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Medieval Latin Language and Cultures: Lower Intermediate - LFA00234L

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  • Department: Language and Linguistic Science
  • Credit value: 20 credits
  • Credit level: F
  • Academic year of delivery: 2023-24
    • See module specification for other years: 2024-25

Module summary

This module continues building on the basic principles of Latin grammar, so that they are able to translate some primary source material by the end of the course (e.g. bestiaries, saints’ lives and chronicles). Students will also be introduced to elements of the lives of saints in the north of England in order to develop an understanding of the culture in which Medieval Latin hagiography was produced.

Related modules

Medieval Latin Language and Cultures: Elementary or equivalent

Module will run

Occurrence Teaching period
A Semester 1 2023-24
B Semester 2 2023-24

Module aims

This module will steadily build the knowledge, skills, and strategies necessary to examine and interpret a range of Medieval Latin documents over the course of a semester, and develop a comprehensive knowledge of Latin translation skills at lower intermediate level.

Students will engage, individually and in groups, in comprehension activities and tasks emphasising three core research skills:

  1. reception activities (reading comprehension);

  2. production activities (prose composition);

  3. analytical activities (cultural context & literary style).

The mediums of instruction are English and Latin.

Module learning outcomes

  • The ability to recognise and employ a wide range of Latin vocabulary, as well as a developed appreciation of Latin morphology and the historical relationship between the Latin and English languages.

  • The ability to understand and deploy both the basic principles of Latin grammar and syntax, as well as a wide range of complex sentence constructions in order to engage with and interpret a range of Latin source material in both prose and poetic form.

  • The ability to compose sentences from English into Latin that incorporate a wide range of complex syntactical constructions, in order to support and develop grammatical learning.

  • A developed understanding of Medieval England and its literature, which enables the student to critically evaluate a range of source material in relation to the politics and culture of the society in which it was created.

Module content

Translation Passages

For the first few weeks of the module, translation passages will comprise some short, basic sentences (many of which will be taken from Classical authors). Students will then progress onto short paragraphs of Latin, which will include:

  • Chronicles
  • Letters
  • Bestiaries
  • Sermon exempla
  • Medical tracts
  • Saints’ Lives

Grammar topics at Lower Intermediate Level:

  • A brief review of the grammar topics covered at Beginners and Elementary level
  • Direct commands (revision of the imperative / use of noli & nolite / present subjunctive commands)
  • Purpose clauses
  • Indirect commands
  • Result clauses
  • Conditional sentences

Seminars will include a range of different exercises including both translation (Latin to English) and prose composition (English to Latin) to help explain and build grammatical knowledge, with plenty of opportunities for revision as the semester progresses.

Medieval Latin Culture: Saints of the North

This course will provide students with an interdisciplinary introduction to Medieval Latin hagiography. It will explore different aspects of the lives of saints venerated in the north of England during the Middle Ages. Through integrating archaeological, historical, artistic and literary evidence, this module will explore not only the lives and deeds of northern saints, such as Aidan and Cuthbert of Lindisfarne, but also the establishment of shrines and the logistics of pilgrimage in medieval England. The module will also shed light on the lives and deeds of John of Beverley and of Willibrord, ‘the apostle to the Frisians’.

Indicative assessment

Task % of module mark
Closed/in-person Exam (Centrally scheduled) 60
Essay/coursework 40

Special assessment rules

None

Indicative reassessment

Task % of module mark
Closed/in-person Exam (Centrally scheduled) 60
Essay/coursework 40

Module feedback

Weekly feedback on translations. Feedback on exams and essays as per University regulations.

Indicative reading

There is no text book for this module. All materials will be provided during the course.

You will need to have access to a Latin dictionary. Should you wish to purchase a paper dictionary, the following works are recommended for this course:

Collins Latin Dictionary and Grammar 2nd ed. (Glasgow: Collins, 2016)

C.T. Lewis, An Elementary Latin Dictionary (Oxford: OUP, 1963)

D.P. Simpson, Cassell’s Standard Latin Dictionary: Latin/English, English/Latin (London: John Wiley & Sons, 1959; rev. ed. 1977)

Please note that there is no need to buy a dictionary, as you can access a number of academic Latin dictionaries online for free. One particularly useful volume is:

  • Lewis and Short, A Latin Dictionary (Oxford: OUP, 1879; reissued 1963)

This work is now available via: http://logeion.uchicago.edu


The information on this page is indicative of the module that is currently on offer. The University constantly explores ways to enhance and improve its degree programmes and therefore reserves the right to make variations to the content and method of delivery of modules, and to discontinue modules, if such action is reasonably considered to be necessary. In some instances it may be appropriate for the University to notify and consult with affected students about module changes in accordance with the University's policy on the Approval of Modifications to Existing Taught Programmes of Study.