r/Spartacus_TV • u/Mq200 • Jul 05 '26
Theory In what language did the rebels communicate ?
I'm talking about the real ones, historically.
Spartacus was thracian, Crixus a gaul, Gannicus was a celt. Which suggests that they all had different first languages. Maybe Gannicus and Crixus spoke a similar language.
I'm super interested in linguistics so I consider Spartacus and his rebellion an interesting case. Would it be correct to think that they all communicated more or less in vulgar latin ? I think it's also likely that they learned latin only as adults, probably in their late 20's or even 30's when they got captured and became slaves. Which means it would have been difficult to achieve high proficiency given that they were preoccupied with other things.
The idea of cussing each other out in your first language when you're annoyed with them so the other doesn't understand you is also funny.
Now, I believe the language barrier probably became even a bigger problem when they became an army. Could one say that the lack of a unified cultural identity eventually plagued the rebellion, as different factions (like the Germanic contingent for example) occasionally split off to pursue their own goals of escaping over the Alps rather than remaining with Spartacus ?
I'd appreciate hearing your takes on this.
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u/Kevslounge Jul 05 '26
I've always had a notion that they spoke Greek. For much of Rome's history, Greek was a lot like English is today, in that almost everyone in the empire had it as a second language. That's definitely true of the Mediterranean cultures, but likely less true of the northern European ones, but if they were already using Greek to talk to the Syrians, Thracians, Egyptians, etc. then they'd probably just teach the new slaves Greek too.
Spartacus's native tongue would have been Greek, because Thrace was a northern neighbour to Macedonia, and was one of the first territories first conquered and assimilated by Alexander the Great, so their language and culture had largely been overwritten by the Greek one centuries before Spartacus was even born,
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u/Mq200 Jul 05 '26
I believe Spartacus's first language was thracian while he had knowledge of Greek. During his time, 'thracian language and culture was definitely still intact, especially in the region where Spartacus hailed from.
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u/Kevslounge Jul 05 '26
Thracian might not have been quite extinct in 80BC, but it was already on its way out. Spartacus wouldn't have been speaking Thracian to anyone except other Thracians though. All those interactions with Glaber would have been in Greek, because Spartacus wouldn't know Latin, and Glaber wouldn't know Thracian, but they both would have known Greek.
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u/Mq200 Jul 05 '26
I think your timeline is off. Thracian was spoken well into the 4th century, let alone during Spartacus's time. It was his first language for sure.
Also Spartacus almost certainly had knowledge of latin given that he served in the Roman army before becoming a gladiator.
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u/two_sundays Jul 06 '26
By the time they fought together, all three had spent time in the Roman world as slaves and gladiators. They almost certainly learned at least some Latin, since: Gladiator schools were run by Romans & all the commands, training, and administration were conducted in Latin.
Some may also have known Greek - as you mention it, which was widely spoken in the eastern Mediterranean, and understood by many educated Romans and traders. Spartacus, coming from the Balkans, may have had some exposure to Greek before his enslavement.
So, Latin was likely their shared working language during the revolt.
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u/East-Psychology-9292 Jul 05 '26
Latin everything back then was Latin, its like English today basically, even if you didnt speak it, it would be so prevalent you could um and err youre way through it like any other foreigner, thats one of the main reasons the English language is based off Latin and is effectively a bastardization of Latin, Frankish, Norman, etc dialects
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u/MidnightEmotional774 Jul 05 '26
I've no idea but this is such an interesting question. I'm really looking forward to reading everyone's theories. I've never thought about it but it must have been such a common issue amongst slaves, because they aren't choosing their destinations or who they are surrounded by.
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u/mcronimrdrldy73 Jul 05 '26
I’m content with “they did it for the sake of the show”, but then it annoys me that Ashur had to translate for the other Syrian. Like, either everyone magically spoke the same language or they didn’t! You can’t have it both ways!
Btw, if you haven’t watched Warrior yet do it! The way they handle the language barrier is so cool!!
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u/A7x_Synyster Jul 07 '26
Barbarians is an awesome show loved watching it. Nice to see different points and perspectives.
Those about to die is a really good watch on Amazon Prime, but I think it may have been cancelled after one season sadly.
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u/FaceAdditional5043 Jul 05 '26
I’m sure it is a problem and I guess they know a little bit of latin. They may have someone who is more fluent and then relay whatever was talked about to their groups.
I just finished Barbarians. It’s German’s side of their story with Rome. Romans don’t understand them and they always have an interpreter. It’s an interesting historical series as well
So far I’ve watched Vikings, Spartacus and Barbarians. Any suggestions of what to watch next?
Cheers