Jan 18, 2016
Timeline of Latin Literature
1.Preliterary Period
• Until 240 BC
• Only some inscriptions
survive
• Oldest inscriptions from 6th
and 7th Century BC
• Corresponds to time until
First Punic War
2. Archaic Period (240-281
BC)
• From Livius Andronicus to
Cicero
• Highly developed language
• Simpler grammar and
structures
• Development of new Latin
works
Roman ComedyPlautus and Terence
81 BC- 14 AD
Cicero to death of Augustus
Stylistic perfection and technicality
Period of development of vocabulary
Archaisms used to evoke earlier times
3. Golden Age
14 AD- 180 AD
death of Augustus to death of Marcus Aurelius
Reaction against rigid precision and
standardization
Flourishing of idioms and colloquial expressions
4. Silver Age
Overlaps with Silver Age
Imitation of Archaic Period
Style adapted by certain authors
5. Archaizing Period
180 AD- 6th Century
Rapid and radical alterations to the language
Introduction of local idioms and peculiarities
New words introduced from local languages as
Latin transforms into Romance languages
6. Declining Period
Colloquial idiom- develops into the
Romance languages
Literary Language- used in courts,
by scholars, and in Catholic Church
7. After the 6th Century