This study deals with a number of aspects of the words which are usually called adverbs in Latin. It contains on the one hand a critical discussion of their treatment in Latin grammatical studies -- the characteristics attributed to them, their relationship to other words -- and on the other hand a discussion of the conditions that have to be met in order to achieve a better (sub)classification -- general problems of classification as well as criteria for affecting such classification -- and a better description of the functions of adverbs in larger constructions. The study contains, therefore, both language-specific sections and more general ones. The author wrote the passages specifically dealing with Latin in such a way that they are clear enough to the non-Latinist, the more general passages in such a way that they are understandable for Latinists who are not acquainted with recent developments in linguistics.

Harm Pinkster is professor emeritus of Latin (University of Amsterdam). He taught as a visiting professor at the universities of Bologna, Pavia, Venice, Aix-en-Provence, Oxford, and Chicago. He is the founder of the biannual international colloquia on Latin linguistics.
His best known linguistic work is his Latin Syntax and Semantics, originally published in Dutch (1984), and then translated (and revised) into German (1988), English (1990), Italian (1990), and Spanish (1995).

“On Latin Adverbs was praised for its systematic and lucid application of clear and well-defined concepts to a notoriously difficult chapter of Latin grammar.” Latomus

Preface - 8 Contents - 10 Introduction - 14 Ch.1: General Problems of Studying a Dead Language - 22 Ch.2: Problems of Classification - 30 Ch.3: Adverbs in Roman Grammatical Theory - 48 Ch.4: The Adverb in Latin Linguistics - 58 Ch.5: Adverbs as Derived Forms - 76 Ch.6: Syntactic Problems - 84 Ch.7: Subclassification of Adverbs - 116 Ch.8: Adverbs and other Invariables - 148 Ch.9: The Relationship between Adverbs and Prepositions - 158 Ch.10: Adverbs and Connectors - 166 Ch.11: Adverbs and Subordinators - 178 Bibliography - 192 Index Rerum - 202 Index Auctorum - 204