=Ingrid |publisher=Aurum Verlag |isbn=3-89901-006-X |language=de}} (an esoteric claim of decipherment of the {{lang|la|litterae}} [http://heilende-symbole.de/symbole/index.html]) * {{cite book |last=Descemet |first=Charles |url=https://archive.org/stream/analectasacrasp04pitrgoog#page/n536/mode/2up |title=Analecta of Pitra |date=1882}} * {{cite journal |last=Green |first=Jonathan P. |date=2005 |title=A new gloss on Hildegard of Bingen's Lingua ignota |journal=Viator |volume=36 |pages=217-234}} * {{cite journal |last=Grimm |first=Wilhelm |author-link=Wilhelm Grimm |date=1848 |editor-last=Haupt |editor-first=Moriz |editor-link=Moriz Haupt |title=Wiesbader glossen |journal=Zeitschrift für deutsches Alterthum |language=de |volume=6 |page=321}} * {{cite book |last=Higley |first=Sarah L. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GkuK53bU4_UC |title=Hildegard of Bingen's Unknown Language: An Edition, Translation and Discussion |date=2007 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan}} * {{cite conference |last=Moulinier |first=Laurence |editor1-last=Hamesse |editor1-first=J. |editor2-last=Jacquart |editor2-first=D. |title=Un lexique trilingue du XIIe siècle: la lingua ignota de Hildegarde de Bingen |language=fr |publisher=Brepols |publication-place=Turnhout |publication-date=2001 |pages=89-111 |isbn=2-503-51176-7 |book-title=Lexiques bilingues dans les domaines philosophique et scientifique (Moyen Âge-Renaissance), Actes du colloque international organisé par l’Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes-Ive Section et l’Institut Supérieur de Philosophie de l’Université Catholique de Louvain, Paris, 12-14 juin 1997}} * {{cite book |last=Newman |first=Barbara |author-link=Barbara Newman |title=Sister of Wisdom: St. Hildegard's Theology of the Feminine |date=1987 |publisher=University of California Press |location=(Berkeley}} * {{cite book |title=Wörterbuch der unbekannten Sprache |date=1986 |publisher=Verlag Basler Hildegard-Gesellschaft |isbn=3-905143-18-6 |editor1-last=Portmann |editor1-first=Marie-Louise |location=Basel |language=de |editor2-last=Odermatt |editor2-first=Alois}} * {{cite book |last=Roth |first=Friedrich Wilhelm Emil |title=Die Althochdeutschen Glossen |date=1895 |publisher=Weidmannscher Buchhandlung |editor1-last=Steinmeyer |editor1-first=Elias |volume=3 |location=Berlin |pages=390–404 |chapter=Glossae Hildegardis |editor2-last=Eduard |editor2-first=Sievers |chapter-url=https://archive.org/stream/diealthochdeutsc03steiuoft#page/390/mode/2up}} * {{cite journal |last=Schnapp |first=Jeffrey |author-link=Jeffrey Schnapp |date=1991 |title=Virgin's words: Hildegard of Bingen's Lingua Ignota and the Development of Imaginary Languages Ancient to Modern |journal=Exemplaria |volume=3 |pages=267–298 |number=2}} {{refend}}

== References ==

{{reflist}}

== External links ==

* [http://scholastic.us.to/Hildegard.html Transliterate text to St. Hildegard's ''litteræ ignotæ'' alphabet.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160408093103/http://scholastic.us.to/Hildegard.html |date=2016-04-08 }} * [https://web.archive.org/web/20051110160747/http://www.langmaker.com/db/mdl_linguaignota.htm Langmaker profile of Lingua Ignota] * [http://www.unmasqued.com/eclecticify/ignota.php Eclecticify: Lingua Ignota]: a partial English glossary of the Lingua Ignota by an amateur translator.

{{Hildegard of Bingen}} {{Constructed languages}}

Category:Constructed languages Category:Language and mysticism Category:Medieval literature Category:Forms of Latin Category:12th-century Latin literature Category:Languages of Germany Category:Works by Hildegard of Bingen Category:Constructed languages introduced in the 12th century