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AOL | Membership | Membership
AOL offers a range of integrated products and properties including communication tools, mobile apps and services and subscription packages.
In 2017, before the discontinuation of AIM, "billions of messages" were sent "daily" on it and AOL's other chat services.
Dial-up Internet access – While 2.1 million people still used AOL's dial-up service as recently as 2015, only a few thousand were still subscribed as of 2021.
AOL Mail – AOL Mail is AOL's proprietary email client. It is fully integrated with AIM and links to news headlines on AOL content sites.
AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) – was AOL's proprietary instant-messaging tool. It was released in 1997. It lost market share to competition in the instant messenger market such as Google Chat, Facebook Messenger, and Skype. It also included a video-chat service, AV by AIM. On December 15, 2017, AOL discontinued AIM.
AOL Plans – AOL Plans offers three online safety and assistance tools: ID protection, data security and a general online technical assistance service. |
AOL | AOL Desktop | AOL Desktop
AOL Desktop is an internet suite produced by AOL from 2007 that integrates a web browser, a media player and an instant messenger client. Version 10.X was based on AOL OpenRide, it is an upgrade from such. The macOS version is based on WebKit.
AOL Desktop version 10.X was different from previous AOL browsers and AOL Desktop versions. Its features are focused on web browsing as well as email. For instance, one does not have to sign into AOL in order to use it as a regular browser. In addition, non-AOL email accounts can be accessed through it. Primary buttons include "MAIL", "IM", and several shortcuts to various web pages. The first two require users to sign in, but the shortcuts to web pages can be used without authentication. AOL Desktop version 10.X was later marked as unsupported in favor of supporting the AOL Desktop 9.X versions.
Version 9.8 was released, replacing the Internet Explorer components of the web browser with CEF (Chromium Embedded Framework) to give users an improved web browsing experience closer to that of Chrome.
Version 11 of AOL Desktop was a total rewrite but maintained a similar user interface to the previous 9.8.X series of releases.
In 2017, a new paid version called AOL Desktop Gold was released, available for $4.99 per month after trial. It replaced the previous free version. After the shutdown of AIM in 2017, AOL's original chat rooms continued to be accessible through AOL Desktop Gold, and some rooms remained active during peak hours. That chat system was shut down on December 15, 2020.
In addition to AOL Desktop, the company also offered a browser toolbar Mozilla plug-in, AOL Toolbar, for several web browsers that provided quick access to AOL services. The toolbar was available from 2007 until 2018. |
AOL | Criticism | Criticism
thumb|upright=0.8|AOL CDs sent to a student dormitory in Germany, 2002
In its earlier incarnation as a "walled garden" community and service provider, AOL received criticism for its community policies, terms of service, and customer service. Prior to 2006, AOL was known for its direct mailing of CD-ROMs and 3.5-inch floppy disks containing its software. The disks were distributed in large numbers; at one point, half of the CDs manufactured worldwide had AOL logos on them. The marketing tactic was criticized for its environmental cost, and AOL CDs were recognized as PC Worlds most annoying tech product. |
AOL | Community leaders | Community leaders
AOL used a system of volunteers to moderate its chat rooms, forums and user communities. The program dated back to AOL's early days, when it charged by the hour for access and one of its highest billing services was chat. AOL provided free access to community leaders in exchange for moderating the chat rooms, and this effectively made chat very cheap to operate, and more lucrative than AOL's other services of the era. There were 33,000 community leaders in 1996. All community leaders received hours of training and underwent a probationary period. While most community leaders moderated chat rooms, some ran AOL communities and controlled their layout and design, with as much as 90% of AOL's content being created or overseen by community managers until 1996.
By 1996, ISPs were beginning to charge flat rates for unlimited access, which they could do at a profit because they only provided internet access. Even though AOL would lose money with such a pricing scheme, it was forced by market conditions to offer unlimited access in October 1996. In order to return to profitability, AOL rapidly shifted its focus from content creation to advertising, resulting in less of a need to carefully moderate every forum and chat room to keep users willing to pay by the minute to remain connected.
After unlimited access, AOL considered scrapping the program entirely, but continued it with a reduced number of community leaders, with scaled-back roles in creating content. Although community leaders continued to receive free access, after 1996 they were motivated more by the prestige of the position and the access to moderator tools and restricted areas within AOL. By 1999, there were over 15,000 volunteers in the program.
In May 1999, two former volunteers filed a class-action lawsuit alleging AOL violated the Fair Labor Standards Act by treating volunteers like employees. Volunteers had to apply for the position, commit to working for at least three to four hours a week, fill out timecards and sign a non-disclosure agreement. On July 22, AOL ended its youth corps, which consisted of 350 underage community leaders. At this time, the United States Department of Labor began an investigation into the program, but it came to no conclusions about AOL's practices.
AOL ended its community leader program on June 8, 2005. The class action lawsuit dragged on for years, even after AOL ended the program and AOL declined as a major internet company. In 2010, AOL finally agreed to settle the lawsuit for $15 million. The community leader program was described as an example of co-production in a 2009 article in International Journal of Cultural Studies. |
AOL | Billing disputes | Billing disputes
AOL has faced a number of lawsuits over claims that it has been slow to stop billing customers after their accounts have been canceled, either by the company or the user. In addition, AOL changed its method of calculating used minutes in response to a class action lawsuit. Previously, AOL would add 15 seconds to the time a user was connected to the service and round up to the next whole minute (thus, a person who used the service for 12 minutes and 46 seconds would be charged for 14 minutes). AOL claimed this was to account for sign on/sign off time, but because this practice was not made known to its customers, the plaintiffs won (some also pointed out that signing on and off did not always take 15 seconds, especially when connecting via another ISP). AOL disclosed its connection-time calculation methods to all of its customers and credited them with extra free hours. In addition, the AOL software would notify the user of exactly how long they were connected and how many minutes they were being charged.
