The Names of Sidonius’ Addressees and the Manuscript Tradition of the Letters

Abstract

Abstract Sidonius is often the only source of information on his addressees. Following Dolveck’s stemma codicum of Sidonius’ Letters, the present contribution offers a timely reassessment of the manuscript tradition attesting the names of his addressees by using manuscript studies and onomastics as a tool for prosopography. The paper first examines the evolution of onomastics in the Late Antique West and Sidonius’ own name. These introductory remarks are closed by some considerations on what is commonly believed to be Sidonius’ epitaph and whether it bears the author’s name or that of his son Apollinaris. The contribution then analyses some of the most noteworthy case studies of diverging readings of names of addressees in his collection, questioning the prosopographical tradition. The survey shows that the popularity enjoyed by some names—rather than attested variants—in Sidonius’ prosopography is a remnant of prior editions and of their influence over the collective knowledge of the author.