Lionardo Salviati

86 LIONARDO SALVIATI (1539-1589)

The bran sifter, a leading Italian philologist

Lionardo Salviati, son of Giovambattista di Lionardo Salviati, may not be a household name today among many Florentines, but his influence has extended to the modern age. He was a learned humanist, philologist, and also a master of oratory of the 16th century. At a young age, Lionardo was interested in philological and linguistic research, and produced a number of works, some of which were published during his lifetime while others survived only in manuscript forms. His most wellknown accomplishments include the publication of an updated edition of Boccaccio’s Decameron, and to have been one of the founding members of the Accademia della Crusca in Florence between 1582 and 1583.

The good editor of Decameron

Decameron, sometimes referred to as l’Umana commedia (“The Human Comedy,” in contrast to Dante’s “Divine Comedy”), is a frame narrative written by Giovanni Boccaccio in the 14th century. The book contains a collection of 100 tales told by a group of seven women and three men. The storytellers tried to escape the Black Death by staying in a villa outside of Florence. Although the book was considered a masterpiece of classical early Italian prose and enjoyed great popularity, its anti-clerical stance caused conflict with the Catholic Church. It was one of the works burned in the “Bonfire of the Vanities” in 1497 in Florence, and was later placed on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum (“List of Prohibited Books”) instituted by Pope Paul IV in 1559. However, due to its literary importance, the book was later moved to a different list of titles which, after

proper edits, was more acceptable to the Roman Inquisition, and therefore allowed to be published by the Catholic Church.

In 1580, the prestigious task of editing l’Umana Commedia was entrusted to Lionardo Salviati, who at the time was in the service of Giacomo Boncompagni, Duke of Sora. Buoncompagni was the illegitimate son of Pope Gregory XIII (best known for commissioning the Gregorian calendar and whose stone plaque can still be seen today in the Allori Chapel in Palazzo Portinari Salviati). Francesco I de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, authorized Lionardo Salviati “with ample and free authority to correct and purge the book in question, with all those conditions and provisions that will be pleasing to his discreet judgment.” Lionardo Salviati’s editing amended the content of the work in question, and brought the text in line with Christian morality.

In addition, because Boccaccio’s original text of Decameron was in the vernacular Florentine language, there were significant linguistic differences from the current use of language. Instead of rewriting the text, in his new edition of Decameron published in 1582, Lionardo Salviati found a middle ground between the older writing and the modern speech. He not only modified its moral point of view to make it more acceptable for public circulation, but also refined its language and philology.

The academy “La Crusca”

Accademia della Crusca, or “La Crusca” (literally, “Academy of the Bran”) is the oldest linguistic academy in the world and also one of the leading institutions in the field of Italian language research. It was established by five learned Florentine scholars, with Lionardo Salviati among them. Its members humorously referred to their meetings as “cruscate” (‘bran meetings’), which led to the name of the institution. As bran was the part of the wheat discarded from the grain, La Crusca was founded to “clean up” the unnecessary language and vocabulary. The institution also adopted a line by Francesco Petrarch, “il più bel fior ne coglie,” (it gathers the fairest flower) as their motto. The symbology between grain, bran, and bread did not stop there. The objects and furniture in the institution are also related to grain, bran, and bread. Every member of the institution had their own ceremonial spade (in the form of a wooden shovel) with personal symbolic images, nicknames and chosen mottos painted on them. For example, Lionardo Salviati’s name in La Crusca was “l’infarinato” (meaning “the one covered in flour”) and his ceremonial spade depicts a hedgehog covered in flour. Even after more than 400 years, Lionardo Salviati’s sense of humor is still appreciated.

Following Lionardo’s footsteps, subsequent members of the Salviati family also joined La Crusca, including Filippo Salviati (1583-1614), Vincenzio Salviati (1583-1654), and Alamanno Salviati (1669-1733). The Salviatis’ active participation in linguistic research has greatly contributed to the understanding and development of the Italian language. Accademia della Crusca survives to this day and is a respected member of the European Federation of National Linguistic Institutes.

VOCABULARY OF THE ACCADEMIA DELLA CRUSCA

The first dictionary of the Italian language. This edition was printed in Florence in 1691.