1.7407 
 
CORNELL 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
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ST. ANDREWS UNW^RSITY 
 PUBLICATIONS, No. V. < 
 
 CONTRACTIONS IN EARLY 
 
 LATIN MINUSCULE MSS. 
 
 BY 
 
 . ■ W. M. LINDSAY, M.A., 
 
 Professor of Humanity in the University of St. Andrews. 
 
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CONTRACTIONS IN EARLY LATIN 
 MINUSCULE MSS. 
 
 BY 
 
 W. M. LINDSAY, M.A., 
 
 Professor of Humanity in the University of St. Andrews. 
 
 OXFORD : 
 Slanus flarlur an& €a. 
 
 27 BROAD STREET; AND 3 1 BEDFORD STREET, STRAND, LONDON. 
 I9O8. 
 
\ I \ 
 
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CONTRACTIONS IN EARLY LATIN 
 MINUSCULE MSS. 
 
 A large number of the leading MSS. of the Latin Classics 
 belong to the tenth and eleventh centuries. Perhaps the most 
 fertile source of error in .them is the unfamiliarity of the writers with 
 the contractions used in the Irish " or pre-Carolingian script of the 
 originals which they transcribed. If an editor tries to ascertain 
 what contractions were used in these early minuscule MSS., he finds 
 himself at a loss. Books like Chassant's ' Dictionnaire des Abrevia- 
 tions ' mix up together contractions of all dates and of all kinds 
 of script. Walther's ' Lexicon Diplomaticum ' is inaccessible to most 
 students, and even it is inadequate, being based on materials drawn 
 from a single library b , Wolfenbiittel. The following details may 
 therefore be of interest and of practical use. They are taken from 
 notes, made as accurately as the time (often limited) at my disposal 
 allowed, of the contractions found in about three hundred MSS. 
 of the eighth and ninth centuries. They can hardly be free from 
 errors, for I had no printed texts beside me. Still they will serve 
 to give a fair notion of what contractions would be found in 
 (i) an Irish, (2) a pre-Carolingian (or early Carolingian) Conti- 
 nental ° archetype, and will enable an editor, who has ascertained 
 the nationality of the scribe, to re-construct in imagination the 
 whole series of contractions which would be found in the arche- 
 type's pages. They will also help to check the licence of con- 
 jectural emendation. It is at last coming to be generally recognised 
 
 » The correct term is Insular, for English MSS. are included and Welsh too. 
 But I prefer to keep the usual word. 
 
 b A library unfortunately unrepresented in my notes. For information re- 
 garding MSS. of Vienna, Montpellier and Cambrai I am indebted to Mr. Win- 
 stedt. Dr. Mercati gave me some supplementary details of the contractions 
 in Milan C 301 and Turin F IV I (5). 
 
 It seemed impracticable to distinguish Merovingian, Lombard (Italian) and 
 Visigothic (Spanish) contractions. But a few details, especially of Visigothic 
 peculiarities, are mentioned, as occasion allows. More will be found in Traube's 
 ' Nomina Sacra. ' 
 
 B 
 
2 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 that emendations, if they are to be convincing, must conform to the 
 requirements of Palaeography and start from a knowledge of the 
 mediaeval transmission of the text. They must not call into 
 existence, for the sake of the argument, contractions which could 
 not possibly be found in a MS. of the time and the place at which 
 . the hypothetical archetype was written. 
 
 Part I. Introductory. 
 
 i. Pre-minuscule Contractions. 
 
 If we take a general view of the course of Latin Contractions 
 previous to the introduction of minuscule script, we see that it tends 
 from less to more precise expression of words. The earliest stage 
 is the use merely of the initial letter of a word, e.g. d for ' deus,' 
 p 'populus,' r 'Romanus.' The next is the use of the initial letter 
 of each syllable of the word, e.g. cs ' consul.' In the Christian 
 period comes a new fashion, copied, as Traube has shewn, from the 
 Greek theological writings, the addition of the final letter, e.g. ds 
 ' deus,' scs ' sanctus,' do ' deo,' sco ' sancto.' These three stages are 
 all on the same road, the road towards greater precision. The use 
 of the initial letter alone is very vague, for d may represent ' deus ' 
 or ' dominus ' or ' donum ' or ' dedit,' etc. ; c may stand for ' consul ' 
 or ' causa ' d or ' crimen ' or other words. When the initials of the 
 syllables are used, e.g. ^(on)^(ul), there is greater precision, but the 
 case of the Noun is left vague ; for cs may represent equally 'consul,' 
 ' consulis,' ' consuli,' ' consulem,' etc. Roughly speaking °, even 
 in the minuscule period the less precise contractions are the earlier, 
 the more precise the later ; e.g. dx (with syllable-initials) is earlier 
 than dix ' dixit.' To this last type, where the word is written in full, 
 with the exception of the final portion, the name usually given 
 is ' contraction f by suspension,' since the writing of the word is, 
 
 d Cf. Traube, ' Nomina Sacra,' p. 253, who shews that ca ' causa ' is not current 
 in minuscule script till the 13th century. (In the half-uncial Vat. Reg. 886 
 I noted cis 'causis.') Hence the Codex Turnebi of Plautus cannot well have 
 had ca at Poen. 906. (Cf. my ' Codex Turnebi,' p. 5 n.) 
 
 e Traube, in his ' Nomina Sacra,' has shewn that in Spain from the earliest 
 times a type of contraction was in fashion, which he calls the ' Hebraistic ' type, 
 i.e. with omission of the vowels, e.g. dmns ' dominus,' qnm ' quoniam,' etc. 
 
 1 Traube would restrict the term ' contraction ' to abbreviations like qm or 
 qnm ' quoniam,' ds ' deus,' etc. I use it as the equivalent of ' abbreviation.' 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 3 
 
 so to speak, suspended at a certain point. The scribe writes dix, 
 then holds his pen and leaves the last two letters to be supplied. 
 
 2. Evidence regarding archetype furnished by Con- 
 tractions. 
 
 Old and new contractions often stand side by side in a MS. 
 This sometimes is merely the result of the scribe's familiarity with 
 both. But it is often due to the carefulness of a scribe who, being 
 ignorant of the meaning of the contraction offered by the original, 
 reproduced the symbol in his transcript. Thus in the Berne Horace 
 (on p. 10), -P'RUS 1 , the old contraction of 'populus Romanus,' 
 is faithfully s copied by the scribe from his original. But that its 
 meaning was not understood is evident from the suprascript con- 
 jectural emendation vel publicus. We often get evidence of the date 
 and script of an original from clues like this. An Irish original may 
 be inferred from a scribe's mistaken interpretation of peculiarly 
 Irish symbols, e.g. for ' enim,' ' autem,' ' eius,' etc. ; a Visigothic, 
 from the substitution of pro for per in a transcript, since the Caro- 
 lingian sign for ' pro ' plays the part of ' per ' in Visigothic script. 
 Other instances of the kind will be mentioned in the second and 
 third Parts of this paper. 
 
 3. Repeated Words, Formulas, etc. As a rule, we may 
 venture to ascribe the older type of contraction to the original MS., 
 the later to the writer of the transcript himself. But there is one 
 case in which contractions of the most ancient type are found in 
 quite late MSS., and are sometimes patently the coinage of the 
 transcriber. I mean the case of words which frequently recur 
 in a paragraph, or even whole formulas which are so often repeated 
 that the scribe naturally spares himself the trouble of writing them 
 on each occasion in full. Since there was no possibility of mis- 
 reading these contractions, scribes allowed themselves the fullest 
 licence. Thus in Ecclesiastical Canons the reiterated phrase 'fratres 
 carissimi ' appears as ff kk or as ff kmi (or kr or cm), etc. ; in 
 a Grammatical treatise words like ' pluralis,' ' genitivus,' ' genus,' 
 ' modus,' ' femininus,' etc., are not written in full, after their third 
 or fourth occurrence in a paragraph, but take any shortened ex- 
 pression that the fancy of the copyist suggests. The standard 
 Dictionaries of Latin Contractions are full of abbreviations of this 
 kind, but they are excluded from my lists ; for they would not 
 
 8 The original may have had P-R >U3 , the us being the addition of a corrector. 
 
 B 2 
 
4 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 be found in an ordinary context, and, where they appear, they would 
 not be likely to cause errors of transcription. Thus in a medicinal 
 MS. of St. Gall (759) the word dolor is repeated again and again, 
 and appears in forms like dim ' dolorem,' dolm ' dolorem,' dols 
 ' dolores.' These contractions I omit. They are peculiar to tech- 
 nical i 1 writings and play little or no part in the chief concern of this 
 investigation, the corruptions in the MSS. of the Latin Classics. 
 
 4. Nomina Sacra. Contractions of religious words (' nomina 
 sacra'), like ds ' deus,' dns ' dominus,' scs ' sanctus,' sps ' spiritus,' 
 were so familiar to monastic scribes and so unchanged by time 
 or place that the briefest mention' of some of them will suffice 
 for our purpose. (A contraction-stroke would stand over the letters, 
 or over one of them, in the MSS.) 
 
 angelus 
 apostolus 
 
 episcopus 
 epistula 
 
 gloria 
 
 angls (with cross- 
 barred /). 
 
 ap (e.g. London, 
 Cotton Tib. 
 A xiv), apos, apis 
 (withcross-barred 
 /), aps (in the 
 eighth century 
 Paris manuscript, 
 2843A), etc. 
 
 eps, episc, epcs, etc. 
 
 epla, epsl (both 
 with cross-barred 
 /), epis, etc. 
 
 gla, gloa (both with 
 
 misericordia 
 
 omnipotens 
 propheta 
 
 saeculum 
 
 cross -barred /), 
 etc. 
 mia, misdia, msda, 
 etc. (see PartllL, 
 
 § 2 S.V.). 
 
 omp, omps, omnip, 
 etc. 
 
 prof (with ' pro ' 
 expressed usually 
 by the symbol ; 
 see Parts II., III., 
 s.v.). 
 
 scl (with cross- 
 barred /), sclm, 
 slm, etc. 
 
 5. Notae Juris. More attention is due to the other kind of 
 pre-minuscule Contraction, the Notae Juris, i.e. the abbreviations 
 used in legal books and documents (e.g. P.R. ' populus Romanus,' 
 C.R. ' civis Romanus,' ACC 'accepta' or ' accusatio,' B.G. 'bona 
 
 11 So are the contractions of Proper Names, like dd ' David,' gg ' Gregorius.' 
 These also I omit. 
 
 1 A full account will be found in Traube's posthumous work ' Nomina Sacra ' 
 ( = Quellen und Untersuchungen zur lateinischen Philologie des Mittelalters, 
 vol. II.), Munich, 1907. Traube's investigation has thrown a new light on 
 the whole history of Latin Abbreviations and must be read by all students of 
 Palaeography. 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 gratia,' DCT 'decretum '), for they are the main source from which 
 the earliest minuscule contractions come. There is every pro- 
 bability that some of them, which do not appear (or have not been 
 noted) in extant minuscule MSS., did appear in minuscule MSS. 
 which have been lost or in the originals from which extant MSS. 
 have been transcribed. Unfortunately there is no comprehensive 
 account of these Notae Juris. To the three large collections which 
 have been published, (i) Mommsen's 'Notae Probi,' etc., in vol. IV. 
 of Keil's Grammatici Latini, (2) Studemund's apograph of the 
 Verona Gaius (Leipzig, 1874), (3) Mommsen's apograph of the 
 Vatican Codex 5766 (Berlin, i860), a number of additions have 
 to be made, partly from newly-discovered fragments from - Egypt 
 and elsewhere, but especially from the rich treasure-house of a 
 Vatican MS. of the Codex Theodosianus •> (Reg. 886). 
 
 Excluding mere technical abbreviations, like DM ' dolus malus,' 
 which would not be likely to occur in a MS. of a Latin Classic, 
 I offer, as a supplement of my lists in Parts II. and III., the follow- 
 ing list of some Notae Juris, which may have played a part in 
 the transmission of our classical texts (a contraction-stroke may 
 usually be supposed to have stood over the symbol in MSS.) : 
 
 adu ' adversus ' 
 
 nga ' negotia ' 
 
 qam 'quemadmodum' 
 
 bn and be ' bene ' 
 
 otet ' oportet ' 
 
 qr ' quare ' 
 
 cc ' circum ' 
 
 offo ' officio ' 
 
 qu ' quamvis ' 
 
 ctr ' ceterum ' 
 
 ol ' olim ' 
 
 
 
 dd 'deinde' 
 
 prea and pra ' prae- 
 
 qm ' quominus ' 
 
 i 
 
 dn * damnum ' 
 
 terea ' 
 
 r ' -rint ' 
 
 dq ' denique ' 
 
 pep ' principe ' 
 
 st ' satis ' 
 
 dt ' dumtaxat ' 
 
 pm ' plus minus ' 
 
 s ' sint' 
 
 exmo ' existimo ' 
 
 Jm (1) 'provincia,' 
 
 sr> ' sihi ' 
 
 gm ' germanus ' 
 
 (2) 'prout' (both 
 
 sl ' scilicet ' 
 
 a 
 
 i ' intra ' 
 
 in Vat. Reg.886) 
 
 m 
 
 sqd ' siquidem ' 
 
 md ' mandatum ' 
 
 q ' quem ' 
 
 t and tr ' trans ' 
 
 mxm ' maximum ' 
 
 qa ' quia ' (Vat. Reg. 
 
 tb ' tibi ' 
 
 n ' nam ' k , ' nee ' 
 
 886 ; cf. the 
 
 tm ' terminus ' 
 
 m 
 
 Rainer frag- 
 
 udl and ul 'videlicet' 
 
 n ' nummum ' 
 
 ment ') 
 
 ut ' utrum ' 
 
 i Those in the text are described in Mommsen's edition (Berlin, 1905). But 
 the greater number are in the marginalia (cf. Winstedt in Classical Philology I, 
 399). k See Part II. § 2, s.v. 'namque.' 
 
 1 See also Traube, ' Nomina Sacra,' p. 263. A transcriber might misread 
 both this and the following symbol as ' quam.' 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 Part II. Irish Script. 
 List of the MSS. most often cited :— 
 Berne (363) Horace, Servius on Virgil, etc. (Fleury), saec. 
 ix ex. 
 (photographic facsimile published by Sijthoff, Leyden, 
 1897). 
 Bobbio MS. of Latin Grammarians, etc. (Bobbio), saec. 
 vii ex. 
 
 Part of this MS. is at Vienna (lat. 16), part at Naples 
 (IV A 8 ; usually called 'the Naples Charisius')- 
 Cambridge (Univ. Libr.) (Kk V 16) Bede, c. 737 a.d. (Echter- 
 nach ?). 
 
 (from the library of Bishop Moore. The corrector who has 
 expanded the obsolete contractions is ascribed to the 
 10th cent.). 
 
 (Ff IV 42) Juvencus, saec. ix. (by a 
 Welsh scribe). 
 Carlsruhe (Reich. 132) Priscian (Reichenau), first half of 
 saec. ix. 
 
 (Reich. 167) Bede (Reichenau), between 836 and 
 
 848 (cf. Bannister in Journ. Theol. Stud. 5, 51.) 
 (Reich. 195) Augustine (Reichenau), saec. ix. init. 
 Dublin (Trin. Coll.) Book of Mulling, traditionally ascribed to 
 St. Moling, saec. vii ex., but now generally dated at least a 
 century later. 
 
 Book of Armagh. The date "807" is not 
 quite certain. 
 Florence (Laur.) (Ashburnham 60) Ambrose on the Pauline 
 Epistles, saec. ix. 
 
 (The corrector who has expanded the unfamiliar con- 
 tractions belonged, I think, to the 1 ith cent.) 
 Leyden (67) Priscian (Abbey of Egmond in North Holland), 
 
 838 A.D. 
 London (Brit. Mus.) (Cotton Tib. A xiv) Bede, saec. viii (see 
 Plummer's edition of Bede, Introd. p. xci) or ix init. 
 (Cotton Tib. C ii) Bede, saec. viii. 
 Milan (Ambr.) (C 301 inf.) Commentary on the Psalms, 
 (Bobbio), saec. ix. 
 
 (from the same original as the fragmentary 
 
 Turin F IV 1 [5]). 
 (L 85 sup.) Columella, saec. ix init. 
 
*. Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 7 
 
 Munich (3731) Gregory, saec. viii. 
 
 (6297) Gregory, (Freising), saec. viii-ix. 
 
 (6298) Augustine, (Freising), saec. vii-viii. 
 Naples (see ' Bobbio '). 
 
 Oxford (Bodl.) (Auct. F IV 32), from Glastonbury. The first 
 part (scarcely referred to in this Section) contains Eutychius, 
 written by a Breton scribe in Caroline minuscules of saec. 
 ix-x, but with Irish contractions predominating ; the second 
 part, the Liber Commonei, is by a Welsh scribe of 817-835 ; 
 the third part, Ovid Ars Amatoria, by a later Welsh scribe. 
 A photograph of a page of the Ovid will be found in Ellis, 
 ' XII Facsimiles from Latin MSS. in the Bodleian Library,' 
 Oxford, 1885. Plate I. 
 
 (Laud. Lat. 92) Deuteronomy, &c, (Wiirzburg), 
 831-841. 
 Rome (Vat.) (Pal. 68) Commentary on the Psalms, saec. ix. 
 (Pal. 202) Augustine, saec. ix-x. 
 (Pal. 259) Gregory, saec. vii-viii. 
 St. Gall (48) Gospels, saec. ix. 
 
 (904) Priscian, (some Irish monastery), saec. ix. 
 Turin (see ' Milan ')• 
 Vienna (see ' Bobbio '). 
 Wiirzburg (M th. f. 12) St. Paul's Epistles, saec. viii-ix. 
 
 2. List of Contractions : — 
 
 (Those which are current also in early Continental script are 
 printed in italics. Unless otherwise stated, it is always to be 
 understood that a stroke is drawn above the letters forming 
 the contraction in the MSS.) 
 anima aia. Used also in ' animadv erto,' ' exanimatus,' etc. 
 annus. The contractions belong, as a rule, to the type mentioned 
 in Part I, § 3. 
 
 But ann (with contraction- stroke over the second n), 
 k annos ' m is frequent (e.g. Oxford Laud. Lat. 92, etc.). 
 
 m This contraction by ' suspension ' can on occasion denote other cases of the 
 Noun, e.g. ann (and an) 'annorum' in London, Cotton Vesp. B vi, of 811 — 814. 
 But why editors of Plautus interpret ann of the Naples Charisius (in the citation 
 of Plaut. Bacch. ft. I or 15) as 'annis' rather than 'annos' is hard to see. 
 I am told it denotes ' annos ' in Vienna 16, the other part of the same MS. 
 
