Radulphus Brito

Radulphus Brito (Radulphus Reginaldi Britonis, Raoul de Hotot, Raoul le Briton, b. c. 1270, d. c 1320), was probably born in Brittany. He was Master of arts in the university of Paris in 1296, and joined masters in theology faculty in 1311. Very few of his works are edited, although he was a prolific and apparently influential writer. He was one of a group of grammarians called the modistae or modists who flourished around Paris from about 1260 to 1310, so-called because they wrote on the mode of signifying. Their aim was to make grammar a science in Aristotle's sense, i.e. to explain it, not just to describe it. The group also included Martin of Dacia, Boethius of Dacia, Siger de Courtrai, and Thomas of Erfurt.

Primary sources

manuscripts

Philosophical works still unedited include questions on the Categories, the Perihermeneias, Sex principiorum, De divisione of Boethius, Prior Analytics, Posterior Analytics, Topics, Sophistical Refutations, Physics, Meteorologica and Parva mathematicalia, and Questions on the Metaphysics.

editions

The only works that have been edited are

• (1974), Quaestiones in Aristotelis librum tertium De anima, ed. W. Fauser, in "Der Kommentar der Radulphus Brito zu Buch 111 De anima", Beiträge zur Geschichte der Philosophie und Theologie des Mittelalters NF 12, Münster: Aschendorff.
• (1975), Sophisma 'Aliquis homo est species', ed. J. Pinborg, in 'Radulphus Brito's sophism on second intentions', Vivarium, pp. 119-52.
• (1978), Sophisma 'Rationale est animal', ed. S. Ebbesen, in 'The Sophism Rationale est animal by Radulphus Brito', Cahiers de l'Institut du Moyen-age Grec et Latin 24, pp. 85-120.
• (1978), Quaestiones super libros Topicorum Boethii, ed. N.J. Green-Pedersen and J. Pinborg, in 'Radulphus Brito: Commentary on Boethius' De differentiis topicis and the sophism Omnis homo est omnis homo', Cahiers de l'Institut du Moyen-age Grec et Latin 26, pp. 1-92.
• (1978), Sophisma 'Omnis homo est omnis homo', ed. N.J. Green-Pedersen and J. Pinborg, in 'Radulphus Brito: Commentary on Boethius' De differentiis topicis and the sophism Omnis homo est omnis homo', Cahiers de l'Institut du Moyen-age Grec et Latin 26, pp. 93-114.
• (1980), Quaestiones super librum Porphyrii, ed. J. Pinborg, Cahiers de l'Institut du Moyen-age Grec et Latin 35, pp. 56-142.
• (1980), Quaestiones super Priscianum minorem, ed. H.W. Enders and J. Pinborg, in Grammatica speculativa 3/1-2, Stuttgart and Bad Constatt: Fromann-Holzboog.
• (1981-2), Quaestiones super Artem veterem and Quaestiones super librum Elenchorum, ed. S. Ebbesen and J. Pinborg, in 'Gennadios and western scholasticism: Radulphus Brito's Ars Vetus in Greek translation', Classica et Mediaevalia 33, pp. 263-319.
• Quaestiones super Artem Veterem ed. Johannes Rubeus Vercellensis and Albertinus Vercellensis, Venice, published about 1499. Title page reads 'Magistri Rodulphus Britonis super arte veteri’. Digital version here.

Secondary sources

• Covington, Michael A. 1984. Syntactic theory in the High Middle Ages. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Marenbon, J., Later Medieval Philosophy (1150-1350), Routledge 1991, c. 8.
• Pinborg, J., Die Entwicklung de Sprachtheorie im Mittelalter, Beiträge zur Geschichte der Philosophie und Theologie des Mittelalters, Texte und Untersuchungen 42/2 Münster: Aschendorff; Copenhagen: Frost-Hansen (1967).
• Rosier, Irène. 1983. La grammaire spéculative des modistes. Lille: Presses Universitaires.

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