From quill to query: Linguistic features of 8th-century charters from Tuscany

Abstract This paper examines private legal charters from Chartae Latinae Antiquiores volume XXIII, focusing on eighth-century documents from Southern Tuscany and Northern Latium. These non-literary texts provide valuable insights into the evolution from Latin to Romance, showcasing phonological, morphological, and lexical variation. A detailed linguistic analysis reveals balanced consonantal and vocalic alternations, with phenomena like / confusion and vowel shifts possibly reflecting an unstable vowel and consonant system, with morphosyntactic and lexical factors also influencing variation. These findings highlight Latin's dynamic evolution in the region and possibly its early movement toward Romance features, contributing to broader discussions on language variation and change.