8 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. * 
 
 ante an. Liable to confusion with (i) the Interrogative Particle 
 ' an,' which in Irish MSS. often has the apex ", (2) a contraction 
 of 'annus.' 
 
 apud ap. This is also a contraction of 'apostolus ' (see Part I, § 4). 
 In Florence Ashb. 60 on fol. 13 v. apos eos is corrected 
 apud eos. The original had probably this contraction of ' apud ' 
 or some variety ° of it. 
 
 atque. I am told that the symbol aq is found in Milan C 301. 
 
 aut a. Easily confused with a. (Preposition or Interjection, with 
 the apex). In Florence Ashb. 60, where it is generally joined 
 with the following word, e.g. minas aterrores (fol. 20 v.), it is 
 expanded, by the later corrector. (Similarly in the Cambridge 
 Juvencus on fol. 13 v.) The variants in the MSS. of Horace 
 C. 1, 19, 11 aut versis animosum equis (auersis, uersis, et 
 uersis) have been referred, but not convincingly, to this con- 
 traction). 
 
 autem. The characteristic Irish symbol is rr, readily mistaken, 
 especially for the contraction of 'hoc,' by Carolingian 
 copyists p . 
 
 A rival symbol in Irish MSS. is at (with the initial letter of 
 each syllable). Both symbols often appear in the same MS. 
 (e.g. in the Book of Mulling). 
 
 The Continental contraction au (see Part III, § 2) appears, 
 along with the h-sign, in the Bobbio MS. of Latin Gram- 
 marians. On the other hand, the Irish h-sign appears in some 
 Continental MSS., usually (presumably always) through Irish 
 influence, e.g. in the Milan Josephus and Milan L 99 sup. 
 (both from Bobbio Library), in Vat. Pal. 187 (from Lorsch 
 Library), etc., etc. 
 
 bene, b with cross-stroke, traversing the shaft of the letter. Not 
 
 " The acute accent, used, especially in Irish script, to mark a long vowel, 
 especially of monosyllables and of endings like -Is. It is often hardly to be 
 distinguished from the suprascript line which denotes a contraction. 
 
 In the ninth century Milan I 6 sup. 2 ap' (without contraction-stroke) is the 
 invariable form of this symbol. This at once suggests 'apos' (see below, 
 •post'). 
 
 p To the examples given by Traube in the Neues Archiv d. Geschichtskunde 
 26, p. 240, add 'enim' corr. 'autem' on fol. 184 v. of Geneva 21, and on fol. 
 8 v. of Bale F. Ill 15 k ; vera corr. autem on p. 317 of St. Gall. 126. The 
 symbol is often expanded by the corrector in Florence Ashb. 60. 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 9 
 
 always discriminated q (by a dot following or by a dot preceding 
 and a dot following) from the syllabic symbol of 'ber' (see 
 §3'er'). 
 
 caput cap (with contraction-stroke over the f), e.g. in St. Gall 
 Priscian (like ap 'apud') (see Part III, § 2). 
 
 civitas ciui, e.g. in Oxford Auct. F IV 32 (Ovid Ars Amatoria, by a 
 Welsh scribe) ; ' civitatis ' in the 9th century Leyden 67 D, 
 which uses Irish contractions; 'civifatem' in the Berne Horace, 
 etc. This contraction by. suspension perhaps belongs rather to 
 the type described in Part I, § 3. 
 
 contra. To express this word, a modification of 3, the syllabic 
 symbol of 'con' (see § 3) was used. In the earliest Irish 
 MSS. a cross-stroke 1 was drawn through the 'con '-sign, 3. 
 But the similarity of this contraction to that of 'eius' (see 
 below) was too inconvenient s , and a new modification came 
 into fashion, the doubling of the ' con '-sign 33 (often with 
 a stroke above), which is the usual Irish abbreviation of 
 * contra.' Another * is the conjunction of the ' con '-sign (or 
 of the ' cum '-sign ; see below) with the syllabic symbol for 
 ' tra ' (see § 3 ' ra '). The first two syllables of ' contrarius ' 
 are usually expressed by one or other of these contractions, and 
 even of ' controversia ' (e.g. in the Berne Horace). The later 
 variety, 3 joined with a connecting-stroke to C, so as to 
 resemble a capital H, belongs, I think, to a period later than 
 that with which we are concerned (e.g., ' contrahitui ' on p. 9 of 
 St. Gall 759). 
 
 cuius cs (cf. lis ' huius '). In religious formulas (Part I, § 3) this 
 can stand for ' castigo ' (e.g. Munich 6330). 
 
 cum c. Since the same sign was used for the syllables ' cer ' § 3 
 ' er '), ' ere ' (§ 3 ' er '), -' cit ' (§ 3 ' it '), confusion must have 
 sometimes been caused. In the Naples Charisius the signs for 
 ' cum ' and ' cer ' (' ere ') are discriminated, ' cum ' being u c' or 
 
 9 In the true Irish form of script the stroke of ' ber ' is to the right of the shaft 
 of the b, while that of ' bene ' traverses the shaft. 
 
 ' This modification was taken from the Notae Juris, the contractions found 
 from very early times in legal documents (see Keil, Gramm. Lat. IV, p. 289). 
 
 8 The common original of Milan C 301 and Turin F IV I (5) had this con- 
 traction of 'contra.' In the Milan transcript it is at first repeatedly miscopied 
 as ' eius.' It is found also in Montpellier 69, etc. 
 
 * It is also found among the Notae Juris, e.g. in Vat. Reg. 886. 
 
 " It is c' also in the Notae Juris, e.g. in Vat. Reg. 886. 
 
to Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 cj, while c (with stroke above) denotes ' cer ' (e.g. ' certe ') or 
 ' ere ' (e.g. ' cata<h>«sis '). The second syllable of ' circum ' 
 often shews the ' cum '-symbol. This is no doubt why in 
 Florence Ashb. 60 circisus is so often miswritten for circumcisus. 
 
 dico. This common Verb (like 'habeo'; see below) is in its 
 various Persons and Tenses frequently contracted. The most 
 ancient type of contraction, the use of the initial letter merely, 
 is, we may say, confined to formulas (see Part I, § 3), where 
 we have d (or D), with a cross-stroke x , for ' dixit ' (' dicit,' etc.), 
 answered by r (or R), with a cross-stroke, for ' respondit ' 
 (-'det,' etc.). In ordinary texts the contraction-process has 
 advanced one stage towards precision in the earliest minuscule 
 MSS., while further stages are reached in course of time. 
 The early contractions are : dt ' dicit ' y (expanded by the 
 late corrector of Florence Ashb. 60 to die ' dicit '); dr ' dici- 
 tur ' ' ; dnt ' dicunt ' (expanded, as an unfamiliar symbol, by the 
 Florence corrector) ; dnr 'dicuntur' (expanded by the Florence 
 corrector ; it is occasionally a contraction of ' denarii,' e.g. 
 Vat. Reg. 338) ; dms * dicimus ' (also dents, e.g. in the St. Gall 
 Priscian); dx 'dixit' (expanded by the Florence corrector), 
 sometimes ' dixi ' (e.g. in the St. Gall Gospels) ; dxnt ' dixerunt ' 
 (also, I think, dxrt) ; dre ' dicere ' ; dret ' diceret ' ; des ' di- 
 cens ' ; dens ' dicentes ' ; dem ' dictum ' (e.g. Book of Armagh • 
 while the Book of Mulling uses die, with contraction-stroke 
 over the e, which to a Carolingian transcriber would mean 
 ' dicit '). The last sign is later used for * dicendum,' e.g. in 
 the glosses subsequently added to a 10th century Breton (?) 
 MS. at Oxford (Laud. Lat. 26). I have not noted des ' dictus,' 
 except in a later Irish MS. (of saec. xi - xii) in the Vatican 
 Library (Pal. 65). For ' diximus ' I have noted dxm (in the 
 St. Gall Priscian), dxm : (with colon-symbol of ' us ') and dixs 
 (in the Naples Charisius). 
 
 dum d with cross-stroke (e.g. Milan C 301) is properly the symbol 
 of the final syllable '-dum ' (see § 3). 
 
 * I have noted in Paris 10861 dd 'dixerunt,' expanded by a corrector on 
 fol. 92 r. Hence the dederunt and dicunt of Gramm. Lat. 4,576, 1. 19. 
 
 y I have noted dct in Bale F III 15 g (from Fulda library). 
 
 z Along with dr, the later dkr is used in Munich 6297. In the 9th century 
 Leyden 67 D, which uses Irish contractions, dr denotes 'dicuntur' as well 
 as ' dicitur.' 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 1 1 
 
 eius 9. This Irish symbol was a great puzzle to Carolingian 
 transcribers, and the omission of ' eius ' in a sentence or the 
 substitution of another word in its place often entitles us 
 to infer an Irish archetype. It is expanded by the later 
 correctors of the Moore Bede at Cambridge (fol. i v.) and 
 of the Florence Ashb. 60. The word is often written with 
 an ' us '-sign (see § 3 ' us ') appended to the letters ei (often 
 ligatured) even in the earliest MSS. When a suprascript 
 contraction-stroke takes the place of the ' us '-sign, ei (e.g. 
 Milan L 85 sup.) is easily confused with 'enim.' 
 
 enim f+. This Irish symbol was likewise a great source of error 
 in Carolingian transcriptions and provides us with a good clue 
 to an Irish archetype. I noted on fol. 94 v. of Geneva 21, 
 from Murbach Library, autem corrected to enim, which probably 
 means that the transcriber had confused this symbol in his 
 original with the ' autem ' symbol (see above s.v. ' autem '). 
 It is expanded, as an unfamiliar symbol, by the corrector of 
 Florence Ashb. 60. 
 
 epistula (see Part I, § 4). 
 
 ergo. The oldest contraction (one of the Notae Juris) eg is found 
 in few surviving MSS. (London, Harl. 2965 ; Florence, 
 S. Marc. 611), but may have left traces of itself in the common 
 confusion a of ' ego ' and ' ergo.' 
 
 In the uncial Garland of Howth (Dublin, Trin. Coll. A iv 6) 
 and in Montpellier 69 we find the symbol er, which to a 
 Carolingian transcriber would suggest 'emnt' (cf. Part III, 
 § 3 'unt'). But in most Irish MSS. the symbol used is 
 
 o i 
 
 g (cf. g ' igitur '). On the possibility of confusing this symbol 
 with the syllable ' gro,' see Part III, § 3. 
 est. Of the two contractions used, the first is more Irish than 
 Continental : (1) a horizontal line with a dot (or comma) above 
 and a dot (or comma) below, the latter being sometimes 
 omitted. In course of time the comma above came to be 
 joined to the line, so as to give the symbol the appearance b 
 of the Arabic numeral 2 (e.g. in the Leyden Priscian). The 
 
 a In Munich 3731 ego is corrected to ergo more than once (e.g. fol. 74 v., 81 r.) ; 
 similarly on fol. 8 v. of Florence Ashb. 60. 
 
 b In Milan L 99 sup. I noted the very similar appearance occasionally of 
 the syllable ' tur' in the Verb-ending -' atur.' 
 
12 Contractions in JSarly Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 line is as often wavy as straight. One scribe of the St. Gall 
 Priscian, who omits the dot below, writes the line like a 
 hyphen, e.g. poU/ ' potest,' icL-' ' id est.' This form of the 
 symbol would easily be omitted by a transcriber, for it looks 
 like a mere punctuation-sign. 
 
 (2) e (one of the Notae Juris, e.g. in Vat. Reg. 886). Also ee 
 ' esse,' eet ' esset,' etc. (see Part II, § 2). I have noted in 
 Oxford Laud. Lat. 92 (on fol. 9 r.) quaesitae ' quaesita est,' 
 which might be mis-copied ' quaesitae.' This is a common 
 corruption in Latin MSS. 
 (On ' id est,' see below.) 
 
 et. The Irish symbol, adopted (like the Irish ' est '-sign) in course 
 of time by Continental scribes, resembles the Arabic nu- 
 meral 7. 
 
 etiam. The oldest contraction et (one of the Notae Juris, e.g. in 
 Vat. Reg. 886) is rare in extant MSS. It is found in the 
 Cambridge Bede, where it is often expanded by the later 
 corrector. The usual contraction eti is slightly more precise 
 and less liable to confusion with the Copula ' et.' When the 
 vowel i in the Irish fashion makes a tailed appendage to 
 the cross-bar of t, this contraction may easily be misread as eq 
 ' equae ' (see below, ' qui '). 
 
 facio. This verb is not so commonly contracted as ' dico ' and 
 'habeo.' Besides the common fac ' facit,' fee ' fecit' (both with 
 contraction-stroke over the c), I have noted fca ' facta ' (Dublin, 
 Trin. Coll. A IV 20). 
 
 filius. fls ' Alius,' flos, ' filios.' The fi ' filios,' ' -um,' etc. of the 
 Book of Mulling and the Stowe Missal belongs rather to the 
 type of contraction mentioned in Part I, § 3. 
 
 forma fma (with contraction-stroke above the/), which I have noted 
 in Oxford Auct. F IV 32 (Ovid, Ars Amatoria, by a Welsh 
 scribe), belongs, I think, to a period later than that with which 
 we are concerned. 
 
 frater <=. fr ' frater,' fris ' fratris,' fri ' fratri,' frs ' fratres,' etc. The 
 old f 'frater,' ff 'fratres' (e.g. London, Cotton Tib. A xiv; 
 Cambridge Bede), ffb 'fratribus' (corrected to fribus 'fratribus' 
 on fol. 93' of the London MS.) belong to the type mentioned 
 in Part I, § 3. 
 
 8 Fuller details in Traube, ' Nomina Sacra,' p, 256. 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 13 
 
 genus (see Part I, § 3). 
 
 gloria (see Part I, § 4). 
 
 Graecus (see § 3 ' er '). 
 
 gratia. Although the Continental contractions (see Part III, § 2) 
 are found (cf. grm ' gratiam ' in the Berne Horace), still the 
 usual Irish mode of writing this word is with the ' ra '-symbol 
 (see § 3) in the first syllable. 
 
 grex(see§3 'er')- 
 
 habeo. This Verb appears as frequently as ' dico ' (see above) 
 in contracted form : ht ' habet ' d ; hr ' habetur ' ; hnt ' habent ' ; 
 hre ' habere ' e ; hret ' haberet ' ; hns ' habens ' (e.g. Book of 
 Mulling, Leyden Priscian) ; hto 'habeto ' (e.g. Berne Horace). 
 
 hie. The various parts of the Pronoun shew these forms in Irish 
 MSS. : h (with suprascript horizontal line above the shoulder 
 of the letter) ' haec ' ; h (with dot either following f or placed 
 above the shoulder of the letter, but with no suprascript line) 
 ' hoc ' ; hs ' huius ' s (cf. cs ' cuius ') ; he ' hunc ' (cf. nc 
 ' nunc '), also (usually in the Naples Charisius) h with supra- 
 
 c 
 
 script c (cf. n 'nunc '). In the Book of Mulling, Milan C 301, 
 etc., he often denotes ' hanc ' as well as ' hunc' A more 
 precise expression of ' hunc ' is hnc (e.g. Turin, F IV 1 [7], 
 of saec. ix). 
 
 On ' huiusmodi,' see below. I have noted cross-barred h 
 ' huius ' in the Naples Charisius. 
 
 homo ho (also h with suprascript o and without contraction-stroke). 
 Similarly hois ' hominis,' hoi ' homini,' hoes ' homines' 11 , houm 
 and hoium (e.g. in the Cambridge Juvencus), hoibus (-bj) 
 ' hominibus,' etc. (For fuller details, see Traube, ' Nomina 
 Sacra,' p. 257.) 
 
 huiusmodi hm. This rare contraction occurs in Milan C 301, and 
 
 d Also het, the et being often in ligature (as in our symbol for 'etc.'). In 
 Oxford Auct. F IV 32, I noted ht and het in the same line on fol. 23 r. 
 
 Also expressed by means of the syllabic symbol for 'ber' ; see § 3 ' er.' 
 
 ' In Florence Ashb. 60 this type was unfamiliar to the later corrector. He 
 either expands the contraction or puts the dot above. In the St. Gall Priscian * 
 an apostrophe sometimes appears, instead of the dot. 
 
 e Also expressed by hui' (with the syllabic symbol for 'us', see § 3) or huis 
 (with the suprascript expression of u ; e.g. in the Book of Mulling). In the 
 latter form it resembles the contraction of ' hominis ' (see below). 
 
 b In the glosses in the Wiirzburg Pauline Epistles, hoies. 
 
14 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 probably comes from its original, for the scribe has miscopied 1 
 ' hominum ' for ' huiusmodi.' 
 
 idem. The proper Irish contraction is id (without contraction- 
 stroke), followed by the syllabic symbol for ' em ' (see § 3). 
 But the Continental form id (with cross-stroke traversing the 
 shaft of the d) is common. (See Part III, § 2 on the use of 
 this sign for 'id est'.) 
 
 id est. The full symbol is i (often with a dot on the right, some- 
 times on the left as well) followed by one or other of the signs 
 for ' est ' (see above). But the ' est '-sign is often discarded, so 
 that we have merely -r with contraction-stroke above (e.g. 
 London, Cotton Vesp. B vi, of 811-814 a.d. ; the Cambridge 
 Juvencus) or without it (e.g. in the Berne Horace sometimes). 
 The omission of the contraction-stroke would prevent confusion 
 of the symbol with the Preposition ' in.' 
 
 igitur. The earlier Irish contraction k is ig' (without contraction- 
 stroke) (e.g. Book of Mulling, St. Gall Priscian, Carlsruhe 
 
 i o 
 
 Augustine). But the rival symbol g (cf. g ' ergo ') superseded 
 it (e.g. Book of Armagh, Leyden Priscian, Berne Horace). 
 
 i 
 
 In later minuscule g can denote the syllable 'gui,' e.g. 'san- 
 guinis' in the glosses of Oxford Laud. Lat. 26. (For fuller 
 details see Traube, 'Nomina Sacra,' p. 258.) 
 
 inde (see 'unde,' below). 
 
 inter I with cross-stroke (usually oblique). Like all contractions 
 in which a cross-stroke is used, this is liable to misinterpreta- 
 tion, since the deletion of a letter was often expressed by 
 drawing a stroke through it. The omission of the word ' inter ' 
 in a transcript points to this form of contraction in the 
 original l . 
 
