Some observations on ille and ipse in the Mulomedicina Chironis

Abstract

Abstract This paper deals with the use of ille and ipse in the veterinary treatise Mulomedicina Chironis (fourth century AD). We will first give the quantitative analysis of the data, then we will focus on the cases in which ille and ipse co-occur with a noun or as pronouns. Regarding ille, we will propose that, even in the absence of morphological distinctions, it presents the syntactic features of three different categories, namely (a) an anaphoric demonstrative, which will turn into the definite article; (b) a strong pronoun; (c) a weak pronoun from which clitic pronouns will develop in Romance. As for ipse, we will show that it can both co-occur with a noun already known in the context expressing anaphoricity, and be a subject and a direct/indirect object pronoun. Furthermore, it can be introduced by a preposition. When it is a pronoun, ipse expresses anaphoricity as well, although in many contexts (especially when it is used as a subject pronoun), it is possible to identify an emphatic value for ipse, which can presumably be due to the realisation of the subject in a pro-drop language.