The Latin loanwords in Greek documentary texts from Egypt

The vocabulary of the Greek (and also Coptic) papyri is quite important for the history and tradition of the Greek language as a whole. Moreover, since Egypt was made part of the Imperium Romanum after the battle of Actium, many Latin words have found their way into Greek everyday language due to the contact of the inhabitants with Roman officials, soldiers and traders. Some of the Latin words can only be reconstructed because of Greek or Coptic evidence. These Latin loan-words do not only concern the language of the administration or of the army, but include also juridical terms, measures and containers, Latin month-names and coins. In everyday life documents, as private letters and lists, we find loan-words for clothes, items of forniture, colours and so on. The aim of this project is to list all Latin loan-words in alphabetical order, which occur in Greek or Coptic documents. Each lemma is followed by translation(s), the Latin equivalent, graphic variants (including the Coptic ones), abbreviations, etymologically related words, Greek synonyms, all known examples arranged chronologically and cited verbatim, bibliography and discussion of individual points. One of the aims of this Lexicon of Latin loan- words is to show that these loan-words are not isolated to Egypt, but can be viewed within the context of the continuous exchange between Latin and Greek in the Greek speaking East. Thanks to a first project financed by the "Fonds zur Förderung der wissenschaftlichen Forschung (FWF)" the first fascicle of the "Lexicon of Latin Loan-words in Greek documentary texts with reference to Coptic documents" could be completed by Irene Cervenka-Ehrenstrasser and was printed by the Austrian National Library ("Mitteilungen aus der Papyrussammlung der Österreichischen Nationalbibliothek, N. S. XXVII)". In this volume all loan-words beginning with alpha are included. For the moment the FWF is financing a second project (again directed by Dr. J. Diethart; participant Mag. Irene Cervenka-Ehrenstrasser), which will be finished at the end of march 1998. As a result of this project the second fascicle (Lemmata Beta-Iota) is planned to appear in 1998.