Virgilius Maro Grammaticus (French:Virgile de Toulouse,fl. c. 625), known inEnglish asVirgil the Grammarian orVirgil of Toulouse, is the author of two early medieval grammatical texts known as theEpitomae and theEpistolae.
It is unknown exactly when or where he was active: in the eleventh and twelfth centuries he was known toAbbo of Fleury and others as Virgil ofToulouse, and subsequent scholars have tried to attribute him to Spain, theBasque Country andGaul. Apparent traces ofHebrew have also prompted suggestions that he may have been Jewish.[1] Supposed knowledge of someOld Irish vocabulary and verse has led to the most recent attribution to Ireland, and there is good evidence that his writings were well known to early medieval Irish scholars.[2] However, the Irish evidence is not watertight, and Virgil's origins remain undetermined.
However, Virgil can be dated with some confidence to the seventh century: he knew some parts of theEtymologiae byIsidore of Seville finished around 636; and was quoted before 709/10 byAldhelm of Malmesbury. Quotations from Virgil in certain Irishcomputistical texts may place him in the first half of the seventh century, specifically before 658.
His writings survive in around twenty manuscripts or fragments, dating from the eighth to the eleventh century. The three principal manuscripts (Paris, Bibliothèque nationale Latinus 13026;Amiens, Bibliothèque municipale, 426; and Naples, Biblioteca Nazionale IV.A.34) on which modern editions have been based were all written in early ninth-century France. In most manuscripts of Virgil also contain other grammatical and schoolroom texts. As a rule, theEpitomae travelled separately from theEpistolae, which are much more poorly represented in the surviving manuscripts: just one manuscript contains the entire text (Naples, Biblioteca Nazionale IV.A.34), and comparison with other fragments suggests its testimony may not always be trustworthy.
Virgil wrote at least two surviving works, theEpitomae andEpistolae. The number of books in both groups – 12 and 8 (though the last surviving Epitoma may have been numbered 15, implying there were once three more books now lost) – compares to the number of books inDonatusArs Maior andArs Minor. He displays knowledge of authors such asIsidore of Seville,Virgil andAelius Donatus, but never quotes them by name. Instead one finds in his works a plethora of obscure and unlikely-sounding authorities mentioned nowhere else and quotations attributed to well-known authors which cannot be identified in their writings. Thus there areVarro, Cato (there are several people and writings calledCato from before Virgil's day, and which source he used is uncertain. The best known in his time may have been theDistichs of Cato, often called simplyCato), three Virgils, three Vulcans,Aeneas andOrigenes, and alsoSufphonias, Galbungus,[3] Sagillus,Blastus,Gurgilius, Balapsidius, Ninus[4] – the list can be expanded. Some of these names are clear fabrications, often displaying considerable knowledge of classical and patristic literature.
Although written in a similar style to late antique grammatical texts and incorporating some genuine grammatical material, there is much baffling and outlandish material contained in Virgil's writings: he discusses twelve kinds of Latin, of which only one is in regular use, and attributes much of his lore to grammarians up to a thousand years old, who debate questions such as the vocative ofego and write texts such asDe laudibus indefunctorum (In praise of the undead). Often these grammatical authorities form the centre of anecdotes: Aeneas is often referred to as Virgil's teacher; an elderly Spanish grammarian visits Virgil in the dead of night; and others wage war with thousands of men over grammatical definitions. The oddity of Virgil's texts extends beyond ignorance or even parody, and it has been argued that his peculiar fabrications are a veiled plea for diversity and variety. However, a great deal remains uncertain about Virgil, his origins and his real purpose in writing.
