Some Observations on the First Middle English Translation of the Revelation of John

The Revelation of John represents one of the most popular texts of medieval Europe. This popularity, undoubtedly fuelled by fears and expectations of the year one thousand, is reflected not only in the presence of millenarian themes in contemporary literature, but also and above all in an extremely rich manuscript tradition in Latin and vernacular languages. Medieval England is no exception, except for the fact that the earliest translations are in Anglo-Norman, and the first copies in Middle English are not available until the middle of the fourteenth century. The most significant work in this regard is certainly the so-called Wycliffe translation, which deviates from the Anglo-Norman model. However, it would not have been possible without being preceded by various attempts, of which we still have evidence. This article intends to focus on the first translation that has been handed down to us, trying to highlight the translation practices employed in terms of syntactic, lexical and morphological choices. As a matter of fact, although it is a very adherent translation to the Anglo-Norman version, it shows interesting and strategical attempts to adapt the text to the Middle English language for a successful rendition of the apocalyptic message.