Antonio de Nebrija

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Antonio de Nebrija (Statue in Madrid , Anselmo Nogués )

Elio Antonio de Nebrija , (* 1441 or 1444 as Antonio Martínez de Cala in Lebrija , Province of Seville , † July 5, 1522 in Alcalá de Henares ; lat. [Aelius] Antonius Nebrissensis) was a Spanish humanist and philologist .

Antonio de Nebrija was born Antonio Martínez de Cala, but changed his name to Elio Antonio de Nebrija in honor of his hometown Lebrija (Latin: Nebrissa Veneria ) and the Roman general Elio, who conquered the province of Baetica .

life and work

Reglas de orthographia en la lengua castellana (1517).

1459–1463 he studied philosophy and mathematics at the University of Salamanca . After graduation, he went to Italy to study at the University of Bologna for several years, deepening and expanding his knowledge in the humanistic environment of the more advanced Italian culture . In 1470 he returned to Spain and worked for the Bishop Fonseca of Seville for a few years .

In 1476 he was appointed professor of grammar at his former University of Salamanca, where he renewed Latin lessons in Spain. In 1481 he published the Introductiones latinae , a Latin textbook that was used until the 19th century. His 'popular' way of treating the venerable Latin led to an argument with his colleagues, so that in 1490 he moved to Alcalá de Henares . There he worked on the Complutensische Polyglotte , a multilingual edition of the Bible , and as a royal poet and chronicler.

In 1492 his Gramática de la lengua castellana - grammar of the Castilian language (which outside of Spain is now considered " Spanish language ") was published. Nebrija's Castilian grammar was the first printed grammar of a Romance and non-classical language . However, their importance was not recognized until the 18th century. Nebrija dedicated the grammar to the Spanish Queen Isabella I , because he saw the "language as the companion of the empire", comparable to the Latin of the Romans. In the prologue he referred to the historicity of language and the need for linguistic unity. With his demand for a conscious cultivation of the Spanish language, as well as for the spread of Castilian beyond the borders of Spain, he demonstrated prophetic gifts, since in the same year Columbus discovered America , took possession of it for the Castilian crown and - at least in the medium term - helped Spanish to gain international recognition. Nebrija was ahead of its time, so that only one edition of the grammar was published because, despite growing awareness of the vernacular, Latin continued to dominate culture and science . The first two volumes of his grammar are available in a commented German translation.

In 1495 he published the first Spanish-Latin dictionary .

In 1509 he tried to gain a foothold again in Salamanca , but there again came into conflict with less open-minded professors and left Salamanca in 1512 to go to Seville , where he only stayed for a year.

Incipit and preface from the Gramática castellana (Salamanca, August 18, 1492).

From 1513 to 1522 Nebrija held the chair of rhetoric at the University of Alcalá de Henares .

Works

This article or section needs revision: titles need to be checked, they may be incorrect; see. e.g.

Reglas de orthographia en la lengua castellana (1517).
with the "Reglas de ortografía española" previously listed here.
Please help to improve it and then remove this marking.

  • Introductiones latinae, 1481 ( bdh.bne.es )
  • Gramatica de la lengua castellana , 1492 ( bdh.bne.es )
    • Axel Schönberger (ed.): The Gramática de la lengua castellana of Antonio de Nebrija. Castilian text and commented German translation of the first Spanish grammar from 1492. Part 1: 1st book: phonology and orthography; Book 2: Prosody and Metrics. Valentia, Frankfurt am Main 2016.
  • Lexicon hoc est dictionarium ex sermone latino in hispaniensẽ interprete aelio Antonio nebrissẽsi ( 1492 ) ( bdh.bne.es )
  • Vocabulario español-latino (1494).
  • Reglas de orthographia en la lengua castellana cõpuestas por el Maestro Antonio de lebrixa. ( 1517 ) ( bdh.bne.es )
  • Reglas de ortografía en la lengua castellana ( 1523 ) was published posthumously .

Web links

Commons : Antonio de Nebrija  - Collection of images, videos and audio files
personal data
SURNAME Nebrija, Antonio de
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Nebrija, Elio Antonio de (full name); Cala, Antonio Martínez de (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Spanish humanist and philologist
DATE OF BIRTH 1441 or 1444
PLACE OF BIRTH Lebrija , Seville Province
DATE OF DEATH July 5, 1522
Place of death Alcalá de Henares