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The Origins of the Classical Languages

Code: 104220 ECTS Credits: 6
2025/2026
Degree Type Year
Ancient Studies OT 4
English and Classics Studies OT 3
English and Classics Studies OT 4

Contact

Name:
Agustin Alemany Vilamajo
Email:
agusti.alemany@uab.cat

Teaching groups languages

You can view this information at the end of this document.


Prerequisites

This subject is complementary to 104216 Indo-European Languages and Peoples (mandatory for the Degree in Sciences of Antiquity), although it is not essential to have taken it previously.

It is advisable, but not essential, that students have a certain level of English and French, which allows them to access the bibliography in these languages.

Objectives and Contextualisation

This subject is a continuation of the compulsory second year subject 104216 Indo-European Languages and Peoples, devoted basically to comparative phonology and a historical-cultural introduction to the Indo-European linguistic family.

Its contents aim to provide students with fundamental knowledge about the historical origins of the classical languages, combining the reading of some archaic monuments of Greek and Latin with a comparative approach to the nominal and verbal morphology of both languages from a diachronic point of view, taking also into account other languages of the Indo-European family, especially Sanskrit and Gothic/English.


Competences

    Ancient Studies
  • Be able to express oneself orally and in writing in the specific language of history, archaeology and philology, both in one's own languages and a third language.
  • Interrelate linguistic, historical and archaeological knowledge of the ancient world with knowledge of other areas of the humanities, mainly ancient literature, philosophy and art.
  • Students must develop the necessary learning skills to undertake further training with a high degree of autonomy.
    English and Classics Studies
  • Describe and analyse synchronically and comparatively the main phonetic, phonological, morphological, syntactic, semantic and pragmatic properties of English, Greek and Latin, as well as their historical evolution.
  • Identify the foundations of human language, the principles, methods and results of the structural analysis of languages.
  • Interrelate linguistic and historical knowledge of the ancient world with knowledge of other fields of the humanities, mainly literature and archaeology.
  • Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
  • Students must develop the necessary learning skills in order to undertake further training with a high degree of autonomy.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Analysing various types of linguistic data.
  2. Apply language reconstruction to the resolution of exercises on the phonetics and morphology of Indo-European languages.
  3. Compare Greek, Latin, and English with other Indo-European languages, especially Germanic languages.
  4. Compare linguistic features of Greek and Latin to draw conclusions about their common origins.
  5. Identify the main phonetic and morphological roots shared by Greek and Latin with the oldest form of English (Anglo-Saxon).
  6. Preparing an oral and written discourse in the corresponding language in a proper and organized way.
  7. Solving complex problems of linguistic analysis in any level with the appropriate tools.
  8. Submitting works in accordance with both individual and small group demands and personal styles.

Content

I. Theoretical part

♦ Unit 1. Diachronic approach to Greek and Latin: from the historical languages to Proto-Greek and Italic.

♦ Unit 2. Notions of apophony and prehistory of the Indo-European phonological system.

♦ Unit 3. Comparative morphology of Greek and Latin (I): nouns and adjectives

♦ Unit 4. Comparative morphology of Greek and Latin (II): pronouns and numerals

♦ Unit 5. Comparative morphology of Greek and Latin (III): verbal system

II. Practical part

♦ Unit 1. Reading and analysis of archaic and dialectal monuments of the Greek language.

♦ Unit 2. Reading and analysis of archaic monuments of the Latin language and other Italic languages (esp. Oscan and Umbrian).


Activities and Methodology

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Development of subject contents 37.5 1.5 4, 6
Oral and written exercises 15 0.6
Type: Supervised      
Tutoring in small groups 4.5 0.18 4, 6
Type: Autonomous      
Performing exercices 35 1.4
Reading of bibliography 35 1.4 4, 6

The teaching methodology of this subject will consist in alternating the theoretical exposition of each of the aforementioned units with the readings of Archaic Greek and Italic monuments.

At the beginning of the course a dossier will be delivered with the theoretical and practical contents of the subject.

Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.


Assessment

Continous Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Class attendance and participation 20% 0 0 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 5, 7
Work 30% 20 0.8 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 5, 8, 7
1st partial exam 20% 1.5 0.06 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7
2nd partial exam 30% 1.5 0.06 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 5, 7 

It is very important for the student to keep in mind that the assessment also includes regular class attendance and the completion and presentation of the exercises and the various activities proposed.

A student who has submitted an activity that can be evaluated will not be able to give up being evaluated or choose to obtain a final grade of "Not Presented". In the final Reassessment, the student will be able to recover the mark corresponding to the exam.

