alt Hacker NewsHistorically Latin was also a common international language. Educated people could understand Latin across much of Europe. Not so great for the majority of people, of course. The article seems to indicate that in some places it was pretty widely understood.
I think some rites of the church did use other languages such as Syriac.
I knew about SSPX but not the Palmarians. They seem to be even odder and a cult. Interesting in the same way I find conspiracy theories interesting, so thanks.
Replies
Indeed, it was also the lingua franca (pun intended) of early science for quite a long time.
Latin was still part of the mandatory curriculum in french schools, at least when I was there. Didn’t make french kids bilingual (no more than english courses), but it would be safe to assume the average man in the street has at least some vague notions of latin.
Not just Europe. Well into relatively modern history educated individuals in America were expected to have fluency in Latin and frequently Greek as well. This [1] Harvard admission exam from 1869 immediately comes to mind. Applicants were expected to be able to pass that test, and the overwhelming majority did.
[1] - https://graphics8.nytimes.com/packages/pdf/education/harvard...