Until the mid-1800s, Latin was the self-evident language for serious scholarly publications and not least for academic theses. However, the new University statutes of 1852 had opened the way for theses in general to be written in Swedish, which was advancing as a language on all fronts within the University at this time. This was very apparent when, in 1864, the University launched a new, scholarly annual featuring a variety of articles and papers; this was, among other things, aimed at helping junior university academics to obtain credentials through publication. A review of all contributions in the first four editions (1864–67) shows that of the total of 60 articles, 52 were written in Swedish and only six in Latin. The two other articles were, however, written in French, and the percentage of contributions in other modern languages would gradually increase over the next few years, in a way that in the 1890s would prompt University librarian Elof Tegnér to note with satisfaction that the annual, through its contributions “in the modern languages of culture” had become “the University’s scholarly mouthpiece to the educated world”.
However, a look at the table of contents in later editions of the annual shows not only a general internationalisation, but also a change of focus in the international perspective. This shift can be sensed in a review of the 1875–78 editions. The majority of the articles (15 of 28) are still in Swedish, whereas the Latin contribution has fallen to only two. On the other hand, the share of contributions in foreign living languages is as high as eleven, and of these the majority – six against five – are in German, a language that had not figured in the earlier annuals. This new linguistic trend becomes even clearer if you examine the general overviews of the academic staff’s published papers (not counting annual articles and doctoral theses) which the University from the academic year 1875/76 began to publish in its annual report. In the three academic years up to 1877/78, 172 different contributions are listed – everything from thick scholarly tomes and text books to short journal articles – of which 128 are in Swedish, as many as 27 in German, but only eight in French (in addition there were a total of nine scattered articles in Latin, Danish and Spanish; English had not yet gained a foothold in Lund’s scholarly prose). The trend towards German was clearest among the science scholars; physicist Victor Bäcklund is a good example, as he published almost exclusively in that language. However, even among the humanities there are works in German, such as one by philosopher Borelius, published in 1876, with the telling title Skandinavien und Deutschland (Scandinavia and Germany). Something had clearly happened in less than ten years!
|
|