The delivery of the works, as well as the performance of the exams, are two essential requirements in order to be able to opt for the re-evaluation.
The re-evaluation will consist of performing a test equivalent to the one performed and not passed. Students who take the resit exam will not be eligible for the Honorable Mention.
On carrying out each evaluation activity, lecturers will inform students (on Moodle) of the procedures to be followed for reviewing all grades awarded, and the date on which such a review will take place. 
Erasmus students who request to advance an exam must submit to the teacher a written document from their home university that justifies their application.
This subject/module does not incorporate unique assessment
In the event of a student committing any irregularity that may lead to a significant variation in the grade awarded to an assessment activity, the student will be given a zero for this activity, regardless of any disciplinary process that may take place. In the event of several irregularities in assessment activities of the same subject, the student will be given a zero as the final grade for this subject.
NOT ASSESSED
Students will obtain a Not assessed/Not submitted course grade unless they have submitted more than 30% of the assessment items.
AI
This subject allows the use of AI technologies exclusively for support tasks such as explicitly required exercises by the teachers.
The student must clearly (i) identify which parts have been generated using AI technology; (ii) specify the tools used; and (iii) include a critical reflection on how these have influenced the process and final outcome of the activity.
Lack of transparency regarding the use of AI in the assessed activity will be considered academic dishonesty; the corresponding grade may be lowered, or the work may even be awarded a zero. In cases of greater infringement, more serious action may be taken.
 

Bibliography

Beekes, Robert Stephen Paul [1995] Comparative Indo-European Linguistics. An Introduction. Amsterdam–Filadelfia: John Benjamins Publ. Co.

Brugmann, Karl–Delbrück, Berthold [1886-1916] Grundriß der vergleichenden Grammatik der indogermanischen Sprachen i-v. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter (reimp. 1967).

Buck, Carl Darling [1904] A Grammar of Oscan and Umbrian, with a Collection of Inscriptions and a Glossary. Boston-New York-Chicago: Ginn and Company.

Buck, Carl Darling [19552] The Greek Dialects. Grammar. Selected Inscriptions. Glossary. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.

Humbert, Jean [1972] Histoire de la langue grecque (Que sais-je? 1483). Paris: PUF.

Mallory, James Patrick–Adams, Douglas Q. (eds.) [2006] The Oxford Introduction to Proto-Indo-European and the Proto-Indo-European World. Oxford–New York: Oxford University Press.

Meier-Brügger, Michael [20028] Indogermanische Sprachwissenschaft. Berlin-New York: Walter de Gruyter (trad. inglesa [2003] Indo-European Linguistics. Berlin-New York: Walter de Gruyter).

Meillet, Antoine [19303] Aperçu d’une histoire de la langue grecque. Paris: Hachette.

Meillet, Antoine [19333] Esquisse d’une histoire de la langue latine. Paris: Hachette (trad. cast. [1973] Historia de la lengua latina. Reus: Avesta).

Meillet, Antoine [19378] Introduction à l’étude comparative des langues indo-européennes. París: Hachette (reimp. Alabama: University Press 1964).

Meillet, Antoine–Vendryes, Joseph [19684] Traité de grammaire comparée des langues classiques. Paris: Honoré Champion.

Pisani, Vittore [19744] Grammatica latina storica e comparativa. Torino: Rosenberg & Seller.

Ramat, Anna Giacalone.–Ramat, Paolo (eds.) [1998] The Indo-European Languages. London-NY: Routledge (versión italiana original [1993] Le lingue indoeuropee. Bologna: Società Editrice Il Mulino; trad. cast. [1995] Las lenguas indoeuropeas. Madrid: Cátedra).

Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco [2005]. A History of the Greek Language. From its Origins to the Present. Leiden-Boston: Brill (original Spanish version [1999] Historia de la lengua griega. Madrid: Gredos).

Sihler, Andrew L. [1995] New Comparative Grammar of Greek and Latin. New York-Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Szemerényi, Oswald [19904] Einführung in die Vergleichende Sprachwissenschaft. Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft (trad. ingl. [1996] Introduction to Indo-European Linguistics. Oxford: Clarendon Press; trad. castellana de 19701 [1978] Introducción a la lingüística comparativa. Madrid: Gredos).


Software

PDF, Power Point


Groups and Languages

Please note that this information is provisional until 30 November 2025. You can check it through this link. To consult the language you will need to enter the CODE of the subject.

Name Group Language Semester Turn
(PAUL) Classroom practices 1 Catalan second semester morning-mixed
(TE) Theory 1 Catalan second semester morning-mixed