AOL was sued by the Ohio Attorney General in October 2003 for improper billing practices. The case was settled on June 8, 2005. AOL agreed to resolve any consumer complaints filed with the Ohio AG's office. In December 2006, AOL agreed to provide restitution to Florida consumers to settle the case filed against them by the Florida Attorney General. |
AOL | Account cancellation | Account cancellation
Many customers complained that AOL personnel ignored their demands to cancel service and stop billing. In response to approximately 300 consumer complaints, the New York Attorney General's office began an inquiry of AOL's customer service policies. The investigation revealed that the company had an elaborate scheme for rewarding employees who purported to retain or "save" subscribers who had called to cancel their Internet service. In many instances, such retention was done against subscribers' wishes, or without their consent. Under the scheme, customer service personnel received bonuses worth tens of thousands of dollars if they could successfully dissuade or "save" half of the people who called to cancel service. For several years, AOL had instituted minimum retention or "save" percentages, which consumer representatives were expected to meet. These bonuses, and the minimum "save" rates accompanying them, had the effect of employees not honoring cancellations, or otherwise making cancellation unduly difficult for consumers.
On August 24, 2005, America Online agreed to pay $1.25 million to the state of New York and reformed its customer service procedures. Under the agreement, AOL would no longer require its customer service representatives to meet a minimum quota for customer retention in order to receive a bonus. However the agreement only covered people in the state of New York.
On June 13, 2006, Vincent Ferrari documented his account cancellation phone call in a blog post, stating he had switched to broadband years earlier. In the recorded phone call, the AOL representative refused to cancel the account unless the 30-year-old Ferrari explained why AOL hours were still being recorded on it. Ferrari insisted that AOL software was not even installed on the computer. When Ferrari demanded that the account be canceled regardless, the AOL representative asked to speak with Ferrari's father, for whom the account had been set up. The conversation was aired on CNBC. When CNBC reporters tried to have an account on AOL cancelled, they were hung up on immediately and it ultimately took more than 45 minutes to cancel the account.
On July 19, 2006, AOL's entire retention manual was released on the Internet.Popken, Ben. (July 19, 2006) America Online: AOL Retention Manual Uploaded in Full . Consumerist.com. Retrieved on July 8, 2011. On August 3, 2006, Time Warner announced that the company would be dissolving AOL's retention centers due to its profits hinging on $1 billion in cost cuts. The company estimated that it would lose more than six million subscribers over the following year.AOL: TimeWarner Dissolves AOL Retention Centers . Consumerist.com (August 3, 2006). Retrieved on July 8, 2011. |
AOL | Direct marketing of disks | Direct marketing of disks
thumb|Some promotional CD-ROMs distributed in Canada
right|thumb|CD in original mailer
Prior to 2006, AOL often sent unsolicited mass direct mail of 3" floppy disks and CD-ROMs containing their software. They were the most frequent user of this marketing tactic, and received criticism for the environmental cost of the campaign. According to PC World, in the 1990s "you couldn't open a magazine (PC World included) or your mailbox without an AOL disk falling out of it".
The mass distribution of these disks was seen as wasteful by the public and led to protest groups. One such was No More AOL CDs, a web-based effort by two IT workersWhat to do with those AOL CDs, a March 2003 CBC News article to collect one million disks with the intent to return the disks to AOL. The website was started in August 2001, and an estimated 410,176 CDs were collected by August 2007 when the project was shut down.Internet Archive Wayback Machine 2007 Aug 20 archive of NoMoreAOLCDs.com main page. Web.archive.org (August 20, 2007). Retrieved on July 8, 2011. |
AOL | Software | Software
In 2000, AOL was served with an $8 billion lawsuit alleging that its AOL 5.0 software caused significant difficulties for users attempting to use third-party Internet service providers. The lawsuit sought damages of up to $1000 for each user that had downloaded the software cited at the time of the lawsuit. AOL later agreed to a settlement of $15 million, without admission of wrongdoing.Gardencitygroup.com (PDF). Retrieved on July 8, 2011. The AOL software then was given a feature called AOL Dialer, or AOL Connect on . This feature allowed users to connect to the ISP without running the full interface. This allowed users to use only the applications they wish to use, especially if they do not favor the AOL Browser.
AOL 9.0 was once identified by Stopbadware as being under investigation for installing additional software without disclosure, and modifying browser preferences, toolbars, and icons. However, as of the release of AOL 9.0 VR (Vista Ready) on January 26, 2007, it was no longer considered badware due to changes AOL made in the software.StopBadware.org . StopBadware.org (January 26, 2007). Retrieved on July 8, 2011. |
AOL | Usenet newsgroups | Usenet newsgroups
When AOL gave clients access to Usenet in 1993, they hid at least one newsgroup in standard list view: alt.aol-sucks. AOL did list the newsgroup in the alternative description view, but changed the description to "Flames and complaints about America Online". With AOL clients swarming Usenet newsgroups, the old, existing user base started to develop a strong distaste for both AOL and its clients, referring to the new state of affairs as Eternal September."The Making of an Underclass: AOL" net.wars Chapter 3, Wendy M. Grossman, NYU Press, 1998.
AOL discontinued access to Usenet on June 25, 2005.AOL Pulls Plug on Newsgroup Service . BetaNews. Retrieved on July 8, 2011. No official details were provided as to the cause of decommissioning Usenet access, except providing users the suggestion to access Usenet services from a third-party, Google Groups. AOL then provided community-based message boards in lieu of Usenet. |
AOL | Terms of Service (TOS) | Terms of Service (TOS)
AOL has a detailed set of guidelines and expectations for users on their service, known as the Terms of Service (TOS, also known as Conditions of Service (COS) in the UK). It is separated into three different sections: Member Agreement, Community Guidelines and Privacy Policy. All three agreements are presented to users at time of registration and digital acceptance is achieved when they access the AOL service. During the period when volunteer chat room hosts and board monitors were used, chat room hosts were given a brief online training session and test on Terms of Service violations.
