Classical and Romance Usages of Ipse in the Vulgate

Abstract

In Classical Latin ipse was an intensive pronoun used to add emphasis to a noun or pronoun. In many cases it may be translated into English by ‘self’. In the modern Romance languages, on the other hand, reflexes of ipse do not have this function. Rather, ipse has developed into a demonstrative pronoun/adjective, a definite article and a third person personal pronoun. Jerome’s Vulgate translation of the New Testament represents an intermediate stage between Classical Latin and modern Romance as far as ipse is concerned. Here, Classical Latin usages of ipse appear alongside new, Romance usages. The present paper is an investigation of how ipse is used in the Vulgate.