This book investigates the use and function of Latin as a medium of oral communication in the Middle Ages - the occasions for Latin conversational interaction, the content of learned oral communication, and the way that spoken Latin was taught and learned. Alongside a reconstruction of the standard communicative situations in which Latin was spoken, the book also deals with the norms of oral communication. Historical case studies are presented to show in which contexts and by what speakers Latin was used for oral communication, and what level of Latin competence the speakers commanded.

This book investigates the use and function of Latin as a medium of oral communication in the Middle Ages - the occasions for Latin conversational interaction, the content of learned oral communication, and the way that spoken Latin was taught and learned. Alongside a reconstruction of the standard communicative situations in which Latin was spoken, the book also deals with the norms of oral communication. Historical case studies are presented to show in which contexts and by what speakers Latin was used for oral communication, and what level of Latin competence the speakers commanded.