There have been many complaints over rules that govern an AOL user's conduct. Some users disagree with the TOS, citing the guidelines are too strict to follow coupled with the fact the TOS may change without users being made aware. A considerable cause for this was likely due to alleged censorship of user-generated content during the earlier years of growth for AOL.Aolwatch.org . Aolwatch.org (July 25, 1996). Retrieved on July 8, 2011.Thetruthseeker.co.uk , The Truth Seeker – Internet CensorshipCensorship on AOL Late 1998–1999 . Fglaysher.com (March 9, 1999). Retrieved on July 8, 2011. |
AOL | Certified email | Certified email
In early 2005, AOL stated its intention to implement a certified email system called Goodmail, which will allow companies to send email to users with whom they have pre-existing business relationships, with a visual indication that the email is from a trusted source and without the risk that the email messages might be blocked or stripped by spam filters.
This decision drew fire from MoveOn, which characterized the program as an "email tax", and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), which characterized it as a shakedown of non-profits. A website called Dearaol.com was launched, with an online petition and a blog that garnered hundreds of signatures from people and organizations expressing their opposition to AOL's use of Goodmail.
Esther Dyson defended the move in an editorial in The New York Times, saying "I hope Goodmail succeeds, and that it has lots of competition. I also think it and its competitors will eventually transform into services that more directly serve the interests of mail recipients. Instead of the fees going to Goodmail and AOL, they will also be shared with the individual recipients."
Tim Lee of the Technology Liberation FrontTechliberation.com . Techliberation.com. Retrieved on July 8, 2011. posted an article that questioned the Electronic Frontier Foundation's adopting a confrontational posture when dealing with private companies. Lee's article cited a series of discussions on Declan McCullagh's Politechbot mailing list on this subject between the EFF's Danny O'Brien and antispammer Suresh Ramasubramanian, who has also compared the EFF's tactics in opposing Goodmail to tactics used by Republican political strategist Karl Rove. SpamAssassin developer Justin Mason posted some criticism of the EFF's and Moveon's "going overboard" in their opposition to the scheme.
The dearaol.com campaign lost momentum and disappeared, with the last post to the now defunct dearaol.com blog—"AOL starts the shakedown" being made on May 9, 2006.
Comcast, who also used the service, announced on its website that Goodmail had ceased operations and as of February 4, 2011, they no longer used the service.Security.comcast.net , February 4, 2011 |
AOL | Search data | Search data
On August 4, 2006, AOL released a compressed text file on one of its websites containing 20 million search keywords for over 650,000 users over a three-month period between March 1 and May 31, 2006, intended for research purposes. AOL pulled the file from public access by August 7, but not before its wide distribution on the Internet by others. Derivative research, titled A Picture of SearchIR.iit.edu . (PDF) . Retrieved on July 8, 2011. was published by authors Pass, Chowdhury and Torgeson for The First International Conference on Scalable Information Systems.CS.hku.hk . CS.hku.hk. Retrieved on July 8, 2011.
The data were used by websites such as AOLstalker for entertainment purposes, where users of AOLstalker are encouraged to judge AOL clients based on the humorousness of personal details revealed by search behavior. |
AOL | User list exposure | User list exposure
In 2003, Jason Smathers, an AOL employee, was convicted of stealing America Online's 92 million screen names and selling them to a known spammer. Smathers pled guilty to conspiracy charges in 2005., August 17, 2005 Smathers pled guilty to violations of the US CAN-SPAM Act of 2003. He was sentenced in August 2005 to 15 months in prison; the sentencing judge also recommended Smathers be forced to pay $84,000 in restitution, triple the $28,000 that he sold the addresses for. |
AOL | AOL's Computer Checkup "scareware" | AOL's Computer Checkup "scareware"
On February 27, 2012, a class action lawsuit was filed against Support.com, Inc. and partner AOL, Inc. The lawsuit alleged Support.com and AOL's Computer Checkup "scareware" (which uses software developed by Support.com) misrepresented that their software programs would identify and resolve a host of technical problems with computers, offered to perform a free "scan", which often found problems with users' computers. The companies then offered to sell software—for which AOL allegedly charged $4.99 a month and Support.com $29—to remedy those problems. Both AOL, Inc. and Support.com, Inc. settled on May 30, 2013, for $8.5 million. This included $25.00 to each valid class member and $100,000 each to Consumer Watchdog and the Electronic Frontier Foundation. Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley wrote: "Distributing a portion of the [funds] to Consumer Watchdog will meet the interests of the silent class members because the organization will use the funds to help protect consumers across the nation from being subject to the types of fraudulent and misleading conduct that is alleged here," and "EFF's mission includes a strong consumer protection component, especially in regards to online protection."
AOL continues to market Computer Checkup. |
AOL | NSA PRISM program | NSA PRISM program
Following media reports about PRISM, NSA's massive electronic surveillance program, in June 2013, several technology companies were identified as participants, including AOL. According to leaks of said program, AOL joined the PRISM program in 2011. |
AOL | Hosting of user profiles changed, then discontinued | Hosting of user profiles changed, then discontinued
At one time, most AOL users had an online "profile" hosted by the AOL Hometown service. When AOL Hometown was discontinued, users had to create a new profile on Bebo. This was an unsuccessful attempt to create a social network that would compete with Facebook. When the value of Bebo decreased to a tiny fraction of the $850 million AOL paid for it, users were forced to recreate their profiles yet again, on a new service called AOL Lifestream.
