Literary Developments of the Table of Nations and the Tower of Babel in Anglo-Saxon England
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LITERARY DEVELOPMENTS OF THE TABLE OF NATIONS AND THE TOWER OF BABEL IN ANGLO-SAXON ENGLAND by Tristan Gary Major A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Centre for Medieval Studies University of Toronto © Copyright by Tristan Gary Major 2010 Literary Developments of the Table of Nations and the Tower of Babel in Anglo-Saxon England Tristan Gary Major Doctor of Philosophy Centre for Medieval Studies University of Toronto 2010 Abstract This dissertation examines the various ways Anglo-Saxon authors interpreted and adapted Genesis 10–11: the Table of Nations and the Tower of Babel narrative. Although Genesis 10–11 offered Christians of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages a scripturally authorized understanding of the origins of ethnic and linguistic diversity of the world, its nature as an ancient Jewish text that deals with matters more suitable to its original audience than to its late antique and medieval readers allowed these later readers to transform the meaning of the text in order to give it a significance more fitting to their own times. In the first section of my dissertation, I treat the topos of the number 72, which becomes prominent when authors of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages read it into the Table of Nations as the number of descendants of Noah‘s three sons. My first chapter deals with the initial development of this topos in Christian and Jewish writings of Late Antiquity; my second chapter with the topos in the Latin writings of early Anglo-Saxons, from the biblical commentaries from the School of Canterbury to Alcuin; and my third chapter with the topos in the writings of later Anglo-Saxons, from King Alfred to the Old English texts of the eleventh century. In the second section of my dissertation, I treat the interpretations of the Tower of Babel as they form and are informed in Late Antiquity and Anglo-Saxon England. As in the first section, three chapters are presented: the first on the initial developments in Late Antiquity; the second on the continual development into the Latin authors of early Anglo-Saxon England; and the third on the mainly Old English authors of the later Anglo-Saxon period. ii Acknowledgments The completion of this dissertation is due to much hard work by numerous people. The members of my supervisory committee have all been helpful from the early stages of this dissertation. The careful reading, insight, enthusiasm, encouragement and overall guidance of Toni Healey, Carol Percy and David Townsend have been invaluable. Joan Holland, who joined the project at the oral defence, caught many errors and provided me with thoughts for future consideration. My external examiner, Andy Scheil, carefully read and commented on the dissertation, and his insight and advice has been stimulating and influential. The gratitude I owe to my supervisor, Andy Orchard, cannot be reckoned: his profound understanding of Late Antiquity and Anglo- Saxon England has benefited me immensely. Thanks are also due to a number of people who read and commented on parts of this dissertation at its various stages. I thank Pauline Thompson and Michael Herren whose classes provided me with material and methodology that was used in my dissertation. I thank Ian McDougall for pointing me to a number of useful sources (including an index that he handwrote himself). I am also grateful to Emily Butler, Damian Fleming and Kathryn Powell who all read and commented on selections of the dissertation. Michael Elliot has been a constant source of knowledge, and I thank him for our many conversations on Babel and for reading a draft of the entire dissertation. My family has been a continual support throughout my educational career, and I thank my parents for all their encouragement and assistance. Most of all I thank my wife, Zoe Thiessen, for her enduring love. iii Table of Contents Acknowledgments ........................................................................................................................ iii Table of Contents ......................................................................................................................... iv List of Tables ................................................................................................................................ ix Abbreviations ................................................................................................................................ x Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1: 72: The Beginnings to the Patristic Tradition ......................................................... 5 1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 5 2 The Table of Nations ............................................................................................................. 5 3 Beginnings of the Topos of the Number 72 .......................................................................... 8 4 The Letter of Aristeas and the 72 Translators ..................................................................... 14 5 72 in Luke 10:1 and Irenaeus .............................................................................................. 17 6 Early Christian Chronicles .................................................................................................. 21 7 The Developing Tradition: Epiphanius, Philastrius, Pacian of Barcelona .......................... 25 8 Jerome .................................................................................................................................. 26 9 Augustine ............................................................................................................................. 28 10 Arnobius the Younger ......................................................................................................... 30 11 Isidore .................................................................................................................................. 33 12 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 38 iv Chapter 2: 72: Early Anglo-Saxon England ............................................................................. 39 1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 39 2 The Canterbury School ........................................................................................................ 40 3 Aldhelm ............................................................................................................................... 43 4 Bede ..................................................................................................................................... 48 5 Alcuin .................................................................................................................................. 63 6 Question-and-Answer Texts ................................................................................................ 68 7 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 71 Chapter 3: 72: Late Anglo-Saxon England .............................................................................. 73 1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 73 2 Alfred ................................................................................................................................... 73 3 The Inexpressibility Topos in Old English Homilies .......................................................... 76 Table 3: Comparison of Homilies HomU 35.1, HomS 4, HomU 15.1 ..................................... 81 4 Old English Poetry .............................................................................................................. 86 4.1 Franks Casket ................................................................................................................. 86 4.2 Widsið ............................................................................................................................. 88 4.3 Genesis A and Later Middle English Versions of Genesis ............................................. 90 4.4 Lord‟s Prayer II and Gloria I ......................................................................................... 93 5 Ælfric ................................................................................................................................... 95 5.1 The 72 Descendants of the Sons of Noah....................................................................... 96 v 5.2 The 72 Disciples ........................................................................................................... 100 5.3 The 72 Biblical Books .................................................................................................. 104 6 Prose Solomon and Saturn ................................................................................................. 107 7 Byrhtferth of Ramsey ........................................................................................................ 110 8 Late Old English Anonymous Notes ................................................................................. 112 9 Conclusion