From the twelfth century onwards, notable advances in the theoretical development occur

in independent treatises on syntax, which on their side are intimately linked with medieval

commentaries on the last two books, the so-called Priscian Minor, of the Institutiones

Grammaticae I-XVIII, where Priscian deals with syntax. A number of the independent treatises

on syntax are now available. But of the many commentaries on Priscian Minor known, only

a few have been edited, so let me start by editing an interesting 12^th c. gloss on Priscian Minor,

called the Glosa Victorina. Priscian Minor itself begins with introducing the notion of what is a

perfect sentence, what is a well-formed utterance and which parts of speech are indispensable

or the most important, stating their order of importance : noun, verb, participle, pronoun,

and the indeclinable word classes. As the argumentation unfolds, comparisons between

letters, syllables and words are introduced providing a continuity and refinement on what was

taught earlier in the so-called Priscian Maior, and how this concerns grammar on the level of

syntax. Very quickly, this leads to an interdisciplinary discussion of what constitutes a perfect

sentence (according to the grammarians and the dialecticians), involving the commentators in

redefinitions of the principal parts of speech and explaining their distinguishing features. In this

process, notions of substance, of person, of deixis, of reference - signification, and many other

important grammatical issues are discussed. So in principle, the beginning of any commentary

on Priscian Minor provides its author with scope for developing his particular doctrines and

ideas of prime importance in linguistics.

Here the Glosa Victorina deserves a closer look, because it provides us with insights into

discussions normally only hinted at by Abelard, or a use of terminology which then becomes

refined and partially rejected by William of Conches and Petrus Helias.