AOL decided to shut down Lifestream on February 24, 2017, and gave users one month's notice to save photos and videos that had been uploaded to Lifestream. Following the shutdown, AOL no longer provides any option for hosting user profiles.
During the Hometown/Bebo/Lifestream era, another user's profile could be displayed by clicking the "Buddy Info" button in the AOL Desktop software. After the shutdown of Lifestream, this was no longer supported, but opened to the AIM home page (www.aim.com), which also became defunct, redirecting to AOL's home page. |
AOL | See also | See also
Adrian Lamo – Inside-AOL.com
AOHell
Comparison of webmail providers
David Shing
Dot-com bubble
Elwood Edwards
List of acquisitions by AOL
List of S&P 400 companies
Live365
Truveo |
AOL | References | References |
AOL | External links | External links
Category:1983 establishments in the United States
Category:2001 mergers and acquisitions
Category:2015 mergers and acquisitions
Category:Companies based in Dulles, Virginia
Category:Companies based in New York City
Category:Companies formerly listed on the New York Stock Exchange
Category:Companies in the PRISM network
Category:Former Time Warner subsidiaries
Category:Internet properties established in 1983
Category:Internet properties established in 2009
Category:Internet service providers of the United States
Category:Internet services supporting OpenID
Category:Pre–World Wide Web online services
Category:Telecommunications companies established in 1983
Category:Telecommunications companies established in 2009
Category:Verizon acquisitions
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Category:Web portals
Category:Web service providers |
AOL | Table of Content | Short description, History, 1983–1991: early years, 1991–2006: Internet age, Time Warner merger, 2006–2009: rebranding and decline, 2009–2015: As a digital media company, 2015–2021: division of Verizon, 2021–present: Apollo Global Management, Products and services, Content, Advertising, Membership, AOL Desktop, Criticism, Community leaders, Billing disputes, Account cancellation, Direct marketing of disks, Software, Usenet newsgroups, Terms of Service (TOS), Certified email, Search data, User list exposure, AOL's Computer Checkup "scareware", NSA PRISM program, Hosting of user profiles changed, then discontinued, See also, References, External links |
Anno Domini | short description | thumb|Anno Domini inscription at Klagenfurt Cathedral, Austria
The terms (AD) and before Christ (BC) are used when designating years in the Gregorian and Julian calendars. The term is Medieval Latin and means "in the year of the Lord" but is often presented using "our Lord" instead of "the Lord", "since AD stands for , 'in the year of (Our) Lord taken from the full original phrase "", which translates to "in the year of our Lord Jesus Christ". The form "BC" is specific to English, and equivalent abbreviations are used in other languages: the Latin form, rarely used in English, is (ACN) or (AC).
This calendar era takes as its epoch the traditionally reckoned year of the conception or birth of Jesus. Years AD are counted forward since that epoch and years BC are counted backward from the epoch. There is no year zero in this scheme; thus the year AD 1 immediately follows the year 1 BC. This dating system was devised in 525 by Dionysius Exiguus but was not widely used until the 9th century. Modern scholars believe that the actual date of birth of Jesus was about 5 BC.D. A. Carson, Douglas J. Moo & Leon Morris. (1992). An Introduction to the New Testament, 54, 56. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.Ben Witherington III, "Primary Sources," Christian History 17 (1998) No. 3:12–20.
Terminology that is viewed by some as being more neutral and inclusive of non-Christian people is to call this the Common Era (abbreviated as CE), with the preceding years referred to as Before the Common Era (BCE). Astronomical year numbering and ISO 8601 do not use words or abbreviations related to Christianity, but use the same numbers for AD years (but not for BC years since the astronomical year 0 is 1 BC). |
Anno Domini | Usage | Usage
Traditionally, English follows Latin usage by placing the "AD" abbreviation before the year number, though it is also found after the year.Chicago Manual of Style 2010, pp. 476–7; Goldstein 2007, p. 6. In contrast, "BC" is always placed after the year number (for example: 70 BC but AD 70), which preserves syntactic order. The abbreviation "AD" is also widely used after the number of a century or millennium, as in "fourth century AD" or "second millennium AD" (although conservative usage formerly rejected such expressions).Chicago Manual of Style, 1993, p. 304. Since "BC" is the English abbreviation for Before Christ, it is sometimes incorrectly concluded that AD means After Death (i.e., after the death of Jesus), which would mean that the approximately 33 years commonly associated with the life of Jesus would be included in neither the BC nor the AD time scales. |
Anno Domini | History | History
The anno Domini dating system was devised in 525 by Dionysius Exiguus to enumerate years in his Easter table. His system was to replace the Diocletian era that had been used in older Easter tables, as he did not wish to continue the memory of a tyrant who persecuted Christians. The last year of the old table, Diocletian Anno Martyrium 247, was immediately followed by the first year of his table, anno Domini 532. When Dionysius devised his table, Julian calendar years were identified by naming the consuls who held office that year— Dionysius himself stated that the "present year" was "the consulship of Probus Junior", which was 525 years "since the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ".Nineteen year cycle of Dionysius Introduction and First Argumentum. Thus, Dionysius implied that Jesus' incarnation occurred 525 years earlier, without stating the specific year during which his birth or conception occurred. "However, nowhere in his exposition of his table does Dionysius relate his epoch to any other dating system, whether consulate, Olympiad, year of the world, or regnal year of Augustus; much less does he explain or justify the underlying date."
Bonnie J. Blackburn and Leofranc Holford-Strevens briefly present arguments for 2 BC, 1 BC, or AD 1 as the year Dionysius intended for the Nativity or incarnation. Among the sources of confusion are:
In modern times, incarnation is synonymous with the conception, but some ancient writers, such as Bede, considered incarnation to be synonymous with the Nativity.
