Grammatik als Gabe – Aldhelm, Bonifatius, Expossitio latinitatis (Anonymus ad Cuimnanum)

This paper discusses the dedications of three early medieval grammatical treatises: Aldhelm’s Epistola ad Acircium, Boniface’s Ars grammatica, and the Expossitio latinitatis (Anonymus ad Cuimnanum), which was probably written by an Irish author working in Bobbio. Grammatical texts are treated very freely in the textual transmission, as they are frequently excerpted, expanded or combined. This applies also to their paratextual elements such as letters, prefaces, and addresses, which might explain the reason why dedications of early medieval grammatical works are rarely found and why all three authors try to connect their dedications to the text on various levels. Although they employ traditional topoi such as praise of the dedicatees, apology of one’s own work, and defence from critics, they show a self-awareness of their role as grammarians and authors. In talking to their dedicatees, for example, they stylise themselves as teachers addressing their pupils. The defence of grammar as an indispensable tool for buttressing religious life plays an important role in all three works. The incorporation of prayers, which are put in relation to the dedications, enhances this religious role, which is pushed by the Anonymus and Aldhelm so far as to ask for divine grace and inspiration for their works