 Fuller expressions of the Preposition are (t) it, with the 
 stroke-symbol of n above the i, and the stroke-symbol of er 
 (see § 3) above the t, (2) int, with merely the stroke-symbol of 
 
 ■ ' The Nota Juris huim ' huiusmodi ' is given on p. 278 of Keil's Gramm. Lat. , 
 vol. IV. 
 
 k A variation of ig of the Notae Juris. This I have found in London, Cotton 
 Tib. A xiv, in Vatican Pal. 68 and on fol. 87 r. of the Leyden Priscian. 
 
 1 Also perhaps the substitution of ' in ' for ' inter.' I have noted in that part 
 of the Vatican MS. Pal. 829, which is written in Insular script, the correction of 
 in on fol. 1 1 1 r. to inter. 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 15 
 
 er above the I. These are common to Continental and Irish 
 script. 
 
 With the help of one or other of these contractions of ' inter ' 
 are written words like ' interest,' ' interim,' ' interea.' ' Interest,' 
 when written with the first, and ' id est ' (see above) are liable 
 to be confused. ' Interdum,' when expressed by obliterated / 
 and obliterated d (see above on ' dum '), might easily be omitted 
 by a transcriber. The contraction of ' interpretatur,' with the 
 'inter' symbol and the ' prae ' symbol (see below) (e.g. in 
 the Cambridge Juvencus) belongs rather to the type mentioned 
 in Part I, § 3. 
 iterum. The expression itr (with stroke above t and above r), 
 which sometimes occurs (e.g. in the Book of Mulling) is not 
 quite correct, for it should represent ' i-ter-rum.' 
 iuxta. I have noted the rare contraction iux in the Cambridge 
 
 Bede. On fol. 3 v. it is expanded by the later corrector, 
 (legitur legr and loquitur loqr perhaps both belong properly to 
 
 Parti, §3.) 
 magis. I am told that the Nota Juris mg (see Keil's Gramm. Lat. 
 IV, p. 279, mg 'magis,' 'magnus') is found on fol. 4 of Milan 
 C 301. 
 mater mr (e.g. on p. 386 of the Berne Horace), 
 meus ms. Similarly mm ' meum,' a symbol which is used for 
 ' modum ' in the Bobbio MS. of the Latin Grammarians (see 
 below), and for ' memor ' in the formula memor nostri esse 
 dignare, domine papa (e.g. Oxford Laud. Lat. 104, in Caroline 
 minuscule script of saec. ix-x). 
 
 i i 
 
 mihi m (without contraction-stroke) (like t ' tibi '). The form taken 
 by the suprascript i often resembles the apostrophe used as 
 syllabic symbol of ' us ' (see § 3), so that ' mihi ' might 
 occasionally be misread as ' mus.' 
 
 misericordia (see Part I, § 4). 
 
 o 
 
 modo m (without contraction-stroke) or mo. Hence tm mo ' tantum 
 
 o o 
 
 modo,' q m ' quomodo,' etc. 
 modus. The noun is seldom contracted, except in its technical 
 sense of the Mood of a Verb (see Part I, § 3). I have noted 
 mds (with cross-stroke through the d) ' modus ' and mm (with 
 suprascript contraction-stroke) ' modum ' in the Bobbio MS. of 
 the Latin Grammarians (see above on ' meus '). 
 
1 6 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 mons mon ' montem ' (e.g. Book of Armagh). Uncommon. 
 
 namque nq; (with contraction-stroke above the n) is rare m (e.g. 
 Milan C 301). The liability of confusion between the symbols 
 for 'namque,' 'neque' (see below), ' numquam ' (see below) 
 seems to have brought about the early disuse of the first two and 
 indeed of all three. 
 
 neque nq (e.g. Milan C 301). Very rare. 
 
 nihil nl. The contraction-stroke either traverses the upper shaft of 
 the / (as in the Book of Mulling, the Carlsruhe Priscian, the St. 
 Gall Priscian, the Cambridge Juvencus, the Berne Horace, 
 Milan C 301, etc.) or, in more characteristically Irish fashion, is 
 drawn to the right of it. Since this modification of / also 
 denotes ' vel ' (see below), transcribers would sometimes make 
 
 1 
 mistakes. We find n (without contraction-stroke) occasionally, 
 
 e.g. in the Bobbio MS. of the Latin Grammarians (according to 
 Keil's note in Gramm. Lat. IV, p. 207, 1. 6) and normally in 
 Florence Ashb. 60, where the later corrector expands it to nil 
 and nichil and thus prevents the possibility of its being mistaken 
 
 for n ' nisi ' (see below). 
 
 i 
 
 nisi n (without contraction-stroke). The ancient type of contraction 
 by syllable-initials, ns, appears on fol. 5 r. of Milan C 301. In 
 the Bobbio MS. of the Latin Grammarians we find nsi (with 
 contraction-stroke above the n ; cf. qsi ' quasi,' below). 
 
 nobis (see also ' vobis '). The more ancient symbol nb (e.g. in the 
 Berne Horace) and the more precise nob (both with cross- 
 stroke through the upper shaft of b ; see § 3 'is ') are found in 
 Irish, as in Continental MSS. We may infer that the former 
 stood in the original of Oxford Laud. Lat. 92, for it appears on 
 fol. 11 r., while throughout the MS. the other symbol is in use. 
 ' Nobis ' and ' nominibus ' are confused in Milan C 301. 
 
 nomen no (expanded by a corrector on fol. 6 r. of the Cambridge 
 
 m It comes from the Notae Juris, in which 11 with suprascript-stroke can de- 
 note ' nam ' as well as ' non ' (see Keil's Gramm. Lat. IV, p. 297). In a Vatican 
 MS. (Reg. 81 ; in Caroline minuscules) of the Hisperica Famina N, with oblique 
 stroke traversing its last limb, occurs for 'nam.' It has evidently been trans- 
 mitted from the original and was not understood by the scribe. Underneath 
 it, on one of its occurrences, is written RQ (i.e. 'require'). I am indebted 
 for this information to Mr. Jenkinson, who kindly sent me photographs of some 
 pages of the MS. 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS, 1 7 
 
 Juvencus, in which this symbol denotes ' nostra '). Similarly 
 nois 'nominis,' noe (and noie) 'nomine,' noa (and noia?) 
 'nomina,' noum (and noium) 'nominum,' noib; ' nominibus,' 
 noare ' nominare,' etc. On the later no ' non,' see below. 
 
 The symbol nn ' nomen ' occurs in the Bobbio MS. of the 
 Latin Grammarians (along with these contractions of the oblique 
 cases ; also nomb and nomib ' nominibus,' with cross-stroke 
 through the b), also in the Moore Bede at Cambridge. A 
 fuller expression is by means of the syllabic sign for ' en ' 
 (see § 3) nom (with stroke above the m), e.g. Rome, Pal. 68. 
 This became the common symbol in Carolingian and later 
 minuscule, 
 non n or N. In that part of an early Tours MS (c. 800 a.d.) in the 
 British Museum (Egerton 2831) which is written in Insular 
 
 o 
 
 script we find n; in a Paris MS. (17 71) we find n with 
 apostrophe above (properly ' num ' ; see § 3 ' um ') as well as 
 the form which became common later, no. 
 
 (noster, vester. Since the Irish and the Continental usage are 
 much the same, the account of the symbols is reserved for 
 Part III, § 2.) 
 
 numerus. I have noted the contraction by suspension num 'numer- 
 us ' in the Oxford Liber Commonei. Of the various cases the 
 most frequently contracted is the Abl. nuo ' numero '". I have 
 also noted nuis 'numeris,' nus 'numerus,' num. ' numerum,' 
 as well as the Verb nuas 'numeras' and the Adj. innua 
 ' innumera.' 
 
 numquam. A rare combination of the ' non '-symbol with the 
 ' quam '-symbol nq (sic) is found, e.g., in the Milan MS.j C 301 
 
 inf. (probably taken from the original °). 
 
 c 
 
 nunc nc (cf. tc ' tunc ') (also n ?). 
 
 omnis. The older type of contraction em (for various cases ; see 
 Part III, § 2) is sometimes found, e.g. for ' omnes ' in the 
 Vatican MS., Pal. 237 (the part in Insular script), for,' omnem ' 
 in the Naples Charisius, for 'omnia' in Oxford, Auct. F IV 32 
 (the Ars Amatoria of Ovid by a Welsh scribe). More usual is 
 oa ' omnia ' (e.g. Book of Armagh, Carlsruhe Augustine, etc.) ; 
 
 n In the Notae Juris this symbol represents 'nunc vero' (Keil, Gramm. 
 Lat. IV, p. 297). 
 The Nota Juris, is very similar (see Keil's Gramm. Lat. IV, p. 279). 
 
 C 
 
1 8 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 also oia (e.g. in the Dublin MS., Trio. Coll. A IV 20); oe 
 'omne,' oi 'omni,' oes ' omnes ' (e.g. in the Vatican MS., Pal. 
 68). Similarly oio ' omnino ' p . Also the more precise type 
 onts, properly ' omnes,' while omis represents ' omnis ' (e.g. 
 Milan L 85 sup.), although this distinction is not always 
 observed (see Part III, § 2) ; oma ' omnia ' «, omb$ or omb (with 
 the contraction- stroke traversing the shaft of the b) ' omnibus.' 
 
 pater pr (e.g. 'the Carlsruhe Augustine, the Berne Horace), but 
 usually pat (cf. p. 27). 
 
 per [f (also used as syllabic symbol for 'per'). This sign' is 
 peculiarly Irish and is expanded, as unfamiliar, by the later 
 corrector in Florence Ashb. 60. The Continental symbol p 
 (with cross-stroke traversing the lower shaft of the letter) 
 was however not unknown to Irish scribes. One scribe of 
 the St. Gall Priscian uses it persistently (cf. Oxford, Bodl. 319; 
 London, Harl. 7653 ; the Leyden Priscian ; the Berne Horace ; 
 the St. Gall Gospels ; the Cambridge Bede ; Turin F IV 1 (5); 
 Milan L 85 sup.). I have noted both symbols in London, 
 Harl. 2965 ; in the Cambridge Juvencus ; in Florence S. Marc. 
 611 ; in the Vatican MS., Pal. 202. In Vat. Pal. 68 the first 
 symbol often exhibits the p in the ' pro '-form " (see below ; cf. 
 chap. Ill, § 2, ' per '). 
 
 With subscript / attached to the hook of the first symbol, 
 it is often difficult to distinguish ' peri ' from the symbol p3 
 'pus' (see § 3 'us'). 
 
 populus pis (with cross-stroke through the /) (e.g. in the Berne 
 Horace) ; pli ' populi ' (e.g. Oxford, Auct. F IV 32, on fol. 25 r. 
 by the Welsh scribe of 817— 835 ; the St. Gall Gospels), etc. ; 
 even platur 'populate' (on p. 118 of the Berne Horace). 
 More precise symbols are ppls * (e.g. Oxford, Laud. Lat. 92), 
 and pops (e.g. the Wiirzburg Pauline Epistles). In the Cam- 
 bridge Bede the later corrector has expanded pops ' populus ' 
 
 P I have noted this symbol in Vat. Pal. 830 of 1072 a.d. 
 
 1 At the beginning of a paragraph this is expressed (e.g. in the Naples 
 Charisius) by u capital O with the letters ma inside and a contraction-stroke 
 above. 
 
 ' Nearly the same sign denotes 'prae' in the early Carolingian script of 
 Cologne 106. 
 
 s Similarly in a Turin fragment, F IV I (7), where however the ' er'-mark 
 attached to the/ is not the usual hook, but the apostrophe. 
 
 t The Visigothic symbol, according to Traube, ' Nomina Sacra,' p. 261. 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 19 
 
 and popo ' populo ' to the more familiar popls, poplo (both with 
 cross-stroke through the /). 
 
 (On the technical symbol P, e.g. P.R. ' populus Romanus,' 
 see Part I, § 3.) 
 
 o 
 
 post p (without contraction-stroke) (e.g. Book of Armagh ; Wiirz- 
 
 burg Pauline Epistles ; Carlsruhe Augustine ; Vienna 16 ; 
 
 Milan C 301 inf.; Munich 6298; Rome, Vat. Pal: 61). This 
 
 symbol is expanded by the later corrector in Florence Ashb. 60. 
 
 t 
 
 p (without • contraction-stroke) (e.g. the Leyden Priscian ; 
 
 the Berne Horace ; the Cambridge Juvencus and Book of 
 Cerne; London, Cotton Tib. A XIV). 
 
 Both contractions are often found in the same MS. (e.g. the 
 St. Gall Priscian a ; the Cambridge Bede; the Carlsruhe Bede ; 
 the Book of Mulling). The Continental symbol /' (without 
 contraction-stroke), really the syllabic symbol for ' pus ' or 
 
 o t 
 
 ' pos ' (see § 3 ' us '), occurs, along with p and p in the Cam- 
 bridge Bede ; while in Milan L 85 sup. we have the fuller form 
 p't as well as p' and also another contraction pt. This last, 
 which dangerously resembles the contraction of ' praeter ' (see 
 below), I have also noted in a Vatican MS. (Reg. .1209), in 
 a MS. from Fulda Library, Bale F III 15 e (on fol. 10) and in 
 Florence S. Marc. 611 ; and we may conjecture its existence in 
 the archetype of any MS. in which 'praeter' is substituted 
 for ' post.' 
 
 ' ' Postquam ' is written with one or other of these symbols 
 followed by the ' quam ' symbol (see below, ' qui '). 
 
 prae p. ' Praeter ' is written with this sign, followed by the sign 
 for ' ter ' (see below) pt. 
 
 pro -f> ( as i n Continental script). 
 
 proprius. While the last syllable is written either in full or with 
 a syllabic ' us '-sign (see § 3 ' us '), the' first two syllables are 
 written in two ways, (1) in precise form, as two syllables, with 
 
 i 
 
 the 'pro '-sign (see above) followed by the 'pri'-sign p (see 
 § 3 'ra,' and cf. Part III, § 2 'proprius'), (2) in curtailed 
 
 o ' 
 
 11 In this MS. p also represents • primo.' The danger of this confusion would 
 t o 
 
 favour the use of p. On p ' pro,' see Part III, s. v. 
 
 C 2 
 
20 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 form; as if one syllable, with i written above the 'pro '-sign. 
 • (Similarly with the various cases 'proprinm,' 'proprio,' etc!, and 
 with Derivatives like ' propriety '). The suprascript i often 
 takes the form of a mere curve, 
 propter, (i) pp, with the contraction-stroke either' drawn above 
 each p (or one of them) (e.g. Book of Mulling; Leyden 
 Priscian, etc.), or traversing the lower shaft of the letters 
 (e.g. Book of Mulling; Milan C 301 ; the 9th century London, 
 Cotton Tib. A XV). This is the normal Irish symbol. 
 
 (2) in more precise form y ppr (e.g. in the 8th' century London, 
 Cotton Tib. C II ; along with pp, which a corrector has 
 expanded on fol. 112 r.). 
 
 (3) jp" I have noted this only in the Carlsruhe Priscian. 
 
 It is hard to say which of these three is to be ascribed to the 
 original of a MS. in which ' proprius ' (-um, etc.) is substituted 
 for ' propter.' Perhaps the third, for it is the least familiar and 
 differs from the curtailed symbol for ' propri- ' (see above) only 
 in the direction of the curve above the * pro '-sign (cf. Part III, 
 § 2). In the Berne Horace occasionally (e.g. p. 357) precisely 
 this form of symbol is erroneously used for ' proprium.' 
 
 quae (see ' qui '). 
 
 quaesumus qs (e.g. in the 8th cent. London MS., Cotton Tib. 
 A XIV). In the Stowe Missal I noted qsu, qus, qms (cf. 
 Part I, § 3). 
 
 quaero. The usual contraction is merely by the substitution of 
 a ' que '-symbol or a ' quae '-symbol for the first syllable. 
 Special abbreviations, like qr 'quaeritur' (in the Berne Horace; 
 but qrt 'quaeritur' in the Carlsruhe Bede) or ' quaerit ' (in 
 the Naples Charisius), belong to the type mentioned in 
 Part I, § 3. 
 
 quam, quamquam (see ' qui '). 
 
 x In Munich 6298 not merely are both these varieties used, but also pp with- 
 out any contraction-stroke.. In Bale F III 15 d (from Fulda) the "pro '-sign 
 followed by p is used. 
 
 y Varieties are (1) the ' pro '-sign followed by pr, e.g. in the text of the 
 Wiirzburg Pauline Epistles (M. th. fol. 12), (2) prop, (3) pp followed by the 
 'ter'-sign (see below). The last I noted in Oxford, Laud. Lat. 92 and in the 
 Book of Mulling, so written that it would read 'pr-ae-p-ter ' and might be mis- 
 copied 'praeter.' The last two occur, along with pp, in the 10th century 
 Florence MS., S. Marc. 611. 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 21 
 
 quando qn (confusible * with qm ' quoniam ') and the more precise 
 qno (confusible with qmo ' quomodo ') are the usual con- 
 tractions. But we find also a qdo (with the contraction-stroke 
 traversing the shaft of the d) (in the 10th century Breton [?] 
 • MS. at Oxford, Laud. Lat. 26) ; also, and more frequently, 
 the more precise form qnd (with contraction-stroke sometimes 
 as in qdp, sometimes drawn above the n ; confusible with qmd 
 ' quomodo ') (e.g. in the Cambridge Bede ; in Rome Pal. 68 ; 
 in Munich 6298 ; occasionally in the Florence MS., Ashb. 60, 
 which however usually has "qno, a symbol for which in its 
 earlier occurrences the later corrector wrongly substitutes qm 
 ' quoniam '). 
 
 quare qre (e.g. in the Cambridge Bede and in Florence Ashb. 60 ; 
 in both MSS. it is expanded by the later corrector). 
 
 quasi. The older type qs (e.g. Milan C 301 ; Leyden Voss. Q. 69 ; 
 expanded by the later corrector on fol. 9 r,. of the Cambridge 
 Bede) was identical with the contraction of ' quaesumus ' (see 
 above). The more precise qsi is the prevalent form. 
 
 que q. or q, or q ; (the dot and comma are often united q3) or q : 
 (all without contraction-stroke). This sign often plays the part 
 of the syllable ' quae i in words like ' qu(a)ero,' but in this 
 function is normally differentiated b by three dots arranged 
 in triangular fashion q :• ' quae ' (see below). With addition 
 of m, we find (in Milan C 301) q;m ' quem ' (see below). 
 In Munich 6298, a MS. which (like many of its kind) exhibits 
 confusion of e and i in spellings like ' cremen,' ' contenetur ' 
 ' gaudiat,' the ' que '-symbol plays the part of ' qui,' e.g. q-b ; 
 and q:b ; ' quibus,' q.a ' quia.' 
 