The civil or consular year began on 1 January, but the Diocletian year began on 29 August (30 August in the year before a Julian leap year).
There were inaccuracies in the lists of consuls.
There were confused summations of emperors' regnal years.
It is not known how Dionysius established the year of Jesus's birth. One theory is that Dionysius based his calculation on the Gospel of Luke, which states that Jesus was "about thirty years old" shortly after "the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar", and hence subtracted thirty years from that date. This method was probably the one used by ancient historians such as Tertullian, Eusebius or Epiphanius, all of whom agree that Jesus was born in 2 BC, probably following this statement of Jesus' age (i.e. subtracting thirty years from AD 29).
Another major theory or that Dionysius counted back 532 years from the first year of his new table, following an 532-year cycle established by the astronomical computations of Victorius of Aquitaine (the dates for Easter repeat every 532 years).Tøndering, Claus, "The Calendar FAQ: Counting years". . Alternatively, Dionysius may have used an earlier unknown source, as the earlier Chronograph of 354 states that Jesus was born during the consulship of Caesar and Paullus (AD 1).
It has also been speculated by Georges DeclercqDeclercq, Georges(2000). "Anno Domini. The Origins of the Christian Era" Turnhout, Belgium, that Dionysius' desire to replace Diocletian years with a calendar based on the incarnation of Christ was intended to prevent people from believing the imminent end of the world. At the time, it was believed by some that the resurrection of the dead and end of the world would occur 500 years after the birth of Jesus. The old Anno Mundi calendar theoretically commenced with the creation of the world based on information in the Old Testament. It was believed that, based on the Anno Mundi calendar, Jesus was born in the year 5500 (5500 years after the world was created) with the year 6000 of the Anno Mundi calendar marking the end of the world.Wallraff, Martin: Julius Africanus und die Christliche Weltchronik. Walter de Gruyter, 2006 Anno Mundi 6000 (approximately AD 500) was thus equated with the end of the world but this date had already passed in the time of Dionysius.
The "Historia Brittonum" attributed to Nennius written in the 9th century makes extensive use of the Anno Passionis (AP) dating system which was in common use as well as the newer AD dating system. The AP dating system took its start from 'The Year of The Passion'. It is generally accepted by experts there is a 27-year difference between AP and AD reference.Halsall, Guy (2013). Worlds of Arthur: Facts & Fictions of The Dark Ages. Oxford University Press, pp 194 - 200
The date of birth of Jesus of Nazareth is not stated in the gospels or in any secular text, but most scholars assume a date of birth between 6 BC and 4 BC. The historical evidence is too fragmentary to allow a definitive dating,Doggett 1992, p579: "Although scholars generally believe that Christ was born some years before AD 1, the historical evidence is too sketchy to allow a definitive dating". but the date is estimated through two different approaches—one by analyzing references to known historical events mentioned in the Nativity accounts in the Gospels of Luke and Matthew and the second by working backwards from the estimation of the start of the ministry of Jesus.Paul L. Maier "The Date of the Nativity and Chronology of Jesus" in Chronos, kairos, Christos: nativity and chronological studies by Jerry Vardaman, Edwin M. Yamauchi 1989 pp. 113–29New Testament History by Richard L. Niswonger 1992 pp. 121–24 |
Anno Domini | Popularization | Popularization
The Anglo-Saxon historian Bede, who was familiar with the work of Dionysius Exiguus, used anno Domini dating in his Ecclesiastical History of the English People, which he completed in AD 731. In the History he also used the Latin phrase ante [...] incarnationis dominicae tempus anno sexagesimo ("in the sixtieth year before the time of the Lord's incarnation"), which is equivalent to the English "before Christ", to identify years before the first year of this era.Bede 731, Book 1, Chapter 2, first sentence. Both Dionysius and Bede regarded anno Domini as beginning at the incarnation of Jesus Christ, but "the distinction between Incarnation and Nativity was not drawn until the late 9th century, when in some places the Incarnation epoch was identified with Christ's conception, i. e., the Annunciation on March 25" ("Annunciation style" dating).
thumb|right|Statue of Charlemagne by Agostino Cornacchini (1725), at St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City. Charlemagne promoted the usage of the anno Domini epoch throughout the Carolingian Empire.
On the continent of Europe, anno Domini was introduced as the era of choice of the Carolingian Renaissance by the English cleric and scholar Alcuin in the late eighth century. Its endorsement by Emperor Charlemagne and his successors popularizing the use of the epoch and spreading it throughout the Carolingian Empire ultimately lies at the core of the system's prevalence. According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, popes continued to date documents according to regnal years for some time, but usage of AD gradually became more common in Catholic countries from the 11th to the 14th centuries.Patrick, 1908 In 1422, Portugal became the last Western European country to switch to the system begun by Dionysius. Eastern Orthodox countries only began to adopt AD instead of the Byzantine calendar in 1700 when Russia did so, with others adopting it in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Although anno Domini was in widespread use by the 9th century, the term "Before Christ" (or its equivalent) did not become common until much later. Bede used the expression "anno [...] ante incarnationem Dominicam" (in the year before the incarnation of the Lord) twice. "Anno ante Christi nativitatem" (in the year before the birth of Christ) is found in 1474 in a work by a German monk. In 1627, the French Jesuit theologian Denis Pétau (Dionysius Petavius in Latin), with his work De doctrina temporum, popularized the usage ante Christum (Latin for "Before Christ") to mark years prior to AD. |
Anno Domini | New year | New year
When the reckoning from Jesus' incarnation began replacing the previous dating systems in western Europe, various people chose different Christian feast days to begin the year: Christmas, Annunciation, or Easter. Thus, depending on the time and place, the year number changed on different days in the year, which created slightly different styles in chronology:C. R. Cheney, A Handbook of Dates, for students of British history , Cambridge University Press, 1945–2000, pp. 8–14.
