Tertullian’s text of the new testament outside the Gospels

Haupt, Benjamin Douglas (2019). Tertullian’s text of the new testament outside the Gospels. University of Birmingham. Ph.D.

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Abstract

This study examines Tertullian’s references to the New Testament outside the Gospels, in order to determine whether he was citing from a Greek or Latin copy of these writings. A new collection of these references was undertaken and is explained in the Appendix. The conclusion of the analysis is that Tertullian was quoting the New Testament writings using Greek exemplars but translating on the fly into Latin. Tertullian was one of the first Christians to have undertaken such translation work. It is proposed that Tertullian was participating in and influenced by a broad cultural-linguistic movement called the Second Sophistic. Latin writers like Cicero, Quintilian, Varro, and Apuleius were also participants, and their translation of Greek works into Latin likely formed Tertullian to become a literary translator. A contribution to textual criticism is offered in a textual analysis of selected references. The conclusion that Tertullian’s references are translations rather than copies of an extant Latin text is evidenced by the large proportion of singular readings which match no other known Latin version. Several readings among these references suggest an affiliation with a particular Greek manuscript and thus present a very early form of the Greek text.

Associated data is available at: https://doi.org/10.25500/edata.bham.00000504

Type of Work:

Thesis (Doctorates > Ph.D.)

Award Type:

Doctorates > Ph.D.

Supervisor(s):