Silence and Sign Language in Medieval Monasticism
The Cluniac Tradition, c.900–1200

A study of religious silence and sign language in an early medieval abbey.

Scott G. Bruce (Author)

9780521123938, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 17 December 2009

228 pages
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.3 cm, 0.34 kg

'This is a smart and lively book. A brief summary cannot discuss at length its important sub-themes, including the pedagogical and acculturating purposes of the Cluniac lexicon and its variations, the essential unity underlying apparently diverse developments in religious life in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, and the deep influence of Cluniac practice across Europe.' The American Historical Review

Silence and Sign Language in Medieval Monasticism explores the rationales for religious silence in early medieval abbeys and the use of nonverbal forms of communication among monks when rules of silence forbade them from speaking. After examining the spiritual benefits of personal silence as a form of protection against the perils of sinful discourse in early monastic thought, this work shows how the monks of the Abbey of Cluny (founded in 910 in Burgundy) were the first to employ a silent language of meaning-specific hand signs that allowed them to convey precise information without recourse to spoken words. Scott Bruce discusses the linguistic character of the Cluniac sign language, its central role in the training of novices, the precautions taken to prevent its abuse, and the widespread adoption of this custom in other abbeys throughout Europe, which resulted in the creation of regionally specific idioms of this silent language.

List of tables
Acknowledgements
List of abbreviations
Map
Introduction: the dormant language
1. Uttering no human sound
2. The training of the hand
3. A silent commerce of signs
4. Transmission and adaptation
5. Continuity and criticism
Conclusion
Appendix A: the Cluniac sign lexicon
Bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: Church history [HRCC2], Early history: c 500 to c 1450/1500 [HBLC], European history [HBJD], Sign languages, Braille & other linguistic communication [CFZ]