From 25 March 753 AUC (1 BC), i.e., notionally from the incarnation of Jesus. That first "Annunciation style" appeared in Arles at the end of the 9th century then spread to Burgundy and northern Italy. It was not commonly used and was called calculus pisanus since it was adopted in Pisa and survived there until 1750.
From 25 December 753 AUC (1 BC), i.e., notionally from the birth of Jesus. It was called "Nativity style" and had been spread by Bede together with the anno Domini in the early Middle Ages. That reckoning of the Year of Grace from Christmas was used in France, England and most of western Europe (except Spain) until the 12th century (when it was replaced by Annunciation style) and in Germany until the second quarter of the 13th century.
From 25 March 754 AUC (AD 1). That second "Annunciation style" may have originated in Fleury Abbey in the early 11th century, but it was spread by the Cistercians. Florence adopted that style in opposition to that of Pisa, so it got the name of calculus florentinus. It soon spread in France and also in England where it became common in the late 12th century and lasted until 1752.
From Easter. That mos gallicanus (French custom) bound to a moveable feast was introduced in France by king Philip Augustus (r. 1180–1223), maybe to establish a new style in the provinces reconquered from England. However, it never spread beyond the ruling élite.
With these various styles, the same day could, in some cases, be dated in 1099, 1100 or 1101. |
Anno Domini | Other Christian and European eras | Other Christian and European eras
During the first six centuries of what would come to be known as the Christian era, European countries used various systems to count years. Systems in use included consular dating, imperial regnal year dating, and Creation dating.
Although the last non-imperial consul, Basilius, was appointed in 541 by Emperor Justinian I, later emperors through to Constans II (641–668) were appointed consuls on the first of January after their accession. All of these emperors, except Justinian, used imperial post-consular years for the years of their reign, along with their regnal years.Roger S. Bagnall and Klaas A. Worp, Chronological Systems of Byzantine Egypt , Leiden, Brill, 2004. Long unused, this practice was not formally abolished until Novell XCIV of the law code of Leo VI did so in 888.
Another calculation had been developed by the Alexandrian monk Annianus around the year AD 400, placing the Annunciation on 25 March AD 9 (Julian)—eight to ten years after the date that Dionysius was to imply. Although this incarnation was popular during the early centuries of the Byzantine Empire, years numbered from it, an Era of Incarnation, were exclusively used and are still used in Ethiopia. This accounts for the seven- or eight-year discrepancy between the Gregorian and Ethiopian calendars.
Byzantine chroniclers like Maximus the Confessor, George Syncellus, and Theophanes dated their years from Annianus' creation of the world. This era, called Anno Mundi, "year of the world" (abbreviated AM), by modern scholars, began its first year on 25 March 5492 BC. Later Byzantine chroniclers used Anno Mundi years from 1 September 5509 BC, the Byzantine Era. No single Anno Mundi epoch was dominant throughout the Christian world. Eusebius of Caesarea in his Chronicle used an era beginning with the birth of Abraham, dated in 2016 BC (AD 1 = 2017 Anno Abrahami).Alfred von Gutschmid, Kleine Schriften, F. Ruehl, Leipzig, 1889, p. 433.
Spain and Portugal continued to date by the Spanish Era (also called Era of the Caesars), which began counting from 38 BC, well into the Middle Ages. In 1422, Portugal became the last Catholic country to adopt the anno Domini system.
The Era of Martyrs, which numbered years from the accession of Diocletian in 284, who launched the most severe persecution of Christians, was used by the Church of Alexandria and is still officially used by the Coptic Orthodox and Coptic Catholic churches. It was also used by the Ethiopian and Eritrean churches. Another system was to date from the crucifixion of Jesus, which as early as Hippolytus and Tertullian was believed to have occurred in the consulate of the Gemini (AD 29), which appears in some medieval manuscripts. |
Anno Domini | CE and BCE | CE and BCE
Alternative names for the anno Domini era include vulgaris aerae (found 1615 in Latin),
"Vulgar Era" (in English, as early as 1635),
"Christian Era" (in English, in 1652),
"Common Era" (in English, 1708),
and "Current Era".
Since 1856,The term common era does not appear in this book; the term Christian era [lowercase] does appear a number of times. Nowhere in the book is the abbreviation explained or expanded directly. the alternative abbreviations CE and BCE (sometimes written C.E. and B.C.E.) are sometimes used in place of AD and BC.
The "Common/Current Era" ("CE") terminology is often preferred by those who desire a term that does not explicitly make religious references but still uses the same epoch as the anno Domini notation.
For example, Cunningham and Starr (1998) write that "B.C.E./C.E. […] do not presuppose faith in Christ and hence are more appropriate for interfaith dialog than the conventional B.C./A.D." Upon its foundation, the Republic of China adopted the Minguo Era but used the Western calendar for international purposes. The translated term was (). Later, in 1949, the People's Republic of China adopted () for all purposes domestic and foreign. |
Anno Domini | No year zero: start and end of a century | No year zero: start and end of a century
In the AD year numbering system, whether applied to the Julian or Gregorian calendars, AD 1 is immediately preceded by 1 BC, with nothing in between them (there was no year zero). There are debates as to whether a new decade, century, or millennium begins on a year ending in zero or one.