 qui, quis. The various cases of the .Pronoun and the various 
 derivative Conjunctions are thus expressed : — 
 (1) by suprascript vowel (without contraction-stroke) : 
 
 i i i i i 
 
 q 'qui,' whence ^rf'quid,' qb; or qb' 'quibus,' qppe ' quippe,' etc. 
 
 z In the Notae Juris qn denoted 'quoniam,' as well as 'quando.' See Keil's 
 Gramm. Lat. IV, p. 298. 
 
 a Since this symbol, lacking the 0, denotes 'quod' (see below),. the sub- 
 stitution of ' quod ' for ' quando ' in a MS. may point to its presence in the 
 original. 
 
 b In the Paris MS. (1771) q3, 'que' becomes 'quae' when a contraction- 
 stroke is added above. In the Stowe Missal this is found for ' quem. ' 
 
22 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 o o o 
 
 q 'quo,' whence as ' quo.s,' qr (with contraction-stroke over 
 or alongside of the r) 'quorum,' etc. 
 
 a a a 
 
 q ' qua,' whence qs ' quas,' qr (with stroke over or alongside 
 
 a 
 
 of the r) ' quarum,' qnt ; ' quantus,' etc. 
 (2) with contraction-stroke of various form : 
 
 q, ' qui ' (the cross-stroke is also horizontal) ; followed by s 
 ' quis ' ; followed by d ' quid ' c . This, the usual sign in 
 Carolingian minuscule script, I have noted occasionally in 
 Munich 6298, the Naples Charisius, Rome Pal. 202 (fol. 
 17 v.). But in Irish its normal function is ' quia ' (see below). 
 It can also play the part of ' quam,' e.g. in the 8th century 
 London MS., Cotton Tib. A XIV, and (along with the usual 
 symbol ; see below) in the Leyden Priscian d and the first 
 part of Oxford, Auct. F IV 32 (where it also denotes ' quae' 
 occasionally). 
 In the Carlsruhe Augustine q with horizontal cross-stroke de- 
 notes ' quam ' (also the usual ' quam '-symbol ; see below), 
 q with oblique cross-stroke 'quia.' 
 q (with contraction-stroke above) ' quae.' This, the Continental 
 symbol (used in the Naples Charisius), superseded the Irish 
 symbol q:- (without contraction-stroke) in time. A wavy 
 contraction-stroke (for/w) discriminates the symbol of ' quem ' 
 (e.g. in the Berne Horace; the Stowe Missal). 
 <b ' quod ' (expanded by the later corrector of the Cambridge Bede 
 on fol. 26 r.). Also the contraction, normal in Caroline 
 minuscule script, qd (with contraction-stroke traversing the 
 shaft of the d), which occurs early, e.g. in the minuscule portion 
 (fol. 116) of the Book' of Durrow (Dublin, Trin. Coll. A. 4. 5) ; 
 see Part III, § 2. In Munich 6298 we find both these con- 
 tractions, along with the ' quid '-contraction (see above); in 
 some MSS., e.g. Munich 3731, London, Cotton Tib. A xv, qd 
 (with contraction- stroke over the q and 'not intersecting the 
 shaft of the d) ; similarly, along with the usual arrangement 
 
 c Sometimes also ' quod,' e.g. in Munich 6298. 
 
 d Did it stand in the original of Munich 6298? In this MS., which usually 
 shews qa (with contraction-stroke above) for ' quam,' this symbol is expanded to 
 ' quam ' by the corrector on fol. 34 r. 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. i$ 
 
 of the stroke, in London, Reg. 2 A xx ; London, Cotton 
 Tib. C ii. 
 % 'quam' (when doubled, 'quamquam '), the normal Carolingian 
 symbol (see Part III, § 2 'qui '). The occasional use of the 
 Continental ' qui '-symbol .for ' quam ' has already been men- 
 tioned. In the Carlsruhe Bede I have noted q :• (without 
 contraction-stroke), properly ' quae,' as used for ' quam.' 
 Similarly q with contraction-stroke above, properly ' quae,' 
 can represent ' quam ' (e.g. in the "Vatican MS., Pal. 68, with 
 a different form of contraction- stroke from that of q ' quae ') 
 in the Compounds ' tamquam,' ' postquam,' ' numquam.' 
 
 qb (with contraction-stroke traversing the shaft of the b) 
 ' quibus ' (e.g. Milan C 301). 
 (3) Other types. The u of these words is often suprascript, being 
 occasionally ligatured with a following i into a sinuous line 
 like S. 
 
 In Leyden Voss. Q 69 (Continental) q (without contraction- 
 stroke) followed by this sinuous symbol denotes 'quis.' In 
 Milan C 301 inf. we find qs 'quis' (on fol. 5 r. in the phrase 
 ' nisi quis '). 
 ' Quem ' is not so often contracted as the other cases. To the 
 expressions of this word that have been already mentioned may 
 be added qm in Paris 10861 (fol. 42 r. Jesus Christus in quem 
 credidisti). This usually denotes ' quoniam.' In Munich 6298 
 I have noted qe 'quem.' 
 
 (On ' cuius,' see above, s. v.) 
 
 The numerous divergences from normal usage which have 
 been mentioned (and the number might be increased 6 ) throw 
 some light on the frequent confusion in MSS. of these Pro- 
 nominal Cases and Conjunctions. A reference to Part III, § 2 
 will shew that the same bewildering variety prevailed in Con- 
 tinental script ; although it is possible that fuller investigation 
 may bring order into chaos, by assigning this or that divergent 
 form to this or that monastery-scriptorium. 
 
 These contractions are often expanded by later correctors or 
 replaced by the current symbols, e.g. the peculiarly Irish q :• 
 (without contraction-stroke), ' quae ' in Florence Ashb. 60, 
 and on fol. 25 V. of the Cambridge Bede. 
 
 e A Leyden MS. (67 D), which shews the Irish contractions, uses q with 
 oblique cross-bar (properly ' quia ') in the functions of (I) 'quod,' (2) ' quam.' 
 
24 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 quia <]_ (expanded f by the later corrector of Florence Ashb. 60). 
 
 This is identical with the Continental ' qui '-symbol (often 
 having, like it, the cross-stroke horizontal and not oblique). 
 Hence the'frequent confusion of ' quia ' and ' qui ' in MSS. 
 quidem. Two early symbols (cf. the Notae Juris of Keil's Gramm. 
 Lat. IV pp. 280, 2 9 8)' dangerous to transcribers, are found in 
 the Milan MS., C. 301: (1) The ' quod '-symbol qd (with 
 contraction-stroke traversing the shaft of the d). The sub- 
 stitution of ' quod ' for ' quidem ' in a MS. points to the use of 
 this contraction in the original. 
 (2) a&. This symbol might easily be mistaken for an obliterated 
 
 word and omitted by a transcriber. 
 
 i 
 
 A safer symbol is qd- (the 'qui '-symbol followed by the 
 syllabic symbol for ' dem ' ; see § 3 ' em '). 
 quippe qp (e.g. in Milan C 301) and the more precise qpe (e.g. in 
 the Leyden Priscian). 
 
 (See also above, * qui '.) 
 
 o o 
 
 quomodo qmo (confusible with qno 'quando'), and qm (without 
 contraction-stroke ; cf. above, ' qui ' and ' modo '). Both occur 
 sometimes in the same MS. (e.g. in the Book of Mulling). 
 Another contraction, shewing the ancient type, by syllabic 
 initials, is qmd, which is found (along with qmo) in Milan 
 C 301, and is confusible with- qnd 'quando.' In Florence, 
 S. Marc, in, we find the more precise qmdo 'quomodo' 
 and qndo ' quando.' 
 
 quoniam qm (confusible s with qn 'quando') and, in more precise 
 form, qnm (e.g. in the St. Gall Priscian, where it also represents 
 'quantum'). Occasional varieties are (1) qum, e.g. in the 
 Cambridge Book of Cerne (on fol. 36 r.) and in the half-uncial 
 Cologne MS. (213), (2) quo, e.g. in this Cologne MS. (along 
 with qum); in Munich 6297 and Wiirzburg M. th. fol. 69 
 (along with qm). These last two are liable to be misread h as 
 ' quom.' So is the more precise quom, found (along with qm 
 and quo) in Milan L 85 sup., of saec. ix init. 
 
 ' Also in London, Reg. 2 A xx (on fol. 20 v.) ; in the Leyden Priscian. 
 s On the occasional use of this symbol for ' quem,' see above. 
 h In the Usher Gospels (Dublin, Trin. Coll. A 4. 15, "about a.d. 600") 
 I noted on fol. 133 r. quom corrected into quoniam. 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 25 
 
 quoque qq. This unfamiliar sign is often expanded by correctors, 
 e.g. in Florence Ashb. 60 ; in the Cambridge Bede (fol. 25 v.) ; 
 in Oxford, Laud. Lat. 92 (fol. 49 r.). In Oxford Auct. F IV 32 
 (Ovid Ars Amatoria, by a Welsh scribe) I noted the similarity 1 
 of qq 'quoque' and qq: 'quaeque.' This similarity is absent 
 when (as often in the Berne Horace) the contraction-stroke 
 traverses the lower shafts of the letters. 
 
 quot qt. Very common. (As a Nota Juris, ' quantum,' ' quoties.') 
 
 regnum reg (e.g. in book of Mulling). Not common. 
 
 reliqua (in the formula ' et reliqua,' like our ' etc.') rl (with con- 
 traction-stroke to the right of the upper shaft of the /). In 
 Florence Ashb. 60 the contraction-stroke traverses the / and et 
 (in ligature) rl is not unlike est. 
 
 The oldest type of contraction, the single initial letter r 
 (e.g. in the Berne Horace) is less usual (cf. Part I, § 3). 
 
 saeculum (see Part I, § 4). 
 
 scribo scrip ' scriptum ' (e.g. Book of Armagh). Uncommon. (See 
 also ' suprascriptus '.) 
 
 secundum (Prep.) X (cross-barred s). Like all contractions with 
 cross-strokes, this was liable to be omitted by a transcriber. 
 Besides, its unfamiliarity k produced many errors in copying. 
 Thus in an uncial eighth century MS. of Brussels (9850-2) 
 I noted sed corrected to secundum. It is also worth mention- 
 ing that in the Carlsruhe Bede the letter K has often the 
 appearance of this symbol, often of si. 
 
 The Adj. 'secucidus,' -a, -um, -i, -o, etc., generally adds a 
 termination 1 to this sign, although the sign itself "sometimes 
 plays 'this part (e.g. both uses appear in the Carlsruhe Bede). 
 Occasional forms of the contraction are sec (in the Cambridge 
 Bede, which also has scm, the normal contraction of ' sanctum ' ; 
 in the half-uncial Vienna 1224) and secun (in the Bobbio MS. 
 of the Latin Grammarians). 
 
 ' The symbol qq with a contraction-stroke over each q denotes ' quaequae ' ; 
 with a cross-stroke (properly oblique) through the shaft of each q ' quamquam ' 
 (see above, ' qui '). 
 
 k The later corrector of Florence Ashb. 60 substitutes for it the contractions 
 scd and scdm. 
 
 1 In the Leyden Priscian I noted on fol. 2 r. a corrector's addition of the letters 
 da to the symbol, in order to denote ' secunda. ' In the Berne Horace the 
 symbol followed by m is often used to denote the Preposition. 
 
26 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 sed s. To a Carolingian transcriber this would mean ' sunt ' (see 
 Part III, § 2). In the Bobbio MS. of the Latin Grammarians 
 s" (without contraction-stroke above) represents 'sed,' s (with 
 contraction-stroke above) ' sunt ' or the syllable ' ser ' (see § 3 
 ' er '). In Florence Ashb. 60 we find 's- (without contraction- 
 stroke), for which the later corrector substitutes the symbol 
 current at his own time. 
 
 sequitur segr (like loqr 'loquitur'). I noted seqt'm the 9th century 
 Leyden 67 D, which uses Irish contractions. 
 i t 
 
 sicut s. Also s (e,g. in the Berne Horace). In a Bale MS. (F III, 
 
 15 d), from the library of Fulda, we find st, which is also used 
 in the same MS. in its ordinary sense of ' sunt ' (see below). 
 In a Vatican MS. (Pal. 202) I noted sc (on fol. 36 r.), the 
 ancient 10 type of contraction. When a mere contraction-stroke 
 is substituted for suprascript u we get the nearly full expression 
 sict (e.g. in Vat. Pal. 259). 
 
 significat (see Part III, § 3). 
 
 sine sn (like su ' sive '). 
 
 sive su. A Carolingian transcriber would naturally interpret this 
 (the Nota Juris ; see Keil's Gramm. Lat. IV, p. 280) as the 
 Verb 'sum.' 
 
 I am told that in Milan C 301 inf. another symbol is also 
 found, almost identical with the ' secundum '-symbol (a cross- 
 barred s; see above). In Vat. Pal. 68 I have noted s (with 
 contraction-stroke above) ' seu.' 
 
 spatium. I have noted spa ' spatia ' in the Oxford Liber Commonei. 
 
 sunt st The second syllable of ' possunt ' is often expressed by this 
 symbol. In the Naples Charisius both st and s (the normal 
 Continental contraction) are used. 
 
 super sr (often confusible with fr 'frater'). The last syllable is 
 often expressed by the ' per '-sign (see above). 
 
 supra. I have noted" sup in Milan L 85 sup. (on fol. 60 v.). The 
 usual expression is with the ' pra '-sign (see § 3 ' ra ') for the last 
 syllable. 
 
 m It is one of the ' Notae Juris,' given on p. 300 of vol. IV. of Keil's Gram- 
 matici Latini. 
 
 " Did it stand in the original of the ninth century Paris 9530 (in Caroline 
 minuscules) in which, on fol. 17 r., sup (with contraction-stroke over the *) 
 
 a 
 is corrected into sup ' supra ' ? 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 27 
 
 suprascriptus ss. (Also for 'suis'j see below). More precise are 
 case-forms like ssi, ssti, sspti 'suprascripti.' 
 
 suus. I have noted ss 'suis ' in the gth century Oxford MS., Laud. 
 Lat. 92, as well as in later MSS. (e.g. Oxford, Laud. Lat. 26 ; 
 • the Dublin Trinity College Hymns, etc.). 
 
 tamen tn (while tm denotes" 'tantum '). A fuller expression is tarn, 
 with contraction-stroke (see § 3 ' en ') over the m (e.g. in the 
 Book of Mulling). In the Cambridge Bede (on fol. 14 r.) and 
 in Florence Ashb. 60 the later corrector expands the un- 
 familiar symbol tn. 
 
 tamquam. Rarely tq (e.g. in the Cambridge Bede. expanded by the 
 later corrector on fol. 35 r.) ; taq (with contraction-stroke over 
 the q) in Vat. Pal. 68. Usually the ' quam '-symbol is utilized. 
 
 tantum tm (expanded p by the later corrector in Florence Ashb. 60), 
 whence tmmo ' tantummodo ' (see above, ' modo '). The older 
 type of contraction, with the initial letter of each syllable, tt, 
 appears in the Bobbio MS. of Latin Grammarians and in the 
 Cambridge Bede (where it is often expanded by the later 
 corrector). One scribe of the Leyden Priscian uses the more 
 precise tnm. The Welsh scribe of Ovid Ars Amatoria in 
 Oxford, Auct. F IV 32 uses tno for 'tanto.' (See also Traube, 
 ' Nomina Sacra,' p. 265, who adds ttm 'tantum '.) 
 
 tenipus. The various cases of this word are sometimes expressed 
 by contraction, especially the Abl. Sing., e.g. temp ' tempore ' 
 (in the Naples Charisius ; in Oxford, Laud. Lat. 92, etc.). (See 
 also Part III, § 2.) 
 
 ter / (often a syllabic symbol, eg. in ' pater,' ' muter,' ' tertius,' etc.) 
 The old type of contraction (found in the Notae Juris, e.g. in 
 Vat. Reg. 886), with the contraction-stroke traversing the /, I 
 have noted in the Anglo-Saxon script of an early Tours MS. 
 (c. 800 a.d.) in the British Museum (Egerton 2831). Occa- 
 sionally an apostrophe over the / is substituted for the 
 contraction-stroke (e.g. on fol. 69 r. of the Leyden Priscian) ; 
 but this symbol normally denotes ' tus ' or ' tur ' (see § 3 ' ur '). 
 
 o 
 In the Leyden Priscian one scribe observes this distinction (e.g. tmm ' tan- 
 tummodo' fol. 199 v.), but another uses tm 'tamen,' as well as tn 'tamen' (but 
 
 o 
 tnm 'tantum,' e.g. tnmm 'tantummodo, fol. 71 v.). The confusion of 'tamen' 
 
 and ' tantum ' would be inevitable in a transcript of this MS. 
 
 P Does it ever express 'tantam'? On fol. 79 1. of Vat. Reg. 1209 it is so 
 expanded by the corrector. 
 
28 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 i i 
 
 tibi t (without contraction-stroke). (Cf. m ' mihi '.) 
 trans ts (sometimes resembling ds 'deus.'). Also the more precise 
 trs (e.g. in the Carlsruhe Priscian). 
 
 c 
 
 tunc tc (also t ?). 
 
 a 
 
 tuus. I have noted t ' tua ' on fol. 20 r. of the Carlsruhe Augustine. 
 
 This might be miscopied as ' tra ' (see Part III, § 3 ' ra '). 
 vel. The older symbol 1 u (one of the Notae Juris) is occasionally 
 
 found (e.g. in Florence Ashb. 60, expanded by the later 
 
 corrector), but survived longest in the contraction of ' velut ' 
 
 (see below). The usual symbol is / (with cross- stroke), 
 velut uu (liable to be misread r as ' unum '). Also expressed 
 
 by the substitution of either of the ' vel '-symbols (see above) 
 
 for the first syllable, 
 ver u. This is commonly a syllabic contraction, e.g. ' zwbum ' 
 
 (see § 3 for the use of this symbol for the syllables ' ver ' 
 
 and ' ven '). 
 
 vero u (without contraction-stroke; often with the V-shapeof u) 
 
 and uo (see § 3 ' er '). 
 
 vester (see ' noster'). 
 
 videlicet. Sometimes uid (e.g. in the Cambridge Bede s ). 
 
 unde un (cf. an ' ante '). This contraction might be misread 
 as ' unum.' 
 
