Martianus Hiberniensis
Encyclopedia
Martin Hiberniensis teacher
, scribe
, and master of the cathedral school
at Laon
, 819-875
teacher
all his adult life - there is no indication he was a monk
- apparently settling at Laon in the late 840's, during the term of bishop Pardule. By the early 850's he was master of the cathedral school, which he remained till the end of his life. His students included Dido
, Manno
, Bernard
and Hincmar. In this way he was responsible for the education of generations of pupils.
His intellectual interests were very broad, including computus
, exegesis
, medicine
, history
, grammar
, Greek
. He annotated the Annals of Laon, the compustical works of Bede
, wrote a commentary on Martianus Capella
's 'De nuptiis Philllogiae et Mercurii, and preserved fragments of a lost commentary on Virgil
by Aelius Donatus
.
Following the deposition of Hincmar, Martianus actively helped restore order in the cathedral chapter.
A copy of a letter from Martianus to Servatus Lupus of Ferrières
has survived. The latter was a fellow humanist. Martianus is thought to have corresponded with Irish and continental scholars at the court of Charles the Bald
, though no letters are extant.
then in existence in western Europe (Laon MS 444), which he may possibly have copied from an Irish exemplar. He has also been credited with a work known as 'Scholica graecarum glossarum', a series of notes on Greek words, and he copied some Greek verse by John Scottus Eriugena, with whom he appears to have been acquainted." (Breen, 2009, p. 405)
, "in his role as teacher and supervisor of a school of scribes he cultivated the use of Carolingian minuscule
of a very neat and legible type." (Breen, 2009, p. 405)
At least twenty-one manuscripts survive containing specimens of his autograph
, now housed in Laon, Paris and Berlin.
culture (unlike that of his fellow countryman John) was not as an original thinker and translator of works in Greek, but as a humanist
and educator of great distinction."
Teacher
A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...
, scribe
Scribe
A scribe is a person who writes books or documents by hand as a profession and helps the city keep track of its records. The profession, previously found in all literate cultures in some form, lost most of its importance and status with the advent of printing...
, and master of the cathedral school
Cathedral school
Cathedral schools began in the Early Middle Ages as centers of advanced education, some of them ultimately evolving into medieval universities. Throughout the Middle Ages and beyond, they were complemented by the monastic schools...
at Laon
Laon
Laon is the capital city of the Aisne department in Picardy in northern France.-History:The hilly district of Laon, which rises a hundred metres above the otherwise flat Picardy plain, has always held strategic importance...
, 819-875
Background
Martin has been called "one of the greatest of Irish Carolingian scholars." (Breen, p. 404). Annotations he wrote in a manuscript of the Annals of Laon (Annales Laudunenses) gives personal details, such as his date of birth and that he was an Irish exile. Nothing substantive seems to be known of his origins in Ireland.Career
Martianus appears to have been a layLaity
In religious organizations, the laity comprises all people who are not in the clergy. A person who is a member of a religious order who is not ordained legitimate clergy is considered as a member of the laity, even though they are members of a religious order .In the past in Christian cultures, the...
teacher
Teacher
A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...
all his adult life - there is no indication he was a monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
- apparently settling at Laon in the late 840's, during the term of bishop Pardule. By the early 850's he was master of the cathedral school, which he remained till the end of his life. His students included Dido
Dido
Dido was, according to ancient Greek and Roman sources, the founder and first Queen of Carthage . She is best known from the account given by the Roman poet Virgil in his Aeneid...
, Manno
Manno
Manno is a municipality in the district of Lugano in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland.-History:Manno is first mentioned in 1184.In 1298, the Bishop of Como owned estates in the village. In 1335, the village divided into two sections, Manno superiore and Manno inferiore, both of which belonged...
, Bernard
Bernard
The masculine given name Bernard is of Germanic origin.The meaning of the name is from a Germanic compound Bern-hard meaning "bear-hardy", or "brave as a bear". Bern- is the old form of bear from West Germanic *beran-....
and Hincmar. In this way he was responsible for the education of generations of pupils.
His intellectual interests were very broad, including computus
Computus
Computus is the calculation of the date of Easter in the Christian calendar. The name has been used for this procedure since the early Middle Ages, as it was one of the most important computations of the age....
, exegesis
Exegesis
Exegesis is a critical explanation or interpretation of a text, especially a religious text. Traditionally the term was used primarily for exegesis of the Bible; however, in contemporary usage it has broadened to mean a critical explanation of any text, and the term "Biblical exegesis" is used...
, medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
, history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
, grammar
Grammar
In linguistics, grammar is the set of structural rules that govern the composition of clauses, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by phonetics, semantics,...
, Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
. He annotated the Annals of Laon, the compustical works of Bede
Bede
Bede , also referred to as Saint Bede or the Venerable Bede , was a monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter at Monkwearmouth, today part of Sunderland, England, and of its companion monastery, Saint Paul's, in modern Jarrow , both in the Kingdom of Northumbria...
, wrote a commentary on Martianus Capella
Martianus Capella
Martianus Minneus Felix Capella was a pagan writer of Late Antiquity, one of the earliest developers of the system of the seven liberal arts that structured early medieval education...
's 'De nuptiis Philllogiae et Mercurii, and preserved fragments of a lost commentary on Virgil
Virgil
Publius Vergilius Maro, usually called Virgil or Vergil in English , was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He is known for three major works of Latin literature, the Eclogues , the Georgics, and the epic Aeneid...
by Aelius Donatus
Aelius Donatus
Aelius Donatus was a Roman grammarian and teacher of rhetoric. The only fact known regarding his life is that he was the tutor of St...
.
Following the deposition of Hincmar, Martianus actively helped restore order in the cathedral chapter.
A copy of a letter from Martianus to Servatus Lupus of Ferrières
Ferrières Abbey
Ferrières Abbey was a Benedictine monastery situated at Ferrières-en-Gâtinais in the arrondissement of Montargis, in the département of Loiret, France.-History:...
has survived. The latter was a fellow humanist. Martianus is thought to have corresponded with Irish and continental scholars at the court of Charles the Bald
Charles the Bald
Charles the Bald , Holy Roman Emperor and King of West Francia , was the youngest son of the Emperor Louis the Pious by his second wife Judith.-Struggle against his brothers:He was born on 13 June 823 in Frankfurt, when his elder...
, though no letters are extant.
Greek literature
"Martin is especially remarkable for his considerable knowledge of Greek, being particularly noted as the scribe of the most extensive Greek-Latin thesaurusThesaurus
A thesaurus is a reference work that lists words grouped together according to similarity of meaning , in contrast to a dictionary, which contains definitions and pronunciations...
then in existence in western Europe (Laon MS 444), which he may possibly have copied from an Irish exemplar. He has also been credited with a work known as 'Scholica graecarum glossarum', a series of notes on Greek words, and he copied some Greek verse by John Scottus Eriugena, with whom he appears to have been acquainted." (Breen, 2009, p. 405)
Scribal innovations
Martianus was an innovative calligrapher, contributing greatly to what is called the 'grammar of legibility' by use of word separation and punctuation, almost unheard of in his lifetime. In place of his native insular scriptInsular script
Insular script was a medieval script system originally used in Ireland, then Great Britain, that spread to continental Europe under the influence of Celtic Christianity. Irish missionaries also took the script to continental Europe, where they founded monasteries such as Bobbio. The scripts were...
, "in his role as teacher and supervisor of a school of scribes he cultivated the use of Carolingian minuscule
Carolingian minuscule
Carolingian or Caroline minuscule is a script developed as a writing standard in Europe so that the Roman alphabet could be easily recognized by the literate class from one region to another. It was used in Charlemagne's empire between approximately 800 and 1200...
of a very neat and legible type." (Breen, 2009, p. 405)
At least twenty-one manuscripts survive containing specimens of his autograph
Autograph
An autograph is a document transcribed entirely in the handwriting of its author, as opposed to a typeset document or one written by an amanuensis or a copyist; the meaning overlaps with that of the word holograph.Autograph also refers to a person's artistic signature...
, now housed in Laon, Paris and Berlin.
Summation
Breen (2009, p. 405) summs up Martianus's legacy: "Martin's main legacy to late CarolingianCarolingian
The Carolingian dynasty was a Frankish noble family with origins in the Arnulfing and Pippinid clans of the 7th century AD. The name "Carolingian", Medieval Latin karolingi, an altered form of an unattested Old High German *karling, kerling The Carolingian dynasty (known variously as the...
culture (unlike that of his fellow countryman John) was not as an original thinker and translator of works in Greek, but as a humanist
Humanism
Humanism is an approach in study, philosophy, world view or practice that focuses on human values and concerns. In philosophy and social science, humanism is a perspective which affirms some notion of human nature, and is contrasted with anti-humanism....
and educator of great distinction."