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Document Details : Title: The Letter Z in the Light of Latin Inscriptions (First-Seventh Centuries AD) Author(s): TANTIMONACO, Silvia Journal: Latomus Volume: 84 Issue: 4 Date: 2025 Pages: 837-859 DOI: 10.2143/LAT.84.4.3295513 Abstract : This paper analyses the use of the letter Z in Latin inscriptions from the 1st to the 7th century AD, using data from the LLDB database. Originally present in archaic Latin, Z was later reintroduced to transcribe Greek ΞΆ, although Latin lacked the corresponding phoneme /z/. Epigraphic evidence shows oscillations between S and Z, suggesting that common Latin speakers pronounced Greek /z/ as [s], while Z could also mark the voicing of /s/ or the reinforced sound of gemination. A second major phenomenon is the use of Z to represent palatalization in Vulgar Latin, particularly in the sequences /dj/ and /tj/, producing affricates such as [dz] and [ts]. In North Africa, such spellings may have been favoured by regional linguistic influences. Combined with the testimony of late Latin grammarians, the evidence suggests that Z acquired affricate values in Vulgar Latin, becoming normative between the 5th and 6th centuries AD. |
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