 I have not noted in 'inde,' except in a passage in the 
 Carlsruhe Augustine, where un ' unde ' has been corrected into 
 ■ ' inde ' by erasing the first part of the u. 
 
 ut. The Nota Juris u (e.g. in Vat. Reg. 886) survives in the 
 contraction of ' velut ' (see above). But a symbol, which seems 
 really to be a ligature of the letters u and t, sometimes 
 approximates to this, e.g. in the Oxford, Aucl. F IV 32 
 
 (Ovid Ars Amatoria, by a Welsh scribe) u (with the V-shape 
 of the letter u), and similarly in the Cambridge Juvencus (with 
 dot instead of apostrophe), 
 vobis (see also ' nobis ') ub (with cross-stroke through the shaft of 
 the b) is the earlier type (e.g. in the 8th century London MS., 
 1 It also denotes ' ver ' (see below) and ' ven ' (see § 3). 
 
 r In the religious formula (see Part I, § 3) Christus qui vivit et regnal in secula 
 seculorum. amen, the word ' vivit ' is denoted by this contraction. A monastic 
 scribe might therefore possibly substitute ' vivit ' for ' velut.' 
 s Along with uide (expanded on fol. 81 r.) and uidel (expanded on fol. 83 v.). 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 29 
 
 Harl. 2965). On the more usual and more precise uob (with 
 the syllabic ' is '-symbol), see § 3 ' is.' 
 
 3. List of Syllabic Symbols (including the most frequent 
 'suspensions' of final syllables). 
 
 con q (cf. § 2 'contra'). 
 
 -e, -em. The final syllable 'ne' is often expressed by n- (e.g. 
 ' nomiw,' ' margiw ') in the Leyden Priscian. The same symbol 
 can express -nem (e.g. ' discretions ' in fol. 80 of Leyden Voss. 
 Q. 2). Similarly d- for the final syllable ' dem ' is a favourite 
 
 Irish usage, e.g. qd- ' quidem ' (cf. Part III, § 3). 
 
 en. The symbol, a suprascript stroke, is not common, except in 
 ' men ' (e.g. ' praes<?«ti ' in the Naples Charisius and the Berne 
 Horace; 'ge«tem' in the Dublin MS., Trin. Coll. A IV 20) 
 (cf. Part III, § 3). 
 
 er. The same symbol denotes ' er.' It is commonest in 'ter' (see 
 § 2, s.v.),- ' ber ' (e.g. ' habere,' ' liber '), ' ver ' (e.g. iio ' vero '). 
 I have noted in the Naples Charisius ' ser ' (e.g. ' s<?rvandum ') 
 and ' cer ' (e.g. ' certe ') (cf. Part JII, § 3, on the Continental 
 usage of this sign). The peculiarly Irish symbol for ' per ' has 
 been already mentioned (§ 2, s.v.). Irish, too, is the use of the 
 ' er-' symbol for ' re,' especially in the word ' greens ' (Graecus). 
 I have noted in the Naples Charisius ' catacresis ' (-chr-), in 
 fol. 80 of Leyden Voss. Q. 2 ' nigrcdinem ' (by a Welsh scribe). 
 
 -is. Final ' bis ' is denoted by a cross-stroke through the shaft, e.g. 
 ' urbz'.r,' ' vobis,' i nobzV ' dabis ' (which might be miscopied as 
 ' dabit '). (On the similar Continental usage, see Part III, § 3.) 
 
 -it. This ending of the third Person Singular of Verbs is often 
 expressed by a stroke over the preceding letter, e.g. ' faczV,' 
 ' fecz'zV (On the similar Continental usage, see Part III, § 3.) 
 
 ra (etc.). Much the same practice is followed in Irish as in Con- 
 tinental script (see Part III, § 3), but the substitution of two 
 dots (or two commas) for suprascript a is characteristic of Irish, 
 e.g. ' supra,' ' contra,' ' gratia.' These two dots might easily 
 be mistaken by a transcriber for ' puncta delentia.' 
 
 -runt rt (with contraction-stroke above), and similarly bt ' bunt,' 
 etc. ; while -rum is expressed by r (with contraction-stroke 
 above or alongside). This became the normal Irish usage', but 
 
 4 ' Erunt ' written in this way often resembles ' est ' (e.g. on fol. 34 r. of 
 Florence S. Marc. 811). In the Berne Horace (e.g. p. 26) we find an expres- 
 sion of ' berunt ' by cross-barred b followed by t with suprascript contraction- 
 stroke. 
 
•30 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 is not quite established, especially in the older MSS. Thus an 
 8th century London MS. (Cotton Tib. C II) has anglrm ' ange- 
 lorum,' apostlrm ' apostolorum,' etc. ; a Vatican MS., Pal. 68, 
 uses r- (sic) both for ' runt ' and for ' rum.' (On the Continental 
 treatment of these two final syllables, see Part III, § 3.) 
 
 ul is expressed, as in Continental script (see Part III, § 3) by /with 
 a cross-stroke, e.g. 'nWtus,' 'popw/us' (cf. § 2, s. v.), 'secw/um,' 
 ' na/lam.' 
 
 -um is treated much as in Continental script (see Part III, § 3). 
 Thus d with cross-stroke represents ' -dum,' e.g. ' da.nd.um ' 
 (cf. § 2, ' dum '), and c with suprascript stroke (or apostrophe) 
 ' cum ' (cf. § 2 ' cum ') (e.g. ' locum,' ' caMcutn ' in the Book, of 
 Mulling). 
 
 On 'rum,' see above. 
 
 ur is denoted (as in early Continental script ; see Part III, § 3) in 
 earlier MSS. by the apostrophe, e.g. fig'a ' figura ' ; in later by 
 the 2-symbol. In London, Cotton Tib. A XIV the older 
 symbol is corrected to the later more than once. For ' tur ' we 
 often find a cross-stroke (usually vertical) intersecting the upper 
 and lower branch of th'e /, e.g. in Oxford, Laud. 92, Milan L 85 
 sup., Vat. Pal. 68, Vat. Reg. 1209, Paris 1771, and (with 
 a slight variety of form) in the Cambridge Bede, Leyden Voss. 
 F 4, and Florence S. Marc. 611. 
 
 us is specially denoted by the colon or the semi-colon or (with dot 
 and comma joined together) 3, e.g. aug3tas ' augustas.' Also 
 by the apostrophe-sign. What is said of this syllable in Con- 
 tinental script (Part III, § 3) applies, in 'the main, to its Irish 
 use also. 
 
 Part III. Continental Script. 
 
 1. List of the MSS. most often cited : — 
 
 Berlin (Phillipp. 17 16) Praedicationes, saec. viii-ix. 
 
 Berne (611) Varia, saec. viii-ix, in Merovingian script (with 
 
 many of the Irish contractions). 
 Brussels (10127-41) Canones, (Ghent), saec. viii. 
 (8780-93) Canones, (Stavelot), saec. viii. 
 Carlsruhe (Reich. 191) Varia, (Reichenau), saec. viii-ix. 
 (Reich. 248) Glossae, (Reichenau), saec. viii-ix. 
 (Reich. 253) Jerome, (Reichenau),- saec. viii. 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 31 
 
 Leyden (Voss. Q 69) Glossary, etc., (St. Gall), saec. viii-ix. 
 
 (Voss. F 3) Ausoniiis, Paulinus, etc. (Lyons), saec. ix, 
 
 in Visigothic script. 
 (Voss. F 26) Glossaries, (Abbey of S. Bavo, Ghent), 
 
 saec. viii-ix. 
 (67 F) Glossaries, saec. viii-ix. 
 London (Brit. Mus.). 
 
 (Add. 31,031) Gregory, (Bavaria), saec. viii, in Mero- 
 vingian script. 
 (Cotton, Ner. A II) Theological Tracts, (France), 
 saec. viii. ex. 
 Lucca (490) Eusebii Chronica, saec. viii, in Lombard script. 
 
 Milan (Ambr.) (B 31 sup.) Isidore de Differentiis, (Bobbio), 
 
 before 840 a.d., in semi-Lombardic script. 
 (C 105 inf.) Hegesippus, (Bobbio), c. 700 a.d., in pre- 
 
 Lombardic script. 
 (D 268 inf.) Ambrose, etc., (Bobbio), saec. vii-viii, in 
 
 pre-Lombardic script. 
 (L 99 sup.) Isidore, (Bobbio), saec. viii, in pre-Lombardic 
 
 script. 
 
 Munich (1086) Vita S. Bonifatii, (Freising), saec. viii-ix. 
 (6228) Jerome, (Freising), saec. viii. 
 (6243) Canones, (Freising), saec. viii. 
 (6330) Doctrinae Patrum, (Freising), saec. viii-ix. 
 (14437) Augustine, (Frankfort), 823 a.d. ("scriptus 
 autem per Ellennardum* et Dignum, Hildoino ortho- 
 grafiam praestante. Scriptus est autem diebus septem 
 et in octavo correctus "). 
 Oxford (Bodl.) (Lat. Th. d. 3) Jerome's Commentary on O.T., 
 
 c. 780 A.D. 
 Paris (3836) Canones, (Corbie), saec. viii. 
 (10612) Gregory, saec. viii. 
 (13386) Peregrinus, saec. viii. 
 Rome (Vat.) (Pal. 187) Galen, (Lorsch), saec. viii (the minus- 
 cule part). 
 (Pal. 216) Augustine, saec. viii-ix. 
 (Vat. 5763) Isidore's Etymologies, (Bobbio), saec. vii-viii, 
 in pre-Lombardic script. 
 
32 Contractions in Eafly Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 • 
 
 St. Gall (70) St. Paul's Epistles, (St. Gall), saec. viii. 
 
 (194) Caesarius, etc. 
 
 (238) Liber Proprietatis Sermonum, etc. (St. Gall), 
 saec. viii. 
 Verona (89) Orationale Mozarabicum, in Visigothic script. 
 
 2. List of Contractions : — 
 
 (Those which are found also in later Continental script are 
 printed in italics. Unless otherwise stated, it is always to 
 be understood that a stroke is drawn above the letters forming 
 the contraction in the MSS.) 
 
 adeo ado (with contraction-stroke over the o or traversing the shaft 
 of the d) (cf. ido 'ideo'), e.g. in the Visigothic Leyden 
 Voss. F 3. 
 
 anima aia (see Part II, § 2). , 
 
 annus (see Part II, § 2). I have noted an 'annos' in the eighth, 
 century Paris 13348, an and ann 'annos' in Brussels 8780 — 
 93, an ' annus,' etc. (in repetitions) in Leyden Seal. 28, ann 
 'annos' in Cologne 91, annr ' annorum ' in Berne 611 (cf. 
 Part I, § 3). 
 
 apud. Rarely ap (the Irish contraction; see Part II, § 2), e.g. 
 Rome, Pal. lat. 216. More precise and commoner is apd (with 
 cross-stroke through the shaft of the d), e.g. Leyden Voss. F 58. 
 
 aut. Sometimes a (the Irish * contraction ; see Part II, § 2), 
 e.g. Brussels 10127 — 41, Leyden Voss. F 26. There is 
 danger of confusion with the Preposition a (cf. Part II, § 2). 
 Thus in Milan L 99 sap. I noted on p. 35 the Prep, with 
 the apex (i.e. the acute accent sign put over a long vowel) 
 in the sentence a codicibus /egum abolendis written exactly in the 
 form 'of this contraction). 
 
 autem. A detailed historical account of the contractions of this 
 word will be found in an article by Traube in the Neues 
 Archiv d. Geschichtskunde, vol. xxvi, pp. 232 sqq. He says 
 that the contraction aut originated in Italy, whence it passed 
 into France, and dominated Continental script from the tenth 
 century onwards. The rival symbol au also originated in Italy, 
 later than the other, and passed. from Italy into Germany (and 
 Switzerland). Characteristic of Visigothic script is the symbol 
 aum. 
 
 " It is (like ap ' apud ') one of the Notae Juris, e.g. in Vat. Reg. 886. 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 33 
 
 caput cap (with contraction-stroke over the /). In vol. XXVII 
 of the Neues Archiv d. Geschichtskunde, pp. 270 sqq., Traube 
 gives an account of the contractions of this word which were 
 used to indicate a new paragraph, (1) K, (2) 'c% (3) kpt 
 (a Spanish form), etc., and shews how they often intruded into 
 the text or were misinterpreted by scribes (e.g. et appears 
 for the K-symbol in some MSS. of Martianus Capella). 
 
 cum c, also c with apostrophe above (and with no contraction- 
 stroke). In an eighth century MS. of Brussels (10127-41) 
 we find this differentiation : (1) c with apostrophe above, 
 ' cum,' (2) c with contraction-stroke above, 'con-,' (3) co with 
 contraction-stroke over the o, 'com-' (and 'con-'?). In 
 Munich 14437 'nobiscum' appears as nobc, with cross-stroke 
 through the b, but with no stroke over the c. The corrector 
 expands this symbol on its first appearance on fol. 32 v., but 
 leaves it unaltered in its other occurrences. 
 
 dico. What was said of the Irish contractions (Part II, § 2) applies, 
 in the main, to the Continental. Thus dr ' dicitur,' dt ' dicit,' 
 dx 'dixit,' shew the earlier type; dicr, die (with stroke over 
 the c), dix (with stroke over the x) the later (e.g. in Munich 
 14437 dx on f°l- 61 r., but usually dix ' dixit,' so that dx 
 apparently comes from the original). In the Leyden Glos- 
 sary (Voss. Q 69) we find side by side for ' dicitur,' dr, 
 dir, dicr, etc. (cf. Part I, § 3) ; while ' dicunt ' is expressed 
 by the earlier type of contraction dnt, as well as by the more 
 precise dint. For ' dicuntur ' the earlier symbol is dnr. Of 
 the same type is drt, 'dixerunt' (which I have noted in 
 a ninth century London MS. (Add. 11,880) on fol. 131 v.), and 
 dxms 'diximus' in Vienna 957. In the Caroline minuscule 
 part of an Oxford MS. (Auct. F IV 32) ' dicit ' is expressed by 
 dit. For ' dicens ' the earlier type of contraction is des (e.g. 
 in Munich 1044), the later 1 is dies (e.g. in Brussels 8216-8, 
 with diets 'dicentes'; Carlsruhe Reich. 191; London Harl. 
 3063; St. Gall 185, while dns represents ' dominus ') ; but 
 there is an early contraction of the Participle by ' suspension ' 
 die, which I have noted in the uncial part of an eighth century 
 MS. of Brussels (9850-2 ; perhaps from St. Vaast's, Arras), 
 
 * I have noted diens ' dicens ' in Berne 376 : diet ' dicit ' on fol. 73 r. of a 
 MS. from Reiclienau Library, Carlsruhe Reich. 248. 
 
 D 
 
34 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 and which also occurs (probably taken from the original 7) in 
 a ninth century minuscule MS. of Brussels (9403). I have 
 not noted in Continental script the Irish symbols dms (dcms) 
 'dicimus,' dxnt 'dixerunt,' dre 'dicere.' dcm 'dictum,' etc. 
 
 dum (see § 3 'urn '). 
 
 eius. The word had no special symbol, as it had in Irish script, but 
 was usually written with the help of the syllabic ' us '-sign 
 (see § 3). In a Vatican MS. (Pal. 216) I noted ei (which 
 might easily be misread ' enim '), as well as ei' (without con- 
 traction-stroke). 
 
 enim. The Irish H-like symbol is not properly Continental, but 
 I have noted a variation, the symbol preceded by the vowel e 
 (without contraction - stroke) in an eighth century MS. of 
 Brussels (10127-41). In the Milan Hegesippus en is used. 
 The old symbol (one of the Notae Juris) fjj is found ' in an 
 eighth century Vienna MS. (957). 
 
 epistula (see Part I, § 4). 
 
 est e (also ee 'esse,' eet ' esset,' etc.) or -^ (cf. Part II, § 2). 
 In Oxford, Lat. Th. d. 3 (in which ae is used for e in all kinds 
 of words, e.g. Maegis,' 'fuaeris,' ' vidaetae,' etc.) I have noted 
 ae 'est' (e.g. on fol. 115 v.). 
 
 et. The Irish 7-like symbol early found its way into Continental 
 usage (e.g. in Vat. 6018, on fol. 52 r. ; in the ninth century 
 Vat. Reg. 342 ; in the Visigothic Verona 89). 
 
 facit, fecit (see § 3 ' it '). 
 
 frater (same as in Irish ; see Part II, § 2).- Also fra (e.g. Lucca 
 490). In Munich 14437 frm 'fratrem' has been altered (on 
 fol. S3 v.) into frem by the corrector, presumably to obviate 
 the danger of 'fratrum' being understood. In formulas (cf. 
 Part I, § 3) fr can denote 'feria' (e.g. Leyden, Seal. 28). 
 (For fuller details, see Traube, ' Nomina Sacra,' p. 256.) 
 
 gens. The contraction of this word is not very common. I have 
 noted gs 'gentis,' gtm ' gentem ' in Oxford, Lat. Th. d. 3. 
 (On the syllabic ' en '-symbol, see § 3.) 
 
 y The scribe himself has expanded the contraction on fol. ^7 v. In th '1 
 
 MS. a corrector has sometimes expanded the contraction (to 'dicentes' 11 
 
 as to 'dicens'). It would of course suggest 'dicit' to a transcriber- and th 
 substitution of dicit for dicens in a MS. points to the use of this rare cont ■ f 
 in the original. 
 
 2 This is exactly the Irish way of writing 'In' at the beginning of a 
 graph. 
 
' Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 35 
 
 genus (see Part I, § 3) ; gns in Visigothic. 
 
 gloria (see Part I, § 4). 
 
