11-17-2009, 08:59 PM
Quote:diegis:1xuh6b2q Wrote:As well, as Ovidius said, if he wanted to talk and understand with peoples in Schytia Minor, either Getae/Dacians or Sarmatians, he needed to learn getic language, meaning that the lingua franca was the dacian one in a areas where dacians meet other cultures around (except romans). So, is much more likely that a was used more languages in gothic army.Hi R?zvan,
Ovid's exile experience was in Tomis and its hinterland, so whatever interpretation one chooses for his verses, it's no evidence for a lingua franca, Getic or of some other sort. If I'm advocating for a multilingual Gothia, be sure I do the same for pre-Roman Dacia or Scythia Minor 8)
However we shouldn't take his words for granted. He complained his poetry might contain barbarian words, but as far as I know the classicists found none :wink:
Salut Dragos
Well, maybe i didnt express myself very precise (i know, my english isnt very good). I didnt mean that all the peoples on the Black Sea coast of province Schytia Minor (later included in Moesia) speak only dacian, even if they was sarmatians, greeks or romans. Ofcourse they speak their languages as the primary language, but since Ovid learn dacian (even suposedly write some poetry in this language, and i read about at least 3 theories about why "classicists doesnt find those words, but is not the place to discuss them i think), my conclusion is that this was the lingua franca in the area, meaning that when peoples of diferent ethnicity want to understand eachother, used the dacian language, dacians (getians) being the dominant peoples, especialy as number. Ofcourse, this was at few years after romans included the province in the empire, later the latin becomed prevalent, no doubt. But i see this situation to be similar later, in dacian part of Santana/Cherneakhov culture (based too on the fact that material culture was predominantly dacian as well). But since we dont have too many info from that period, is more supossitions, agree.
Razvan A.
