Expert: Maria - 12/16/2006

Question
Thank you very much Maria! I tried to do some research myself and was wondering where Alcuin (700 AD) fits in, if at all. Thanks in advance, Happy Holidays!


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The text above is a follow-up to ...

-----Question-----
Hi Maria,

I was wondering if you could tell me the origin of lower case letters, as i believe that this pertains to latin and the  middle ages. Thanks you very much in advance - take care!
-----Answer-----
Hello,

Lowercase letters, also called ‘small', 'minuscule  letters' in contrast to the majuscule, or uppercase, capital letters, which were the earliest  form of writing  in ancient alphabets, date back to the 3rd. century BC in Greece where in fact the lowercase letters were used to write faster on papyrus and parchment.
The different shapes of the lowercase letters  developed gradually through transformations of the capital letters by the elimination of a part of the letter (see ‘b’-beta in Greek- from B)  or by lengthening a part of it
( see ‘d’ –delta in Greek- from D).

As for Latin alphabet  which derives  just from Greek alphabet  which in turn derived from the Phoenician one dating back to ca. 1200 BC, it is still today the standard script of the languages of most of Europe and  those areas settled by Europeans, with a few exceptions like the Greek alphabet  used in Greece and  the Cyrillic  alphabet (Russia, e.g.).
In ancient Roman times too there were only capital letters, while  it seems that lowercase letters have been introduced  in the 1st.century AD.
This change from capital letters to small letters which  was influenced by the nature of the material of writing (papyrus, parchment and later paper) continued in the Middle Ages, of course.

To conclude, the origin of lower case letters does not pertain to Latin and the  Middle Ages, but dates back to the ancient Greek in the 3rd. century BC, though the use of lower case letters  was implemented in the Middle Ages.

Best,
Maria
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Please note that my field of expertise is ancient Greek and Roman history and therefore I'm referring to these areas.


Answer
Hello,

Glad to have helped you somehow.
As for Alcuin of York, the Anglo-Saxon prelate and scholar who was a teacher at the Palace School of Charlemagne and a leader in the revival of learning in Medieval Europe, he played a leading role in the spread across Europe  of carolingian minuscule, just developed by him for use in the court of Charlemagne.
In fact Carolingian or Caroline minuscule was “a script developed as a writing standard in Europe so that the Latin alphabet could be easily recognized by the small literate class from one region to another”.
In short, this script derived from Latin lowercase letters that have been introduced  in the 1st.century AD, as I’ve already said (see my previous answer).

Happy Holydays!
Maria