For computational reasons, astronomical year numbering and the ISO 8601 standard designate years so that AD 1 = year 1, 1 BC = year 0, 2 BC = year −1, etc. In common usage, ancient dates are expressed in the Julian calendar, but ISO 8601 uses the Gregorian calendar and astronomers may use a variety of time scales depending on the application. Thus dates using the year 0 or negative years may require further investigation before being converted to BC or AD. |
Anno Domini | See also | See also
Before Present
Holocene calendar |
Anno Domini | Notes | Notes |
Anno Domini | References | References |
Anno Domini | Citations | Citations |
Anno Domini | Sources | Sources
Bede. (731). Historiam ecclesiasticam gentis Anglorum . Retrieved 2007-12-07.
Corrected reprinting of original 1999 edition.
(despite beginning with 2, it is English)
Declercq, G. "Dionysius Exiguus and the Introduction of the Christian Era". Sacris Erudiri 41 (2002): 165–246. An annotated version of part of Anno Domini.
Doggett. (1992). "Calendars" (Ch. 12), in P. Kenneth Seidelmann (Ed.) Explanatory supplement to the astronomical almanac. Sausalito, CA: University Science Books. .
Patrick, J. (1908). "General Chronology" . In The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Retrieved 2008-07-16 from New Advent: Catholic Encyclopedia: General Chronology
|
Anno Domini | External links | External links
Calendar Converter
Category:6th-century Christianity
Category:Calendar eras
Category:Christian terminology
Category:Chronology
Category:Latin religious words and phrases
Category:Timelines of Christianity |
Anno Domini | Table of Content | short description, Usage, History, Popularization, New year, Other Christian and European eras, CE and BCE, No year zero: start and end of a century, See also, Notes, References, Citations, Sources, External links |
AV | Wiktionary | AV, Av or A.V. may refer to: |
AV | Arts and entertainment | Arts and entertainment
The abbreviation of audiovisual, possessing both a sound and a visual component
A.V. (film), a 2005 Hong Kong film directed by Pang Ho-Cheung
Adult video, an alternative name/synonym of a pornographic film
AV The Hunt, a 2020 Turkish thriller film directed by Emre Akay |
AV | Businesses and organizations | Businesses and organizations
America Votes, an American 501(c)4 organization that promotes progressive causes
Ambulance Victoria, an ambulance service operated in the Australian state of Victoria
Anonymous for the Voiceless, a grassroots animal rights organization specializing in street activism
Aston Villa F.C., an English professional football club
AV Akademikerverlag GmbH & Co. KG an imprint of the German group VDM Publishing (now OmniScriptum)
Avaya, a technology company formerly listed on the New York Stock Exchange with symbol "AV"
Avianca (IATA airline code AV)
Aviva, British insurance company, listed on the New York Stock Exchange and London Stock Exchange as "AV"
AeroVironment, manufacturer of unmanned military aircraft and systems
Amusement Vision, the former name of Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio |
AV | People | People
Av or Avrum Gross (1936–2018), American lawyer and Attorney General of Alaska
Av or Avrom Isaacs (1926–2016), Canadian art dealer
Av Westin (1929–2022), American television producer
Arun Vijay (born 1977), Indian actor |
AV | Places | Places
Anguilla (FIPS country code and obsolete NATO diagram AV)
Antelope Valley, a valley in Southern California
Province of Avellino, a province of Italy |
AV | Science and technology | Science and technology |
AV | Anatomy and medicine | Anatomy and medicine
Aerobic vaginitis, vaginal infection associated with overgrowth of aerobic bacteria
Arteriovenous (disambiguation)
Atrioventricular (disambiguation) |
AV | Electronics and computing | Electronics and computing
Access violation, a computer software error
Age verification, system for checking a user's age
Antivirus software, used to prevent, detect and remove malicious software
Audio and video connector, a cable between two devices
Analog video
AV Linux, a Linux-based operating system |
AV | Fluid dynamics | Fluid dynamics
Annular velocity, speed of the drilling fluid's movement in a column called an annulus in oil wells
Apparent viscosity, shear stress divided by shear rate |
AV | Vehicles | Vehicles
AV (cyclecar), a British cyclecar manufactured between 1919 and 1924
Bavarian A V, an 1853 steam locomotive model
A US Navy hull classification symbol: Seaplane tender (AV)
Autonomous vehicles |
AV | Other uses in science and technology | Other uses in science and technology
A-type main-sequence star, in astronomy, abbreviated A V
Aperture value mode, setting on photo cameras that allows to choose a specific aperture value |
AV | Other uses | Other uses
Alternative vote, an electoral system used to elect a single winner from a field of more than two candidates
Approval voting, a non-ranking vote system
Authorised Version of the Bible (also known as King James Version)
Av (month), a month in the Hebrew calendar
av, the Avar language's ISO 639-1 code
Av. or Ave, an abbreviation for Avenue (landscape)
or AV from Latin aurum (avrvm), a numismatic abbreviation for "gold"
A.V., the putative mark of ébéniste Adam Weisweiler
Aviation, abbreviated Av in military use
Andhra Vidyalaya College, aka A. V. College, a school in Hyderabad, India |
AV | See also | See also
2023 AV, an asteroid that passed closed to the Earth in 2023
A5 (disambiguation)
α5 (disambiguation)
AV idol, a type of Japanese porn star
Category:Masculine given names
Category:Hypocorisms |
AV | Table of Content | Wiktionary, Arts and entertainment, Businesses and organizations, People, Places, Science and technology, Anatomy and medicine, Electronics and computing, Fluid dynamics, Vehicles, Other uses in science and technology, Other uses, See also |
Amino group | # | redirect amine |
Amino group | Table of Content | # |
Alcuin | Short description | Alcuin of York (; ; 735 – 19 May 804) – also called Ealhwine, Alhwin, or Alchoin – was a scholar, clergyman, poet, and teacher from York, Northumbria. He was born around 735 and became the student of Archbishop Ecgbert at York. At the invitation of Charlemagne, he became a leading scholar and teacher at the Carolingian court, where he remained a figure in the 780s and 790s. Before that, he was also a court chancellor in Aachen. "The most learned man anywhere to be found", according to Einhard's Life of Charlemagne (–833), he is considered among the most important intellectual architects of the Carolingian Renaissance. Among his pupils were many of the dominant intellectuals of the Carolingian era.
