Learning Latin in the Roman Army

Abstract

Abstract Although this chapter, contrary to some recently expressed views, accepts that Latin was the official language of the Roman army, it challenges the common view that soldiers and veterans were key vectors of linguistic change in the provinces of the Roman Empire. The argument is based mainly on the demographic realities in the provinces, in which, numerically, soldiers and veterans made up far too small a proportion of the population to have had a notable impact on the spreading of Latin into non-Latin-speaking communities. Moreover, at the level of the rank and file, service in the army required only a basic knowledge of Latin. Non-native speakers of Latin therefore needed to acquire advanced levels of the language of the Romans only if they intended to advance to higher ranks. Finally, a significant number of auxiliary veterans returned to their former homes after discharge and used their native tongue when communicating with the local population. Hence, such veterans hardly contributed to the diffusion of Latin in the provinces. The Roman army, therefore, does not emerge as a major agent in the spreading of Latin in the Western provinces.