Linguistic theory in late Byzantium: Ioannes Glykys’ On Correct Syntax

Abstract

This article examines On Correct Syntax , a grammatical treatise composed by Ioannes Glykys in the early fourteenth century. Although often regarded as a conventional grammatical handbook, the treatise places syntax at the centre of its linguistic theory. It argues that syntax provides the framework through which grammatical forms, case relations, and linguistic correctness are understood. By situating Glykys within the intellectual culture of the Palaiologan period and examining his engagement with Plato’s Cratylus , the article shows that his discussion of language in general and the cases in particular is organized around underlying social relations. On Correct Syntax thus emerges as an original contribution to Byzantine linguistic thought.