The choice of language for building inscriptions in early Byzantine Syrian towns and villages.

What is it about?

The paper offers a case study of several building inscriptions in Greek and Syriac (Aramaic) from Rasm al-Ḥaǧal, a small town in north Syria (sixth century CE). The author explores the potential of the sociolinguistic concept of code-switching for a study of several texts displayed in the public space next to each other rather than its application to single texts or conversations. The viewer's/reader's perspective is adopted.

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Photo by Levi Meir Clancy on Unsplash

Photo by Levi Meir Clancy on Unsplash

Why is it important?

The paper shows that at least in some circumstances Greek need not be the most important language of public commemoration in provincial communities of the early Byzantine Empire. At Rasm al-Ḥaǧal, when the supervisors of work wanted to convey the majority of historical information (such as the date of the construction of public buildings, the names of people involved), they switched to Syriac. Greek was notably connected with inscriptions referring to opulent and most probably absentee landowners and benefactors of the town. The contents of the inscriptions also suggest that the liturgical language of the town was Greek so the use of Syriac in inscriptions was not encouraged by its religious use. The importance of middlemen, supervisors of work, and their role in shaping the linguistic policy of the town is also well visible. Furthermore, the paper encourages the development and expansion of the understanding of such concepts as code-switching.

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