The History of English Podcast Episode 27: Broken Empire and Fractured Languages
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Jun 24, 2013 Papyrus scrolls are replaced by parchment books as the Roman Empire declines. New Germanic Kingdoms emerge, but Latin remains dominant. Latin fractures without Roman education system. Transition from scrolls to books, shift from papyrus to parchment. Evolution of books from scrolls to codices. Origins of 'bak'. Impact of Huns on Roman Empire collapse. Visigoth invasion and fall of Rome. Influence of Germanic Kingdoms on Latin and emergence of Romance languages.
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Parchment and the Codex
- Parchment replaced papyrus scrolls as the Western Roman Empire declined.
- Parchment, made from animal skin, was more durable and easier to bind, leading to the codex, an early book form.
Scrolls to Books
- The shift from scrolls to books (codices) happened because books were easier to read and manage.
- Christian monks preferred books for scriptures, accelerating the shift, with the oldest surviving complete book in Greek being a 4th-century Bible.
Huns Before Paper
- While paper technology existed in China, it hadn't reached Europe yet.
- The Huns' arrival, skilled horsemen, predated paper's arrival by centuries.
