Sapientes,
I have a question which *half* fits the confines of this list; it concerns
matters clearly medieval, but at best tangentially religious. I hope you
will overlook the presumption.
My question arises in connection with S. P. Scott's 1908 edition of _The
Visigothic Code_, wherein (at page x), discussing "the omnipresent
sacerdotal order" which exerted control over Visigothic kings, Scott
translates the coronation oath
Rex ejus cris si recta facis; si autem, non facis, non cris
as
Thou shalt be king so long as thou dost do right; but if thou do
not do right, thou shalt no longer be king.
For the life of me (even with Oxford University Press in one hand, and
Niermeyer in the other), I cannot determine the precise meaning of "cris",
which I infer from the context to be the second-person singular form of a
verb with a meaning something along the lines of "to reign". However,
because some of Scott's other translations (e.g., his translation of the
_Corpus Juris Civilis_) have come under heavy scholarly fire, I thought it
best to verify rather than contextually assume the root and meaning of this
word.
Any thoughts?
--Christopher
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