When? Ages of Roman Literature

Old Latin (Ancient/Archaic) was anything written or spoken in Latin before 75 BC. Most inscriptions were then made by engraving, painting, or embossing. The Romans thought that using these methods would make the scripts last better over time. Most of what the Romans wrote were skits, records, and speeches. However, they also epics, tragedies, and satires. Most of the work from this period was destroyed or damaged beyond recognition, but linguists can get a good idea from the fragments that remain.

The Golden Age went up until 14 AD, and was the time that Roman literature turned into one of the greatest the world has ever seen. Many of the most famous figures of the time wrote, like Julius Caesar. Poetry, prose, biographies, and histories were on the list of some of the most famous literature of the time period. This was the time that Roman literature could shine!

The Silver Age lasted until 138 AD, and was trying to be the Golden age. People were writing what they thought they were supposed to, and were trying to replicate famous works from the Golden Age. Although the writing was good, it tarnished the once shining reputation of Latin Literature.

The Patristic Age was the time when most of the writing was from leaders of Christianity. Many were willing to write in informal terms to reach an audience of the common people.

The Medieval Period was the period when the Latin language was split. By this time, "vulgar" Latin (the slang used by common people in Rome) was so different from traditional Latin that it was deemed a different language. Latin also became a language used around the globe.

Wheelock's Latin