 Graecus. grci ' Graeci ' is Visigothic. 
 
 gratia gra, whence gram ' gratiam,' etc. 
 
 habeo ht 'habet' (cf. Part II, § 2) and hnt ' habent ' (ibid.), the 
 Irish contractions, are not unknown (e.g. Cologne 210, St. Gall 
 249). The ancient style of contraction by means of the initial 
 letter of each syllable, I have noted only in an eighth century 
 Paris MS. (2843 A.), which shews not merely hb (on fol. 46 r), 
 but also the usual hab (with cross-stroke through the b) (see 
 § 3 'it'). In Munich 14437 of 823 a.d., hnt 'habent' is 
 changed by the contemporary corrector (on fol. 20 v.) into 
 hant ' habent.' 
 
 hoc. The Irish symbol h (without contraction-stroke) with dot, 
 or apostrophe, above the shoulder of the letter, is not 
 unknown (e.g. Carlsruhe Reich. 99, Munich 14252). In 
 Munich 14437 this symbol (but with dot to the side, not 
 above the shoulder of the h) has been expanded (on fol. 58 v.) 
 by the corrector. Much rarer are the Irish symbols he ' hunc ' 
 (e.g. Vienna 903), h 'haec' (e.g. London Add. 11,880). In 
 Brussels 10127-41 I have noted 'huius' expressed by the 
 symbol used in the Notae Juris, , hui (along with the usual 
 hui' without contraction-stroke ; see § 3 ' us ') ; the Irish hs 
 only in St. Gall 225. 
 
 homo. The contraction by ' suspension ' hom represents ' hominem ' 
 (e.g. in Oxford, Lat. Th. d. 3, beside homi ' homini '), 
 ' homines ' (e.g. Munich 6330 ; Carlsruhe Reich. 99, on 
 fol. 45 r.). (Cf. om * omnis,' ' omnes,' 'omnem,' etc., below.) 
 The Irish contractions (see Part II, § 2.) are also used; ho, 
 e.g. London, Add. 18,332 (from Carinthia), Munich 6330; 
 
 h (without contraction-stroke), e.g. Rome, Vat. Reg. 221. 
 
 ideo ido (sic) I have noted in Berne 263 (on fol. 67 r ). 
 
 id est. For the symbol ide (with contraction-stroke over the '. 
 or traversing the shaft of the d), which also represents * idem ' B , 
 we find in some early minuscule MSS. id (with contraction- 
 stroke traversing the shaft; e.g. in Leyden 67 F, Carlsruhe 
 Reich. 99) or merely -i- (without contraction-stroke ; e.g. in 
 
 a Hence the constant confusion of the words idem and id est in MSS. In 
 Yat. Pal. 237 I noted on fol. 25 v. idem corrected to id est. 
 
 D 2 
 
36 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 Carlsruhe Reich. 99, sometimes accompanied by the 'est' 
 symbol -r- ) (cf. Part II, § 2 ' id est ')• The Visigothic symbol 
 is idt (also idst). On id ' idem ' see below, p. 48. 
 
 imperator impr (e.g. Vat. Pal. 834; Munich 14540; London Add. 
 11,880). 
 
 inde (see § 3 ' e ', ' em '). 
 
 item it (with the contraction-stroke over the /) (e.g. in Cologne 210, 
 Berne 61 1, St. Gall. 189, Vat. Pal. 493)- The same s y mbo1 
 seems to stand for ' iterum ' in Paris 2843 A in the formula 
 'iterum dicit ' (cf. Part I, § 3). 
 
 magis mag (with the contraction-stroke over the g ; cf. § 3 ' is '), 
 e.g. in the ninth century Leyden 67 E. 
 
 mater (see ' ter '). 
 
 meus ms (a symbol which I have noted for ' mensis ' in Leyden 
 67 D j cf. Part I, § 3). Also m?n ' meum ' (see Part II, § 2). 
 
 mihi tn (without contraction-stroke). The ancient use of the 
 syllable-initials mh (with contraction-stroke traversing the shaft 
 of the h) I noted in Berlin, Phill. 50 of the end of saec. viii 
 (on fol. 11 r.). 
 
 misericordia (see Part I, § 4). I have noted the contraction by 
 ' suspension ' mis in London, Harl. 3063 (expanded by a con- 
 temporary corrector) ; also mam ' misericordiam ' in London, 
 Cotton Ner. A II; and mae ' misericordiae ' in St. Gall 227. 
 But these three varieties rather belong to the type described in 
 Part I, § 3. Traube ('Nomina Sacra,' p. 250) says that ma 
 ' misericordia ' was affected by the Verona scribes in the Caro- 
 lingian period. 
 
 modo (as in Irish ; see Part II, § 2). 
 
 i 
 
 nisi n (without contraction-stroke). 
 
 nobis (see Part II, § 2 ; and below, ' vobis '). 
 
 nomen. The Irish symbol no (nois, noi, noe, noa, etc.) denotes in 
 early Continental script ' nostra ' or ' non.' I have noted no 
 ' nomen ' in the Leyden Glossary (Voss. Q 69), evidently taken 
 from the original ; for in the transcript it appears only once. The 
 normal symbol in this and in all Continental MSS. is nom (with 
 contraction-stroke over the m; cf. § 3 ' en '). In St. Gall 907 
 I noted (on p. 317) nm (the Nota Juris), while ' nostrum ' was 
 expressed by nrm. In London, Add. 30,852 (in ninth century 
 Visigothic script) I noted on fol. 99 r. nne ' nomine,' which 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 37 
 
 might easily be miscopied as ' nonne ' ; in the ninth century 
 Visigothic Leyden Voss. F 3 the typical Visigothic symbols 
 nmn 'nomen,' nme ' nomine,' nma ' nomina.' (See also Traube, 
 ' Nomina Sacra,' p. 260.) 
 
 non n and no. The more precise form is found early, e.g. in the 
 eighth century Brussels MS. (8780-93). I have noted it also 
 in a London MS. (Add. 18,332) on fol. 167 r., and in a Vatican 
 MS. (5845) in Lombard script. 
 
 noster, vester. A detailed historical account of the contractions of 
 these Possessives has been given by Traube in his ' Perrona 
 Scottorum ' (Munich, 1900) and repeated in his posthumous 
 work, 'Nomina Sacra,' pp. 204 — 237. From it I take these 
 particulars. The most ancient type of contraction, with the 
 initial letter merely, n 'noster, -tra, -trum,' etc., u 'vester, -tra, 
 -trum,' etc., was productive of mistakes, since n also denoted 
 ' non ' b , u also ' vel' In the sixth century the final letter was 
 added for the sake of precision, ni 'nostri,' no 'nostro,' na 
 ' nostra,' nos ' nostras,' etc. This, too, led to errors of tran- 
 scription, for no also denoted 'nomen' (and later 'non'), na 
 also ' nam,' nos resembled n6s, i.e. 'nos ' with apex, and so on. 
 The practice of superscribing the final letter, found in some 
 
 early juristic MSS. (e.g. the majuscule Verona Gaius) n ' nostri,' 
 
 o i 
 
 n 'nostro,' etc., was not more fortunate , since, e.g., n also 
 
 o 
 
 denoted ' nisi,' u also ' vera.' In the eighth century a more 
 precise symbol came in, nri ' nostri,' nro ' nostra,' etc., and 
 became predominant in Continental script. But variations 
 were not lacking. Most notable is the type which is character- 
 istic of Visigothic script, nsr 'noster,' nsi 'nostri,' etc. (found 
 in Spain as early as the sixth century ; also nstri, nsri). Other 
 occasional variations are nt ' noster ' (in France and Germany ; 
 confused with ' inter '), nrt ' noster ' (in France and Italy), nora 
 ' nostra,' etc. (in Spain). A 'full list of these variations will be 
 found in Traube's book, and on p. 519 (N.S. p. 226) examples 
 of the miscopying of na ' nostra ' as nam, of uo ' vera ' as uro 
 
 b For examples of scribes' substitutions of 'non' for 'noster,' see Traube, 
 P.S. p. 501, N.S. p. 209. 
 
 c From corruptions in some of the chief MSS. of Caesar's Bellum Gallicum, 
 which are clearly due to this form of the contraction of ' noster,' Traube infers 
 that the original source of these MSS. was a sixth century Codex. 
 
38 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 ' vestro,' of ui ' vestri ' as vim, and (most curious of all) of urn 
 ' vir magnificus ' as urm ' vestrum.' 
 numquam (see ' qui '). 
 
 nunc (i) n (without contraction-stroke) (e.g. in Paris 13386 ; Milan 
 L. 99 sup. ; Leyden Voss. F 26, etc.). In later minuscule this 
 can denote ' nee,' e.g. in the glosses of Oxford Laud. Lat. 26. 
 (2) nc (e.g. Brussels 8780-93, etc.). 
 
 omnis (1) The earliest contraction is om for all cases (cf. hom 
 ' homo,' above), especially ' omnis,' ' omnes.' Here are some 
 statistics from my notes : om ' omnis,' ' omnes ' in Leyden 
 Voss. Q69, Munich 6330; 'omnes' Nom. and Ace. PI. in Vat. 
 Pal. 834, from Lorsch Library ; ' omnes ' Ace. PI. in Leyden 
 67 F; ' omnes,' ' omnis,' ' omnem ' in Carlsruhe Reich. 222; 
 'omnes' in Geneva 21 (from Murbach Library), Cologne 91, 
 Carlsruhe Reich. 221, Berne 376 (also oms), Munich 6243, 
 Carlsruhe Reich. 99, and in Bale frag. III. 13-15; 'omnes,' 
 'omnis' (but oi 'omni') in Cologne 210; 'omnes,' 'omnis,' 
 ' omnibus ' (but also oms ' omnes,' oma ' omnia ') in Leyden Seal. 
 28 ; 'omnes' Ace. PI. (but oms Nom. Sing, on fol. 10 v.) in Berlin, 
 Phill. 1716; 'omnes' (also oms) in Carlsruhe Reich. 191 ; om 
 and oms in the same passage on fol. 77 v. of Munich 14770 ; in 
 Vat. Reg. 713 on fol. 59 r. om is expanded by the corrector to 
 ' omnibus ' ; ' omne ' in Oxford, Lat. Th. d. 3, on fol. 115 v. ; 
 'omnes' (on fol. 131 v.) and 'omnia 7 in Troyes 657. It is 
 a feature of early St. Gall script (e.g. St. Gall 109 om 'omnis,' 
 'omnes,' St. Gall 225 om 'omnes,' 'omnis,' 'omne,' St. Gall 
 876 om 'omnes,' St. Gall 126 om ' omnes ' on p. 71, p. 118, 
 etc., St. Gall 914 om 'omnes,' St. Gall 125 om 'omnes,' 
 ' omnis,' St. Gall 1 94 om ' omnes,' and on p. 2 om expanded 
 to omnis, St. Gall 193 om 'omnis,' along with oms 'omnes'). 
 We may infer its presence in the original of St. Gall 185, in 
 which om is expanded by the corrector to ' omnis ' on p. 19, to 
 'omnem ' on p. 20, to ' omnibus ' on p. 27, to ' omne ' on. p. 32, 
 to ' omnis ' on p. 33 and p. 90, to ' omni ' on p. 57, but is left 
 untouched on p. 119 om (i.e. ' omnes ') nodos. 
 
 (2) with the final letter, oms. In early minuscule the Nom. 
 Sing, and Nom. (Ace.) Plural are not discriminated ", whereas 
 
 d Editors should not attach much weight to the spelling of the Ace. Plur. 
 iii the case of this word in an ordinary minuscule MS. The original probably 
 offered oms or (if quite early minuscule) om or else os. 
 
Contr Actions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 39 
 
 later e oms means ' omnes,' and not ' omnis,' which is written 
 amis. While oma ' omnia ' is common, omm is a rare contrac- 
 tion, denoting 'omnem ' (in Oxford, Lat. Th. d. 3) or ' omnium ' 
 (in Munich 14437, on fol. 49 v.). For 'omnibus ' we have omb 
 (with cross-barred b, representing the final syllable ' bus ' ; see 
 § 3 • us '). 
 
 (3) without the m. os 'omnes' is early f , e.g. (along with 
 oms) in the Lucca Eusebius ; in Cologne 210 (with om 'omnes,' 
 ' omnis ') oium ' omnium,' oi ' omni ' (the Irish type of contrac- 
 tion ; see Part II, § 2). 
 
 (4) with mn, the most precise contraction. I have noted 
 omns 'omnes' in Cologne 75, in Paris 10612, and (along with 
 omis 'omnis') in London, Add. 18,332; omn (Ace. Plur.) 
 expanded by the corrector to ' omnes ' on fol. 34 r. of Paris 
 13386 ; omn ' omnes,' ' omne ' (cf. § 3 ' -e,' ' -em ') in Brussels 
 10127-41 ; omn 'omne ' in Vat. 6018, and Vat. Barberini XIV 
 52 (on fol. 97 r). (See also Traube, ' Nomina Sacra,' p. 260.) 
 
 pater (see ' ter ' ; also Traube, ' Nomina Sacra,' p. 261). 
 
 per p (with cross-stroke through the lower shaft). In Visigothic 
 script the ' pro '-symbol (in various forms) plays this part 
 (e.g. in the ninth century London 30,852, along with the 
 Carolingian symbol), so that the substitution of ' pro ' for ' per ' 
 suggests a Visigothic original. 
 
 populus. I noted ppls (Visigothic) in Munich 6228, London Add. 
 30,852, pplo 'populo ' in London Add. 11,880 (from Bavaria?), 
 pplm ' populum ' in Oxford, Lat. Th. d. 3 (c. 780 a.d.) ; 
 popls (Lombard) in Florence, Laur. lxvi. 40, poplm * popu- 
 lum ' in London Add. 18,332 (from Carinthia) ; all with cross- 
 stroke intersecting the /. 
 
 post p ; or P3 or p' (all without contraction-stroke), really the symbols 
 of ' pus ' or ' pos.' (In MSS. under Irish influence, like Milan 
 I 6 sup. 2, Leyden 67 D, p' is a symbol of 'per' and often 
 
 i 
 
 closely resembles p 'pri'). Occasionally (see above, p. 19) 
 pt (e.g. Carlsruhe Reich. 85), which would suggest ' praeter ' 
 to a transcriber. 
 
 6 In Oxford, Laud. Lat. 22 oms ' omnis ' on fol. 13 r. has received a suprascript 
 / from the corrector. 
 
 ' The substitution of ' hos ' for ' omnes ' point to this contraction in the 
 original. The noun ' os,' if marked, as commonly, with the apex, would be 
 confusible with this symbol, which I have also noted for ' ostendit ' (in repetitions ; 
 cf. Part I, § 3) on p. 77 of St. Gall 125. 
 
40 Contractions in £arly Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 prae p. Later, e.g. in Florence, S. Crucis XVII dextr. 8, the 
 
 a 
 
 Dunstan Regula Benedicti at Cambridge, etc. ; p (without con- 
 traction-stroke) denotes (i) ' prae,' (2) ' pra ' (cf. § 3 ' ra ')• In 
 Bale F III 15 k. I noted a combination of the two symbols, 
 p with contraction stroke above it and with a (by a later hand?) 
 above the contraction-stroke, 
 praeter (as in Irish ; see Part II, § 2 ' prae '). 
 
 o 
 
 pro &. In Leyden Voss. F 26 p (without contraction- stroke) 
 (e.g. ' profundis,' '/ra:ella'); also in Vat. Pal. 187, from Lorsch 
 
 o i 
 
 Library (e.g. in 'prowl,' ' pro\ ocat,' 'prohibit'; also ppus 
 ' proprius '). 
 proprius. i)p denotes 'propriam,' ' propriarum,' etc. in Milan B 31. 
 
 A more precise expression (e.g. Milan L 99 sup. ' proprium ') 
 adds to this the letter r. On the normal combination of the 
 • pro '-sign with the ' pri '-sign, see § 3 'ra,' and cf. above, ' pro ' ; 
 for the confusion of proprius and propter, see below), 
 propter. The oldest symbol (a Nota Juris) is pp, with cross-stroke 
 traversing the lower shafts, or drawn over the top of the letters 
 (or of one « letter). More precise and commoner is ppt (e.g. in 
 Paris 13386; in the ninth century Brussels 9403; in Leyden 
 67 E, of the same century; and, along with pp, in St. Gall 109 
 and Munich 6330, e.g. fol. 9 v.). When the ' pro '-symbol (see 
 above) was substituted for the first p (e.g. Leyden Seal. 28), 
 the only remnant of contraction was the syllabic- contraction 
 ' er ' (see § 3). Along with this extremely precise expression 
 of the word occurs in Lucca 490 a curious reduction, the ' pro '- 
 symbol followed by tr (with contraction-stroke above), of which 
 a more correct 11 variety is the ' pro '-symbol followed by t (with 
 contraction-stroke above) (e.g. Leyden Voss. 106). The variety 
 prop (sic) in Leyden Seal. 28 may be the scribe's copy of the 
 pp (with lower cross stroke, as on fol. 55 r.) of his (Irish?) 
 original, for the very precise expression mentioned above is the 
 
 s In Munich 14437 pp with stroke over the second p is normal, while on 
 fol. 22 r. pp with stroke traversing the lower shafts is expanded by the corrector. 
 The inference is that the latter form stood in the original. 
 
 h Still this really should read 'pro-ter.' It is one of the Notae Juris (see 
 Keil ' Gramm. Lat. IV, p. 326). Does this throw any light on the misspelling 
 ' proptervus' for ' protervus,' over which philologists have wasted so much time 
 and thought ? 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 41 
 
 normal form in this MS. That curious curtailment cited (p. 20) 
 from the Carlsruhe Priscian (also used in the Carlsruhe Bede), 
 the ' pro '-sign along with contraction-sign, I have noted in the 
 ninth century Berne 263 (on fol. 10 r). Here the contraction - 
 sign has the form of an apostrophe, so that the resemblance be- 
 tween it and the curtailed contraction of ' propri-\is ' (see p. 19) 
 is very close indeed. In Voss. Q 69 propter is often wrongly sub- 
 stituted for proprium. Glogger, in his monograph on this MS. 
 (Augsburg, 1901), ascribes to its original the use of pp (properly 
 the symbol of ' propter') as symbol of 'proprium' (in repeti- 
 tions). This pp 'proprium' occurs, he says, now and then in 
 the MS. The Visigothic symbols for ' propter ' are ppr 
 and pptr. 
 
 quae (see ' qui '). 
 
 quaesumus qs (e.g. Cologne 43 ; Cologne 138). 
 
 quam, quamquam (see ' qui '). 
 
 quando. Sometimes' qn (while qm denoted ' quoniam'), e.g. St. Gall 
 249 ' dX\quando? More precise are and and quo. The original 
 of Munich 14437 had apparently qn (the usual Irish symbol ; 
 see Part II, § 2), for this symbol is expanded on fol. 63 r. 
 by the corrector, while the normal form in the MS. is qnd. 
 In Milan L 99 sup. the rare form qo appears on fol. 6 r. 
 ( = Isidore Etymol. 1, 4, 8). 'Quando' is not nearly so often 
 contracted as ' quoniam ' in Continental minuscules. 
 
 quasi. Sometimes the Irish symbols appear, qs (which also k de- 
 notes 'quaesumus' and 'quis') and more frequently the more 
 precise qsi (expanded as unfamiliar by the corrector on fol. 
 22 r. of Munich 14437 of 823 ad.) 
 
 que is expressed (as in Irish) by q (without contraction-stroke) 
 followed by a dot or a comma or a semicolon or a colon. But 
 in the earliest minuscule MSS. there is a rival symbol, q with 
 a stroke (usually wavy) intersecting (usually obliquely) the shaft 
 of the letter (see p. 43). This rival symbol in its various forms 
 is confusible with the symbols for ' quod,' ' quam,' and ' qui ' 
 respectively (also ' quia ' ; cf. Part II, § 2), and is sometimes 
 
 > In the Notae Juris qn denoted ' quoniam,' and Traube says ('Nomina Sacra,' 
 p. 263) that this is the prevalent use of the symbol qn in Carolingian MSS. 
 Certainly the confusion of ' quando ' and ' quoniam ' would often present itself 
 to a transcriber. 
 
 k In Cologne 74, of saec. viii-ix, qs is often expanded by a corrector. 
 
