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An Encyclopedist of the Dark Ages : Isidore of Seville

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An Encyclopedist of the Dark Ages : Isidore of Seville Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2008 with funding from IVIicrosoft Corporation http://www.archive.org/details/encyclopedistofdOObrehrich STUDIES IN HISTORY ECONOMICS AND PUBLIC LAW - ...feu EDITED BY THt FACULTY OF POLITICAL SCIENCE OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY 4>> VOLUME FORTY-EIGHT ?»**,.'!•*•*•!: / »• JTetD gork COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY LONGMANS, GREEN & CO., AGENTS London : P. S. King & Son 1912 U3^ >^T^^fV • * • • . CONTENTS PAGE 1 An Encyclopedist of the Dark Ages : Isidore of Seville —Ernest Brehaut, Fh.D i 2. Progress and Uniformity in Child- Labor Legislation— William F, Ogburn, Fh.D 275 248044 STUDIES IN HISTORY, ECONOMICS AND PUBLIC LAW EDITED BY THE FACULTY OF POLITICAL SCIENCE OF COLUMBIA UNIVER6ITY Volume XLVIII] [Number 1 Whole Number 120 AN ENCYCLOPEDIST OF THE DARK AGES ISIDORE OF SEVILLE In saeculorum fine doctissimus (Ex concilio Toletano viii, cap- 2) ERNEST BREHAUT, Ph.D. COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY LONGMANS, GREEN & CO., AGENTS London : P. S. King & Son I912 Copyright, 1912 BY ERNEST BREHAUT * * I • a PREFACE The writer of the following pages undertook, at the sug- gestion of Professor James Harvey Robinson, to translate passages from Isidore's Etymologies which should serve to illustrate the intellectual condition of the dark ages. It soon became evident that a brief introduction to the more important subjects treated by Isidore would be necessary, in order to give the reader an idea of the development of these subjects at the time at which he wrote. Finally it seemed worth while to sum up in a general introduction the results of this examination of the Etymologies and of the collateral study of Isidore's other writings which it in- volved. For many reasons the task of translating from the Ety- mologies has been a difficult one. There is no modern criti- cal edition of the work to afford a reasonable certainty as to the text; the Latin, while far superior to the degenerate language of Gregory of Tours, is nevertheless corrupt ; the treatment is often brief to the point of obscurity; the ter- minology of ancient science employed by Isidore is often used without a due appreciation of its meaning. However, the greatest difficulty in translating has arisen from the fact that the work is chiefly a long succession of word deri- vations which usually defy any attempt to render them into English. In spite of these difficulties the study has been one of great interest. Isidore was, as Montalambert calls him, le dernier savant du monde ancien, as well as the first Chris- tian encyclopaedist. His writings, therefore, while of no 7] 7 g/:'-,.' ::..;. preface [8 importance in themselves, become important as a phenome- non in the history of European thought. His resort to ancient science instead of to philosophy or to poetry is ' suggestive, as is also the wide variety of his ' sciences and the attenuated condition in which they appear. Of especial interest is Isidore's state of mind, which in many ways is the reverse of that of the modern thinker. It is perhaps worth while to remark that the writer has had in mind throughout the general aspects of the intel- lectual development of Isidore's time: he has not at- tempted to comment on the technical details—whether ac- ' curately given by Isidore or not—of the many ' sciences that appear in the Etymologies. The student of the history of music, for example, or of medicine as a technical sub- ject, will of course go to the sources. The writer is under the greatest obligation to Professors James Harvey Robinson and James Thomson Shotwell for assistance and advice, as well as for the illuminating inter- pretation of the medieval period given in their lectures. He is also indebted to Mr. Henry O. Taylor and Pro- fessors William A. Dunning and Munroe Smith for read- ing portions of the manuscript. E. B. Columbia University, New York, February, 1912. CONTENTS PART I INTRODUCTION CHAPTER I Isidore's Life and Writings PAGE 1. Importance of Isidore 15 a. Place in history of thought 15 b. Influence 17 2. Historical setting 18 a. The Roman culture in Spain 18 b. Assimilation of the barbarians 18 c. Predominance of the church 19 3- Life 20 a. Family 20 b. Leander 20 c. Early years and education 21 d. Facts of his life 22 4. Impression made by Isidore on his contemporaries 23 Braulio's account 23 5. Works 24 a. Braulio's list 24 b. Works especially important as giving Isidore's intellectual outlook . 25 (i ) Differentiae 26 Stress on words 26 (2) De Natura Rerum 27 View of the physical universe 27 General organization of subject-matter 28 (3) Liber Numerorum 29 Mysticism of number 29 (4) Allei^oriae 29 (5) Sententiae 29 (6) De Ordine Creaturarum 30 9] 9 . lO CONTENTS [lO PAGE c. His main work—the Eiymologies 30 (1) Description 30 (2) Contents 31 (3) Antiquarian character 32 (4) Leading principle of treatment—^word derivation 33 (5) Inconsistency of thought 34 (6) Circumstances of production 34 CHAPTER II Isidore's Relation to Previous Culture 1. Dependance on the past 35 2. Ignorance of Greek 35 3. Relation to Latin writers 37 a. The function of the Christian writers 37 b. The development of the pagan thought 37 (i) The encyclopaedias 38 (a) Characteristics 38 Decay of thought 38 Epitomizing tendency 39 Literary scholarship 39 Scientific scholarship . 