macaronic
Posted: Sat May 07, 2011 6:52 pm
Macaronic (adjective, noun)
(Of a poem, song, text etc) Consisting of a jumbled mixture of two or more languages, often one vernacular and the other Latin.
[From old or dialect Italian, maccherone or maccarone (related to macaroni), a dumpling-type food eaten by peasants - implying a lack of sophistication.]
These days it is usually a humorous device, but in the late Middle Ages it was often a consequence of the gradual switch from Latin to vernacular languages by the literate classes. A well-known example is the Christmas carol In dulci jubilo, which was originally in a mixture of Latin and German, but was subsequently translated into Latin/English:
In dulci jubilo
Let us our homage show.
Our heart's joy reclineth
In praesepio,
And like a bright star shineth
Matris in gremio.
Alpha es et O!
(Of a poem, song, text etc) Consisting of a jumbled mixture of two or more languages, often one vernacular and the other Latin.
[From old or dialect Italian, maccherone or maccarone (related to macaroni), a dumpling-type food eaten by peasants - implying a lack of sophistication.]
These days it is usually a humorous device, but in the late Middle Ages it was often a consequence of the gradual switch from Latin to vernacular languages by the literate classes. A well-known example is the Christmas carol In dulci jubilo, which was originally in a mixture of Latin and German, but was subsequently translated into Latin/English:
In dulci jubilo
Let us our homage show.
Our heart's joy reclineth
In praesepio,
And like a bright star shineth
Matris in gremio.
Alpha es et O!