42 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 discriminated from them by the addition of a dot 1 (usually 
 at the upper end of the cross-stroke). I give from my notes 
 some statistics of this cross-stroked symbol : — 
 
 It is a feature of early St. Gall MSS. (in which ' quern ' is 
 expressed by this sign with contraction-stroke above), (e.g. the 
 Kero Glossary). We may infer its existence in the original 
 of St. Gall 70, for in the earlier part of this MS. 'que' is 
 denoted by this symbol, later only by q; etc., excepting ' usgue,' 
 which the scribe perhaps mistook for • usquam.' Similarly 
 in St. Gall 194 this symbol appears in the earlier pages, q: 
 in the rest. In Berne 263 (also Leyden Voss. 63 ; 67 E) both q; 
 and this symbol are used, the latter being expanded sometimes 
 to ' quae,' sometimes (rightly) to ' quia.' It is used in the pre- 
 Lombardic script of Vat. 5763, of Milan D 268 inf., and 
 (along with q; and q.) of Milan C 105 inf. ; in Verona IV, LV, 
 LXII (6); in the seventh (?) century London Add. 11,878 in 
 Merovingian script; in the eighth century Paris 13348. In the 
 Merovingian script of Berne 611 this symbol (with horizontal 
 wavy cross-stroke) denotes ' quam ' as well as ' que ' ; in Ley- 
 den 67 F, Brussels 8780-93 it denotes both ' quae ' (cf. Munich 
 
 e 
 
 14540) and 'que.' Another expression q (e.g. 'que,' ' obse- 
 guendo,' ' quern ') appears occasionally in Milan L 99 sup. (see 
 below, ' qui '). 
 qui, quis (cf. Part II, § 2). The system of superscribing the vowel 
 (with suppression of u, and with no contraction-stroke) is often 
 
 i a o e 
 
 followed : q ' qui,' q ' qua,' q ' quo,' and occasionally qm 
 'quern' (e.g. Milan L 99 sup.). Similarly qs 'quis,' qbus 
 (often with syllabic ' us '-symbol ; see § 3) ' quibus,' qs ' quas,' 
 
 o i o 
 
 qs 'quos,' qd 'quid,' qd 'quod' (e.g. Milan L 99 sup., 
 
 1 Apparently a combination of the symbol q. with the rival symbol. In the 
 eighth century Merovingian Turin D V 3, the colon appears instead of the dot ; 
 i.e. the symbol q: is combined with the other. Both of these combination-forms 
 are used in the eighth century Paris 3836, written at Corbie. The former I have 
 rioted in London, Cotton Ner. A II; in Paris 2483 A; in Paris 12598; in 
 London, Harl. 3063; in Brussels 9403; in Vat. Pal. 493 (from Lorsch)'; in 
 Leyden 114 (from Rheims), etc. The latter, in the eighth century Paris 8921 
 (in Visigothic script) ; in Montpellier 69 ; in the Paris Glossarium Ansileubi 
 (11589) ; in Brussels 9850-2, etc. 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 43 
 
 a 
 
 Leyden Voss. F 26), qm ' quam ' (e.g. Milan L 99 sup.), 
 
 o a 
 
 qr, qr (both with contraction-stroke above the r ; see § 3 ' um ') 
 
 i 
 
 ' quorum,' ' quarum.' Also Derivative Words like qa ' quia,' 
 
 qn ' quin.' Had this simple system been exclusively followed, 
 a great deal of confusion would have been avoided. But 
 a wide variety in the expression of these Cases and Derivatives 
 is seen in early Continental minuscule. I give the more normal 
 symbols first : — 
 
 0; This (which denotes • quod ' in Irish script and in 
 the Notae Juris, e.g in Vat. Reg. 886) denotes ' que ' 
 (or by misspelling ' quae ') in early Continental script, 
 while ' quod ' is denoted m by qd (with contraction- 
 stroke traversing the shaft of the d ). 
 CL 'quam' (often expanded in Vat. Pal. 829). 
 
 q s 'qui' (cf. p. 23) is a feature of early St. Gall and 
 
 Bobbio MSS. (e.g. St. Gall 185; 228; Milan C 105 
 
 inf.; D 268 inf. ; L 99 sup. ; Vat. 5763), also Berne 
 
 6ti. The normal symbol is Q (followed by d, ' quid,' 
 
 followed by s, 'quis,' etc.). 
 
 cj ' quae.' 
 
 I append from my notes some statistics of variations : — 
 
 In Cologne 210 this normal 'qui '-symbol is also used n for 
 
 'quae,' the ' quae '-symbol for 'quis' (also ° in Cologne 91), 
 
 while both ' qui ' and ' quod ' (e.g. ' quodsi ') are denoted by q: 
 
 (also used in its normal function of 'que,' ' qu^a)>e.') In 
 
 Munich 6330 the ' quae '-symbol denotes 'quam,' both alone 
 
 and in compounds like ' rmmquam,' ' antequam.' In Vat. Pal. 
 
 829 the normal 'qui '-symbol is expanded more than once as 
 
 ' quod.' 
 
 The identity in Mediaeval spelling of the vowel e and the 
 diphthong ae accounts for the use of the ' que '-symbols for 
 
 m The Irish contraction appears in Carlsruhe Reich. 112 (along with qd), 
 Cologne 210, Milan I 1 sup., C 105 inf., Vat. 6018, etc. 
 
 n Similarly in the Lucca Eusebius, in which a later corrector has often 
 expanded the unusual symbol. The other 'qui '-symbol denotes 'que' in the 
 Visigothic MSS., Leyden Voss. F 3, Verona 89, etc. 
 
 Cf. ' siquis' in Munich 41 15 ; Munich 6243 ; Munich 6244 (along with siqs) ; 
 Paris 2843 A ; Vat. Reg. 338 ; Vat. Reg. 446 ; Vat. Barberini XIV 52. 
 
44 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 'quae,' and vice- versa (e.g. in the Visigoth ic Leyden Voss. 
 F 3 q with suprascript contraction-stroke denotes 'que' and, 
 when followed by m, 'quem'). In Troyes 657 (cf. Mont- 
 pellier 84) the same differentiation is found as in Irish script 
 (see Part II, § 2) ; a dot is added to the right of q; to make 
 the symbol for 'quae' (expanded on fol. 94 r.). And mis- 
 spellings like ' debetorem,' ' defficele,' ' concipiret,' ' accipemus,' 
 'periunt,' ' fulgit ' in the London MS., Add. 31,031 (and in 
 others of its kind) may account for its use of q: not merely 
 as 'que' but as 'qui' e.g. q:b: 'quibus,' q:a 'quia.' The q 
 with crook-form of contraction-stroke is properly a 'que'- 
 symbol (see above) ; and it may be in this function that it 
 is used to denote ' qui ' in this London MS. (e.g. ' quibus,' 
 ' quia.') and in others (e.g. Troyes 657; Vat. 6018 on fol. 108 r.; 
 St. Gall 2, of the year 761, 'loqui'). It is used for ' quam' in 
 Paris 13386. 
 
 For ' quis ' we have qs (the symbol of ' quaesumus ' and of 
 ' quasi;' see above) in Berlin, Phill. 160 (on fol. 94V.) (cf. siqs 
 'siquis' in Munich 6244, aliqs 'aliquis' in Munich 14437, on 
 fol. 63 r., expanded by the corrector ; aliqs ' aliquis ' in Berne 
 263 (Codex Theodosianus), on fol. 124 v.) Instead of 'quod' 
 qd sometimes denotes 'quid' (e.g. qmcquid on fol. 95 r. 
 of Paris 13386). In St. Gall 194 'quod' and 'quid' are 
 differentiated, qid and qod (each with cross-barred d). The 
 variety qud (with cross-barred d) I have noted in Carlsruhe 
 Reich. 253 (on fol. 46 r.), St. Gall 126, Vat. 6018. Some- 
 times the contraction-stroke of qd stands over the q and 
 does not intersect the shaft of the d, e.g. in Berlin Phill. 
 1 716 (usually), St. Gall 193, Vat. Reg. 713. 
 
 quia q followed by a symbol like the Arabic numeral 2. This 
 expression of ' quia ' (taken from the Notae Juris) is sometimes 
 expanded by the corrector in Munich 14437, where it has the 
 form of q followed by cursive (final) /. (See also Traube, 
 ' Nomina Sacra,' p. 263). 
 
 quomodo (1) qmo or, with more precision, qmdo (both, e.g., in 
 Munich 14437), 
 (2) qmd (e.g. in Munich 6330; Carlsruhe Reich. 191; 
 Berlin, Phill. 17 16). 
 A combination of the ' quo '-symbol and the ' modo '-symbol 
 
 o o 
 
 is often found q m. 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 45 
 
 quoniam. The older contraction is qni (but? qn ' quando')> which 
 was superseded by the more precise qnm' (found even in early 
 MSS. like Milan D 268 inf., Vat. 5763). Both occur in the 
 half-uncial Verona 53, in the eighth century Paris 10612, etc. 
 A rival to qnm is quo (while qno denotes ' quando,' qmo ' quo- 
 modo ') (e.g. in Oxford, Laud. Misc. 120, from Wiirzburg, of date 
 842 — 855, both quo and qnm are used ; similarly in Munich 
 6243; while in Paris 12239-41, a MS. from Corbie Library, all 
 three, qm, qnm and quo, are found). I have noted qum in 
 Cologne 213 (along with quo), occasionally in Carlsruhe Reich. 
 222 and London, Cotton Cal. A XV. All these expressions 
 are liable to confusion with the Conjunction ' quom ' (' quum '). 
 In the ninth century Paris 9530 I noted on fol. 28 v. quam 
 corrected to quoniam. 
 
 quoque qq with the contraction-stroke either written above (e.g. in 
 Munich 6228; Leyden Seal. 28; Geneva 21, from Murbach 
 Library), or traversing the shafts of the letters (e.g. in Milan 
 L 99 sup.). In Munich 1086 I noted a variety qq; (with 
 
 o 
 
 wavy stroke over the second q). These were replaced by qq; 
 (without contraction-stroke), a contraction which appears early 
 (e.g. in the Milan Hegesippus off. 700 a.d.). 
 
 quot Traube ('Nomina Sacra,' p. 264) says that the Irish symbol 
 qt appears in Italian (' Beneventan ') MSS. as early as the 
 9th century. I have noted it in Leyden Seal. 28 (in repetitions), 
 Milan I 1 sup. (from Bobbio). 
 
 regnum reg (with stroke over the g) I noted in Leyden Seal. 28, etc. 
 
 reliquus. In the phrase ' et reliqua' (like our 'etc.') the word 
 appears as rl (with cross-stroke through the /), more pre- 
 cisely as rel (e.g. in Carlsruhe Reich. 112). I have noted 
 rlquos (with cross-barred /) in Carlsruhe Reich. 248. 
 
 saeculum (see Part I, § 4). 
 
 secundu's (Adj.), secundum (Prep.). The older type of contraction 
 is scd for all cases of the Adjective and for the Preposition 
 (e.g. St. Gall 911). Greater precision was given by writing the 
 first syllable in full seed (e.g. Cologne 91). The Leyden 
 Glossary (Voss. Q 69) shews two older symbols for ' secundum,' 
 SCD and sec, side by side with two later, scdm and secdm. 
 
 P On the use of qn for 'quoniam,' as well as for 'quando,' see above, s.v. 
 ' quando. ' 
 
46 Contractions in parly Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 A symbol confusible with ' sed,' viz. sed, I have noted in 
 Cologne 74 and elsewhere ; in Leyden Seal. 28 sedu (with 
 cross-barred d) on fol. 109 r. 
 
 sed. Besides the normal s; we find in early minuscule MSS. 
 a dot or a comma taking the place of the semicolon. Some- 
 times (e.g. in Brussels 10127-41; Geneva 50, on fol. 57 v.) 
 this comma looks like an i ; so that a transcriber might mis- 
 copy ' si ' instead of ' sed.' In the Merovingian Montpellier 69 
 I am told that one of the Notae Juris for ' sed ' is found, 
 viz. s with horizontal cross-stroke through the body of the 
 letter (like the syllabic-symbol 'ser' of § 3, p. 49). This 
 would be liable to omission by a transcriber. 
 
 sequitur seqr and (less commonly) seqt (cf. Part II, § 2). 
 
 sicut sic (with contraction-stroke* 1 over the c). This might easily 
 be mistaken 1, for sic, i.e. the word ' sic' with the apex. More 
 precise is sict (e.g. Vat. 3317). The Visigothic symbol (one of 
 the Notae Juris) is set. (See Traube, 'Nomina Sacra,' p. 265.) 
 
 significat signf (the Nota Juris, found, e.g., in Vat. Reg. 886) and 
 
 the more precise signft. Both appear in Munich 14437 an d 
 
 are expanded by the corrector (on fol. 66 r. and v.). I have 
 
 noted also sigf (in Carlsruhe Reich. 248) and many other 
 
 variations where the word is often repeated (cf. Part I, § 3). 
 
 sive (seu) s. This contraction appears in a number of Glossary 
 MSS., e.g. Leyden 67 E, St. Gall 907, Vat. 6018, Carlsruhe 
 Reich. 248, Munich 6228. Usually it denotes the Verb ' sunt ' 
 (see below; also 'scilicet'?). I have noted siu in Berne 611 
 (on fol. 108 v. aurum sive argentum) (cf. § 3 ' -e, -em '). 
 
 sunt s (whence poss 'possunt', with contraction-stroke over the 
 second s). This is often wrongly transcribed, when not separ- 
 ated B from the preceding word. Thus quis (with contraction- 
 stroke over the s) ' qui sunt ' looks like ' quis ' ; datis ' dati 
 sunt ' like ' datis,' etc. More precise, and yet of early occur- 
 
 1 In Vat. Pal. 216 (e.^. fol. 66 r.) an apostrophe is substituted for the con- 
 traction-stroke. 
 
 r In the half-uncial Milan C 26 sup. I noted on fol. 5 v. a correction of sic 
 to sicut. 
 
 » Careful scribes avoided this absorption of single letter abbreviations by 
 putting a dot before and after, e.g. libera-n- (with contraction-stroke over n) 
 'liberam non ' in London Add. 31,031. The apex is often used with the same 
 purpose, especially in Irish script, e.g. acampo 'a campo,' auris 'a vestris,' ado 
 ' a deo.' 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 47 
 
 rence, is st (cf. Part II, § 2), e.g. in Carlsruhe Reich. 253 of 
 saec. vii — viii ; in the 8th century MSS., Munich 6243, Berne 
 611 (Merovingian), St. Gall 2 (c. 761 a.d.), Brussels 10127-41 
 (along with s); in the 8th — 9th century Munich 14422 (along 
 with s), etc. 
 
 suprascriptus (see Part II, § 2). 
 
 tamen tn, replaced in course of time by the more precise tarn 
 (with contraction-stroke over the m; cf. § 3 ' en.') The ancient 
 type of contraction, with the initial letter of each syllable, tm, 
 I have noted in Vat. 3281. This normally denotes ' tantum ' 
 (see below and cf. Paoli-Lohmeyer ' Abkiirzungen,' p. 8 ;;. ). 
 Tmn is Visigothic. 
 
 tantum tm (expanded as unfamiliar by the corrector of Munich 
 14437 on f°'- 57 r -)- More precise is tnm (e.g. in the eighth 
 century Vienna 957). 
 
 tempus tempr 'tempore.' I have also noted tpr 'tempore' in 
 Carlsruhe Reich. 248, and tpre in a page (fol. 134 v, written 
 in Caroline minuscules) of Turin D V 3. (For fuller details, 
 see Traube, 'Nomina Sacra,' p. 266.) 
 
 ter (as in Irish ; cf. Part II, § 2). Often in 'mato-,' 'pato-,' etc. 
 
 i 
 
 tibi / (without contraction-stroke). 
 
 turn. The same eighth century Brussels MS. (10127-41) as was 
 
 cited for c ' cum ' shews t for ' turn.' 
 
 c 
 
 tunc t (e.g. Troyes 657, Munich 14437, Milan L, 99 sup.). 
 tc (e.g. Vat. 3281). 
 
 vel u occurs in some old MSS. (e.g. Brussels 10127-41 : Berne 611, 
 on fol. 10 r. ; Leyden Voss. F 26; Munich 6228; 14252); 
 oftener 1 (with contraction-stroke traversing the shaft of the 
 letter), occasionally -1- (without contraction-stroke). But the 
 normal symbol came to be ul (with cross-barred /), while u, 
 if used for anything except ' um,' e.g. ubra ' umbra,' denoted 
 ' ver,' e.g. uba ' verba,' uo ' vero,' or, if final, ' -vit ' (cf. § 3). 
 
 ver (see § 3 ' er'J. 
 
 o 
 
 vero u (without contraction-stroke) and uo (with contraction-stroke 
 properly above the v, but often over the whole symbol). A 
 copyist might misread ' vestro ' (see below) or ' uno.' I have 
 noted ua 'vera' on fol. 36 r. of Munich 6330. (See also 
 Traube, ' Nomina Sacra,' p, 266.) 
 
48 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 vester (see ' noster '). 
 
 videlicet (see Part II. § 2). 
 
 unde (see §3 ' e,' ' em '). 
 
 unus. We may perhaps infer the use of -V- ' una ' in the original 
 of the ninth century Brussels 9403 ; for on fol. 70 v. this con- 
 traction, opposite which stands in the margin the contraction 
 rq 'require,' has been expanded by the corrector. 
 
 o 
 
 vobis (as in Part II, § 2). I have noted ub (with cross-barred b) in 
 Carlsruhe Reich. 222, of saec. viii ex. 
 
 3. List of Syllabic Symbols (including the most frequent 
 
 ' suspensions' of final syllables). 
 
 con. Usually c(cf. p. 33). Also 3 (the Irish symbol ; see Part IT, 
 § 3). Often with a dot inside the curve. In Berne 611 an 
 older form of the symbol appears, like the Nota Juris depicted 
 in Keil's Gramm. Lat. IV p. 278 or the Arabic numeral 2. 
 