40 (b) Method of production 40 (c) Acceptability of encyclopaedias to the church fathers . 41 (d) Debt of Isidore to them 41 (2) The encyclopaedias of education 43 4. The personal element contributed by Isidore 44 5. Sources used by Isidore 45 a. Confusion of the tradition 45 b. Investigations and their results 1 45 CHAPTER III Isidore's General View of the Universe 1. Introductory considerations 48 a. The difficulties in ascertaining the world-view 48 ) Inconsistencies ( 1 48 (2) Unexplained preconceptions 48 b. Conditions favoring the construction of a world-view 49 2. The physical universe 50 a. Form of the universe • 50 Question of the sphericity of the earth . 50 Greek cosmology versus Christian cosmology • • • • 54 b. Size of the universe 54 c. Constitution of matter 55 Il] CONTENTS II PAGE The four elements e c Properties c e Cosmological bearing 57 Bearing on the physical constitution of man 59 Use of the theory in medicine 59 Phenomena of meteorology explained by the theory 60 Seasons 61 d. Parallelism of man and the universe 62 3. The solidarity of the universe 63 a. Strangeness of Isidore's thinking 63 b. The conception of solidarity 64 c. Number 64 d. Allegory 65 4. The supernatural world 67 a. Contrast between mediaeval and modern views 68 b. Method of apprehending the supernatural world 68 c. Relative importance of natural and supernatural 68 (i) In nature 68 (2) In man 69 (3) Asceticism 70 d. Inhabitants of supernatural world 70 ( 1 ) Theology 70 (2) Angelology 70 (3) Demonology 72 5. View of secular learning 73 a. Philosophy 73 (i) Conception of philosophy 73 (2) Attitude toward pagan philosophy 74 b. Poetry 74 c. Science 75 ) Attitude ( 1 toward pagan science 75 (2) Condition of pagan science 76 (3) Low place accorded to science 76 (4) Science harmonized with religious ideas 77 (5) Perversity of pagan scientists 78 6. View of the past 79 a. Pagan past as a whole dropped 79 b. Idea of the past dominated by Biblical tradition 79 c. Importance of Hebrew history 80 12 CONTENTS [l2 PACK CHAPTER IV Isidore's Relation to Education 1. Problem of Christian education 8i 2. Cassiodorus' solution 82 a. Theology 83 b. The seven liberal arts 83 3. The educational situation in Spain 84^ 4. Isidore's solution 85 a. Attitude toward the secular subject-matter 85 b. Comprehensive educational scheme 86 ( i) First eight books of the Etymologies 86 (2) The higher and the lower education 87 5. Bearing of Isidore's educational scheme on the development of the uni- versities 88 PART II THE ETYMOLOGIES Book I On Grammar Introduction 89 Analysis 92 Extracts 95 Book II 1, On Rhetoric (chs. 1-21) Introduction 105 Analysis 107 Extracts iii 2. On Logic (chs. 22-30) Introduction 113 Analysis 115 Extracts 115 Book III 1. On Arithmetic (chs. 1-9) Introduction 1 23 Extracts (chs. 1-9) 125 2. On Geometry (chs. 10-14) Introduction •• 131 Translation (chs. 10-14) 132 13] CONTENTS 13 PAGE 3. On Music (chs. 15-23) Introduction 134 Extracts (chs. 15-23) 136 4. On Astronomy (chs. 24-71) Introduction 140 Extracts (chs. 24-71 ) 142 Book IV On Medicine Introduction 155 Extracts 158 Book V 1. On Laws (chs. 1-25) Introduction 164 Extracts (chs. 1-25) 166 2. On Times (chs. 28-39) Introduction ... 173 Extracts ( chs. 28 39) 1 75 Books VI-VIII [Theology] Introduction 183 Analysis 184 Extracts—Book VI. On the Books and Services of the Church ... 185 Extracts—Book VII. On God, the Angels and the faithful 192 Extracts—Book VIII. On the Church and the different sects 196 Book IX On Languages, Races, Empires, Warfares, Citizens, Relationships Introduction 207 Analysis '. 208 Extracts 208 BookX Alphabetical List of Words Extracts 214 Book XI On Man and Monsters Analysis 215 Extracts 215 14 CONTENTS [14 PAGE Book XII On Animals Introduction 222 Analysis . 223 Extracts 223 Books XIII and XIV Introduction 233 Analysis 233 Extracts—Book XIII. On the Universe and its parts 234 Extracts—-Book XIV. On the Earth and its parts 243 Book XV On Buildings and Fields Analysis 248 Extracts 249 Book XVII On Stones and Metals Analysis 252 Extracts 253 Book XVII On Agriculture Analysis 258 Book XVIII On War and Amusements Analysis 258 Extracts 259 Book XIX On Ships, Buildings and Garments Analysis 261 Book XX- On Provisions and Utensils Used in the House and in the Fields Analysis 263 Appendix I Isidore's Use of the Word Ygrra 264 Appendix II Subdivisions of Philosophy 267 Bibliography 270 PART I INTRODUCTION CHAPTER I Isidore's Life and Writings The development of European thought as we know it from the dawn of history down to the Dark Ages is marked by the successive secularization and de-secularization of knowledge.^ From the beginning Greek secular science can be seen painfully disengaging itself from superstition.
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