Languages in the Lutheran Reformation: Textual Networks and the Spread of Ideas ed. by Mikko Kauko et al.

Abstract

Reviewed by: Languages in the Lutheran Reformation: Textual Networks and the Spread of Ideas ed. by Mikko Kauko et al. Mary Jane Haemig Languages in the Lutheran Reformation: Textual Networks and the Spread of Ideas. Edited by Mikko Kauko, Miika Norro, Kirsi-Maria Nummila, Tanja Toropainen, and Tuomo Fonsén. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press, 2019. 307 pp. The Lutheran Reformation was a multi-lingual event. This volume, originating in a 2015 seminar, examines not just the impact that the Lutheran Reformation had on individual languages but also the influences that flowed from one vernacular language to another in the course of transporting Reformation ideas. It focuses on the Baltic Sea region with its Germanic, Slavic, Baltic, and Finnic languages. A helpful introduction sets the parameters of the work. Part one focuses on the reception of Luther's ideas and their influence on [End Page 229] the development of written languages. John Flood's essay offers careful analysis of how Luther's German New Testament decisively influenced William Tyndale's translation of the New Testament into English. Flood comments, "it is not so much the echoes of particular words and phrases that are important as Luther's example, which served Tyndale as a model. Luther's German was based on living speech, not on written literary style … Natural idiom, homely proverbial expressions, alliterative phrases, and above all the outstanding rhythmic quality and the fluency of narration make his Bible language what it is. What Luther did for German, Tyndale later did for the English Bible too" (51). Tyndale's translation fed subsequent translations into English, including the King James Version (1611). Kristiina Ross examines how Lutheran ideals influenced literary Estonian, a language that did not exist in written form before the Reformation. Izabela Winiarska-Górska contributes an essay on the influence of the Lutheran Reformation on written Polish. Part two looks at the effects of Bible translations on the evolution of written language. Robert Dittmann concludes that Luther's direct influence on Bible translation and the development of written Czech was limited; instead the Brethren Bible from the end of the sixteenth century was important. Jonatan Pettersson does not see the Swedish New Testament (1526) as a special milestone in the development of written Swedish from Old Swedish to Early Modern Swedish. Despite its linguistic innovations, "it relies on late medieval linguistic usage" (129). The third part ponders the reuse of traditional Roman Catholic texts after the Reformation. Elise Kleivane and Svanhildur Óskarsdóttir look at the reception of apocryphal narratives concerning the Holy Family in Scandinavia from late medieval times to the eighteenth century. Tanja Toropainen views early Finnish translations of the hymn "Te Deum Laudamus," concluding that Swedish, not German, translations influenced the Finnish translations. An interesting essay by Sebastian Seyferth looks at New Testament "Summaries," that is, brief texts designed to introduce and explain a [End Page 230] biblical text, by Johann Bugenhagen, Veit Dietrich, and some Roman Catholic authors. The author concludes that these were not simply informational but rather a tool in the rhetorical battles between the confessions. Part four looks at language contacts and loan words. Mikko Bentlin considers why Mikael Agricola used High German texts as sources but was uninfluenced by Low German texts. Merlijn de Smit, by examining the translation of the names of exotic animals in the Old Testament, shows that Protestant translations of the Bible into Dutch generally used more target language vocabulary while Catholic translations relied on loan words. Dainora Pociūtè looks at how early Lutheran vernacular texts influenced the development of Lithuanian medical terminology. Pēteris Vanags considers the significant German influence on early written Latvian, a language distinctly different from spoken Latvian. This work provides a glimpse into an area sometimes mentioned but seldom explored by Reformation historians. While of interest to historians, it might spur theologians and translators to consider similar issues of translation and transmission of ideas today. Mary Jane Haemig Luther Seminary Saint Paul, Minnesota Copyright © 2021 Johns Hopkins University Press and Lutheran Quarterly, Inc.