 -e, -em. A horizontal (sometimes slightly curved upwards) stroke 
 over the initial consonant of the final syllable appears in con- 
 tractions like it 'item' (see §(2, s.v.) uirtut 'virtute' (in the 
 ninth century Leyden 67 E, on fol. 44 v.), ueritat ' veritate' in 
 the ninth century London Add. 18, 332 (from Carinthia), and in 
 the same London MS. sanguin ' sanguinem,' deuersion ' dever- 
 sionem.' I have noted the same treatment of ' -ne ' and ' -nem ' 
 in the eighth century Brussels 10127-41. In the case of '-de,' 
 ' -dem,' the contraction-stroke traverses the shaft of the d, e.g. 
 id 'idem' (see § 2), ind 'inde'and und 'unde' in the eighth 
 century Carlsruhe Reich. 99 (the latter also in Munich 14252, 
 of saec. viii-ix; London Add. n, 880 of saec. ix, from 
 Bavaria?). The confusion of final e and em must have been 
 a constant danger to transcribers of these symbols. 
 
 en was expressed by a horizontal stroke above the preceding letter. 
 In later minuscule almost the only surviving example is m ' men ' 
 e.g. ' tatnen,' ' nomen,' ' menbrum (-mbr-). But in early minus- 
 cule we find often u 'ven,' e.g. ' z<<?/2turum ' in Oxford, Lat. 
 Th. d. 3 (on fol. 113 v.) and the like. (On 'gentem,' see 
 above, § 2). 
 
 er. The horizontal stroke that represents this syllable is in the 
 Notae Juris usually drawn through the body of the preceding 
 letter, e.g. ^ 'ter' (e.g. in the 5th century Bodleian legal 
 fragment from Fayoum, Class, lat. gi[P] ; in Vat. Reg. 886, 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 49 
 
 &c), f ' ser,' etc. The inconvenience of this practice was 
 that these symbols could not be distinguished from obliterated 
 t, obliterated s, etc. The stroke came therefore to be drawn 
 above, instead of through the letter, the older practice being 
 retained only with b ' ber ' (stroke through upper shaft), p ' per ' 
 (stroke through lower shaft). Thus t (with stroke ' above) 
 denotes 'ter' (see'§ 2, s.v.) ; c (with stroke above) 'cer,' e.g. 
 ' sa««los ' in Oxford, Lat. Th. d. 3 ; u (with stroke above) 
 ' ver,' e.g. -uit -' verit ' in Verbs u . 
 
 -is. A cross-stroke through the shaft of b, d, I expresses the final 
 syllables -'bis' (very frequent; e.g. '■nobis' 'vote,' 'urto,' 
 'verbis'), -'dis' (e.g. in the ninth century Leyden 67 E 'merce- 
 dis' on fol. 39 r., ' lapuftj,' Ace. Plur. on fol. 35 r., and even 
 the initial syllable of 'discretor' on fol. 18 v.), -'lis' (e.g. in 
 the same Leyden MS. 'stere/w' on fol. 35 r. ; 'ido/«V on fol. 
 no v. of the ninth century London Add. 18, 332). 
 
 -it. The ending of the Verb is commonly indicated, even in later 
 minuscule, by a suprascript horizontal stroke over the preceding 
 consonant, e.g. die 'dicit,' nou ' novit,' dix 'dixit,' adsum 
 'adsumit,' colleg 'collegit' (with stroke over the c, the v, the x, 
 the m, the g respectively). When the consonant is d (or b), 
 the stroke traverses the shaft, e.g. ascend ' ascendit ' (with cross- 
 barred 1 d), bib 'bibit' (with cross-barred b ; e.g. Carlsruhe 
 Reich. 248). The ending -' et ' is similarly expressed in deb 
 ' debet,' hab ' habet,' etc. I have noted tim ' timet ' in Oxford, 
 Lat. Th. d. 3, on fol. 113 r. 
 
 4 The stroke, like the ordinary contraction-stroke or the m-symbol, often 
 takes in early Carolingian minuscule, in Lombard script, etc., a vertical (or 
 nearly vertical) hooked form, e.g. in Leyden 67 F ' sempitmius.' The same MS. 
 has this suprascript ' er '-symbol with p, e.g. ' p^specta (? ' prae- ') ' on fol. 131 r. 
 In Leyden 1 14 (saec. ix, from Rheims) we find, along with the ordinary expres- 
 sion of 'ter,' also t with suprascript apostrophe (e.g. ' muliebriter ' on fol. 44 v.), 
 which also has in this MS. its usual denotations of (1) -'tur,' (2) -'tus' (seft 
 below). Contrariwise the normal 'ter '-symbol appears sometimes for 'tur, 
 e.g. igit (with horizontal stroke over the t) 'igitur' on fol. n v. of Munich 
 14470, of saec. viii-ix ; in the Lombard Vienna 903 ; in the Lombard Vat. 
 5845 ; on fol. 32 r. of Vat. 6018, etc. In the 9th century Brussels 9403 
 I noted the correction of t with suprascript stroke to t with suprascript apos- 
 trophe, as symbol of ' tur.' 
 
 . 1 Hence the frequent substitution of -Wit' (Perf. Ind.) for -'verit' (Perf. 
 Subj. or Fut. Perf. Ind.) ; also of ' fuit ' for ' fuerit.' 
 
 1 A cross-barred d may also denote -' dus,' -' dum ' (see below). 
 
 E 
 
50 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 ra, ri, ro. All these (especially ra, ri) are expressed by writing the 
 
 a i 
 
 vowel over a preceding p, etc., e.g. sup ' supra,' pus ' prius.' 
 
 e 
 
 Also t ' tre,' etc., etc., in the Notae Juris of Vat. Reg. 886. 
 
 -rum, -runt (see below). 
 
 ul. The symbol is a cross-barred /, e.g. ' sec«/um,' ' v7//t ' (e.g. in 
 Munich 14770 ; on the contraction for ' vel,' see above, § 2). 
 
 um. To denote 'urn' (or 'us'; see below) a stroke was drawn 
 through the final limb of the letter preceding this syllable, 
 e.g. Py -'rum,' £ -'him' (e.g. in Oxford, Lat. Th. d. 3 and 
 the eighth century Paris 2843 A), when the letter was d, 
 through the shaft y . The final limb (or rather tail) of minuscule 
 letters like m, n, r, was extended in order to facilitate this 
 intersection, e.g. ty- -' num ' in Leyden Voss. 63 ; in Vat. Pal. 
 216 expanded on fol. 38 r. by a corrector). I have noted also 
 ^C -' turn ' z (e.g. ' instum ' and ' pecc&tum ' in Verona 89 ; 
 ' scriptum ' on fol. 30 v. of Milan D 268 inf. ; cf. Leyden Voss. 
 F 3), (^ -'cum' (e.g. 'locum' in Vat. 5763). In Leyden 
 67 F and other MSS. this symbol for ' rum ' might easily be 
 misread as the letters ix, while in Vat. 5763 the letters 'st' 
 often closely resemble it. 
 
 Sometimes the apostrophe, which usually denotes -' us,' has 
 
 this function, e.g. c ' cum ' (see § 2), t ' turn ' (see § 2), r -' rum ' 
 
 1 o, 
 
 (e.g. incbant ' incumbant ' and qr ' quorum ' in Brussels 10127- 
 41, in which 'us' and 'um' are denoted equally by .(1) the 
 apostrophe, (2) the intersection-stroke). 
 
 Often a suprascript stroke, properly the ' suspension ' symbol 
 is used, e.g. c (with horizontal stroke above) 'cum' (see § 2), 
 r (with the, same) ' rum,' and even n (with the same ; usually 
 ' non,' see § 2) ' num ' in ' numqna.m ' (on fol. 19 r. of Munich 
 633°)- 
 
 y In the earliest minuscule the shaft of d has a. lower projection and the 
 'um '-stroke traverses this lower part; e.g. in the early Lombard MSS., Milan 
 C 105 inf., Milan L 99 sup., Milan D 268 inf. ; also in the Merovingian MS., 
 Turin D V 3. But in Paris 3836, etc., although d has this early form, the 
 cross-stroke traverses the upper shaft. 
 
 * More or less the same symbol denotes ' tur ' in London Harl. 3063 ; in the 
 Paris Glossarium Ansileubi (11529), in the Merovingian Montpellier 69; in 
 Cambrai 693, etc. 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 51 
 
 -unl. To indicate the final syllable -'runt,' the same symbol is 
 generally used in early Continental minuscule script as that 
 used to indicate final -'rum' (see above). Thus in Milan C 
 105 inf. both - ' rum ' and -' runt ' are expressed by intersected r 
 
 t 
 
 (cf. Vat. 3317, etc.); in Leyden 67 F r denotes -'runt' (e.g. 
 '■proterunt' on fol. 114 v.) ; in the same MS. r with suprascript 
 horizontal stroke (cf. s with similar stroke ' sunt ') has the same 
 denotation (e.g. ' pro'iecerunt ' on fol. 125 v.). But in Oxford 
 Lat. Th. d. 3 I have noted a curious differentiation, R with one 
 intersecting stroke -' rum,' R with two intersecting strokes 
 -'runt.' In Brussels 10127-41 r with apostrophe and r with 
 intersecting stroke are both used for -' rum,' r with suprascript 
 stroke for -'runt.' In Berne 611 the contraction-stroke above 
 the r differs in form for ' rum ' and for ' runt.' 
 
 In some MSS. however the Irish" expression of -'runt' (see 
 Part II, § 3) is used, viz. rt (with suprascript stroke), like Irish 
 (also Continental; cf. § 2) st 'sunt.' This expression of -'runt' 
 I have noted in Munich 14437, along with the usual r (with 
 suprascript stroke) ; in the ninth century London, Harl. 3063, 
 etc. Similarly bt -'bunt' in Carlsruhe Reich. 253, Berne 611, 
 Munich 14437, Carlsruhe Reich. 248 ; deprehendt ' deprehen- 
 dunt' in the eighth century Brussels 10127-41. 
 ur, us. In some early minuscule MSS. we find 'u,' ' ur,' 'us 'all 
 denoted by the same suprascript symbol. Thus in a Carlsruhe 
 MS. of the 8th— 9th cent. (Reich. 191) -' tus ' is either t's or t' 
 (cf. Berlin, Phill. 1716), -'tur' is either t'r or t\ Similarly in 
 a Munich MS. (6330) of the same date -'tur' is sometimes t'r, 
 sometimes t', -'tus' is t'. In St. Gall 109 -'us' and -'ur' are 
 expressed by the same symbol b ; similarly in Oxford, Bodl. 
 849, of 818 a.d., and in Munich 12632 (see below). The 
 practice came to be to use the apostrophe-symbol for 'us,' 
 e.g. ei' ' eius,' hui' ' huius,' n' ' nus,' m' ' mus,' r' ' rus,' e' ' eus,' 
 
 a Taken from the Notae Juris. 
 
 b What then js the strength of the testimony of later MSS. for poscimus 
 against poscinmr in Horace, C. I 32, 1? 
 
 c In the Visigothic London MS., Egerton 1934, the apostrophe is accom- 
 panied by a dot. In Leyden Voss. F 26 the 'us '-symbol has the form of the 
 mark for a short vowel, e.g. nw 'nus,' tw 'tus,' cu 'cus,' iw 'ius,' ra\j ' mus,' 
 dw 'dus,' lw ' lus,' pw ' pus.' 
 
52 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 but a modification d of this, a symbol like the Arabic numeral 
 2, for 'ur.' (Both are found in Brussels 10127-41, while in 
 Munich 14437, of 823 a.d., the contemporary corrector often 
 alters the old into the new symbol.) 
 
 Instead of the apostrophe we sometimes find in early MSS. 
 a symbol with S-shape, e.g. ' beatw,' ' i\\ius,' which might be 
 misread e ' filis.' 
 
 The colon and semi-colon (or 3) are also, as in Irish 
 (Part II, § 3), common symbols of 'us.' In Paris 10756, 
 (in Merovingian script) we may ascribe to Merovingian f ortho- 
 graphy (like cognusco, etc.) the use of n ; not merely for ' nus ' 
 but for 'nos' (e.g. the Pronoun 'nos,' the Ace. Plur. ' annos,' 
 or the like). The use of p followed by an 'us '-symbol (p' or p ; 
 or p3 etc.) properly 'pus,' e.g. 'tempts,' 'corpus,' then ' pos,' 
 e.g. '/<wsunt,' '/<wsessio,' as the contraction of ' post ' was very 
 wide-spread, and is of very early. origin e. 
 
 Still earlier than the colon and semi-colon are (1) the dot 
 
 i 
 
 (e.g. in Brussels 101 27-41 qb. ' quibus,') (2) the comma. 
 
 Another and a very ancient way of expressing ' us ' was by 
 drawing a line obliquely (from right to left) down through the 
 
 d Another differentiation I have noted in the eighth century Munich 4582, 
 where /with apostrophe over the rjght-hand limb of the letter is 'tus,' directly 
 over the centre of the letter 'tur.' In Munich 12632, of saec. viii-ix, I noted 
 (along with the normal t with suprascript apostrophe) a rare expression of ' tur ' by 
 r 
 t (without contraction-stroke), which reminds one of the Nota Juris for ' tis ' 
 
 s 
 (found in Vat. Reg. 886) t. 
 
 In Munich 6228 the ending of a word like eius (e.g. on fol. 2 r.) is indistin- 
 guishable from the ending of a word like sermonis (e.g. on fol. 4 v.). Is this 
 the explanation of the spelling huis for htiius in some MSS. of Plautus, which 
 is often cited as testimony for the monosyllabic pronunciation and scansion 
 of the word in his plays? (See also Part II, § 2 'hie'). In Vat. 6018 'tus' 
 is expressed by / followed by this S-symbol ; ' tur ' by t with suprascript apos- 
 trophe, but occasionally by t with suprascript stroke (the usual symbol for ' ter ; ' 
 see above, ' er '). 
 
 1 In the eighth century Paris 13348 I have noted sacerd (with cross-stroke 
 through the lower projection of the shaft of the d) 'sacerdas.' (See below.) 
 In the ninth century Leyden 114 I have noted n with suprascript apostrophe ex- 
 pressing 'nos' in the Ace. Plur. 'Romarcoj-' on fol. 160 r. It offers spellings 
 like 'agnusco,' ' consubrina. ' 
 
 e P' (1) 'pos,' (2) 'post' is one of the Notae Juris (e.g. Val. Reg. 886, 
 '/<wsunt,' 'post,' ' J>os(qtaxa'). 
 
Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. S3 
 
 body of the preceding consonant. This survives in a Bodleian 
 MS. of c. 780 a.d. (Lat Th. d. 3), where we have the same 
 
 sign for ' mus ' as in the Notae Juris of Vat. Reg. 886, viz. ""P 
 (on fol. 163 v. it is written quite like the letters nx). This was 
 liable to be mistaken for an obliterated m ; so the stroke 
 came to be drawn through the final limb (or tail) of the letter, 
 
 e.g. $ -'bus' in Milan C 105 inf., Vat. 5763, the tail being 
 lengthened for the purpose, as in the symbols for 'num,' 
 'rum ' h already mentioned (see above). When written without 
 
 lifting the pen, ' lus,' ' mus,' ' nus ' take the shape of Ifi *"$& 
 lift (e.g. all three in Oxford, Lat. Th. d. 3 ; the ' mus '-symbol, 
 along with m', in the ninth century London Add. 18, 332 ; in 
 the Lombard MS., Vat. Barberini XIV 52 this ' lus '-symbol, 
 so frequent ' in ' in/?«tris,' denotes -' lis ' in ' simiZw ' on 
 fol. 101 v.). In an eighth century London MS. (Cotton 
 
 Ner. A II) I noted \ ' eius ' (not infrequent, e.g. the Lombard 
 Vat. 5845, Munich 337, Carlsruhe Reich. 57) altered by 
 a corrector to the more familiar contraction-form with the 
 apostrophe. (In late transcripts it is miscopied as the Rela- 
 tive 'qui.') Similarly I (cross-barred) denotes ' ius,' e.g. 
 'zkrta,' in Leyden Voss. F 3. For -'dus' (as for -'dum'; 
 see above) the stroke traverses the shaft of the d (in the earlier 
 MSS. the lower projection of the shaft, e.g. ' permutanrt'a.f ' 
 in Milan L 99 sup.) so that -' dus ' and -' dum ' are indis- 
 tinguishable k (e.g. in Carlsruhe Reich. 248, Munich 6330). 
 Similarly cross-barred / can represent ' lus ' (e.g. ' diabo//« ' 
 'baiolus' in Carlsruhe Reich. 248, along with 'cruder,' etc. ; 
 see above) and cross-barred b ' bus ' (more often ' bis,' and 
 still more often ' ber ' ; see above). The functions ' bus ' and 
 'bis' are sometimes discriminated, e.g. by the addition of 
 a colon for 'bus' in London, Harl. 3063 Paris 3836 (in the 
 
 h How uncertain therefore is the reading daturus for daturum in Plaut. Asin. 
 634 ! The minuscule archetype may have had dalur, with this variation of r, 
 which may represent either daturus or daturum. 
 
 1 The suspensions inl (e.g. Vat. 5845, Berne 263), il (e.g. Carlsruhe Reich. 85), 
 etc., 'illustris,' are confusible with ' \\lum.' 
 
 k A contemporary corrector of a ninth century MS. from Carinthia (London 
 Add. 18, 332) has expanded cross-barred d on fol. 58 v. to dus. We may infer 
 the use of this symbol for ' dus ' in the original of the MS. 
 
54 Contractions in Early Latin Minuscule MSS. 
 
 earlier script of Corbie), etc. ; by the appendage af a ' cedilla ' 
 for ' bis ' (without cross-stroke) in the Visigothic Leyden Voss. 
 F 3. It should be added that the ' Merovingian ' form of 
 the letter b (something like B, with the upper half of each 
 half-circle left incomplete) might often be mistaken for a 
 cross-barred b and miscopied ' bis ' or ' bus ' or ' ber ' (or, by 
 an Irish scribe, 'bene'; see Part II, § 2 s.v.). In Montpellier 
 69, I am told, ' bus ' is sometimes discriminated from this form 
 of the simple letter b by the addition of a dot below and 
 above the branch of the b. 
 
 printed b^ James iParfter an& Co., drown ffiatfc, ©jtort. 
 
Cornell University Library 
 
 Z 111.L74C7 
 
 Contractions in early Latin minuscule ms 
 
 3 1924 006 481 125 
 
 DATE DUE 
 
 m$~- 
 
 G 
 
 r*»4l 
 
 ^mmimmmam 
 
 CAVLORD 
 
 MNTEO IN U.S.J