The Influence Of Unit Delimitation On Reading And Use Of Greek Manuscripts

Abstract

The manuscript that the author wishes to deal with is an early Greek lectionary manuscript. In its fragmentary form, it now consists of ten pages. The hand of this manuscript is a very consistent and well formed biblical majuscule, resembling the writing of Codex Alexandrinus. The text clearly is not all continuous - some pages either begin or end in the middle of a unit, and units begin or end in the beginning of a column. There are several ways that units are delimited in this manuscript. This chapter treats each of the eleven major units in turn, and discusses the major and minor unit delimitation and its potential exegetical and lectional significance. The emphasis is on how the elements of unit delimitation are shaped the structure of the pericopes and hence influenced the reader who would have picked up this manuscript for liturgical use.Keywords: biblical text; Codex Alexandrinus; Greek manuscript; pericopes; unit delimitation