Ignatius of Loyola and languages in sixteenth century Europe (1491-1556)

Abstract

To date, few studies of the various linguistic and writing capacities of Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556) have been produced. Some of these published articles maintain very different and even contradictory positions about, for example, what was his mother tongue or his grasp and speaking ability in regards to the diverse languages he encountered in his life. After having demonstrated Ignatius’ deep appreciation for the written word, whether through what he read or what he wrote, this article reviews and criticizes briefly the literature surrounding this issue and then proceeds to carefully analyze Ignatius’ knowledge of Basque, Castilian, Italian, Latin, French, and Catalan.