Alcuin wrote many theological and dogmatic treatises, as well as a few grammatical works and a number of poems. In 796, he was made abbot of Marmoutier Abbey, in Tours, where he worked on perfecting the Carolingian minuscule script. He remained there until his death. |
Alcuin | Biography | Biography |
Alcuin | Background | Background
thumb|upright|Alcuin, roof figure, Museum of History of Arts, Vienna
Alcuin was born in Northumbria, presumably sometime in the 730s. Virtually nothing is known of his parents, family background, or origin. In common hagiographical fashion, the Vita Alcuini asserts that Alcuin was of "noble English stock", and this statement has usually been accepted by scholars. Alcuin's own work only mentions such collateral kinsmen as Wilgils of Ripon, father of the missionary saint Willibrord; and Beornrad (also spelled Beornred), abbot of Echternach and bishop of Sens. Willibrord, Alcuin and Beornrad were all related by blood.
In his Life of St Willibrord, Alcuin writes that Wilgils called a Pater familias, had founded an oratory and church at the mouth of the Humber, which had fallen into Alcuin's possession by inheritance. Because in early Anglo-Latin writing paterfamilias ("head of a family, householder") usually referred to a ("churl"), Donald A. Bullough suggests that Alcuin's family was of ("churlish") status: i.e., free but subordinate to a noble lord, and that Alcuin and other members of his family rose to prominence through beneficial connections with the aristocracy. If so, Alcuin's origins may lie in the southern part of what was formerly known as Deira. |
Alcuin | York | York
The young Alcuin came to the cathedral church of York during the golden age of Archbishop Ecgbert and his brother, the Northumbrian King Eadberht. Ecgbert had been a disciple of the Venerable Bede, who urged him to raise York to an archbishopric. King Eadberht and Archbishop Ecgbert oversaw the re-energising and reorganisation of the English church, with an emphasis on reforming the clergy and on the tradition of learning that Bede had begun. Ecgbert was devoted to Alcuin, who thrived under his tutelage.Mayr-Harting "Ecgberht" Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
The York school was renowned as a centre of learning in the liberal arts, literature, and science, as well as in religious matters. From here, Alcuin drew inspiration for the school he would lead at the Frankish court. He revived the school with the trivium and quadrivium disciplines, writing a codex on the trivium, while his student Hrabanus wrote one on the quadrivium.
Alcuin graduated to become a teacher during the 750s. His ascendancy to the headship of the York school, the ancestor of St Peter's School, began after Æthelbert of York became Archbishop of York in 767. Around the same time, Alcuin became a deacon in the church. He was never ordained a priest. Though no real evidence shows that he took monastic vows, he lived as if he had.
In 781, King Ælfwald I of Northumbria sent Alcuin to Rome to petition the Pope for official confirmation of York's status as an archbishopric and to confirm the election of the new archbishop, Eanbald I. On his way home, he met Charlemagne (whom he had met once before), this time in the Italian city of Parma. |
Alcuin | Charlemagne | Charlemagne
Alcuin's intellectual curiosity allowed him to be reluctantly persuaded to join Charlemagne's court. He joined an illustrious group of scholars whom Charlemagne had gathered around him, the mainsprings of the Carolingian Renaissance: Peter of Pisa, Paulinus II of Aquileia, Rado, and Abbot Saint Fulrad. Alcuin would later write, "the Lord was calling me to the service of King Charles".
Alcuin became master of the Palace School of Charlemagne in Aachen () in 782. It had been founded by the king's ancestors as a place for the education of the royal children (mostly in manners and the ways of the court). However, Charlemagne wanted to include the liberal arts, and most importantly, the study of religion. From 782 to 790, Alcuin taught Charlemagne himself, his sons Pepin and Louis, as well as young men sent to be educated at court, and the young clerics attached to the palace chapel. Bringing with him from York his assistants Pyttel, Sigewulf, and Joseph, Alcuin revolutionised the educational standards of the Palace School, introducing Charlemagne to the liberal arts and creating a personalised atmosphere of scholarship and learning, to the extent that the institution came to be known as the "school of Master Albinus".
In this role as adviser, he took issue with the emperor's policy of forcing pagans to be baptised on pain of death, arguing, "Faith is a free act of the will, not a forced act. We must appeal to the conscience, not compel it by violence. You can force people to be baptised, but you cannot force them to believe". His arguments seem to have prevailed – Charlemagne abolished the death penalty for paganism in 797.
Charlemagne gathered the best men of every land in his court and became far more than just the king at the centre. It seems that he made many of these men his closest friends and counsellors. They referred to him as "David", a reference to the Biblical king David. Alcuin soon found himself on intimate terms with Charlemagne and the other men at court, where pupils and masters were known by affectionate and jesting nicknames. Alcuin himself was known as 'Albinus' or 'Flaccus'. While at Aachen, Alcuin bestowed pet names upon his pupils – derived mainly from Virgil's Eclogues. According to the Encyclopædia Britannica, "He loved Charlemagne and enjoyed the king's esteem, but his letters reveal that his fear of him was as great as his love."
After the death of Pope Adrian I, Alcuin was commissioned by Charlemagne to compose an epitaph for Adrian. The epitaph was inscribed on black stone quarried at Aachen and carried to Rome where it was set over Adrian's tomb in the south transept of St. Peter's Basilica just before Charlemagne's coronation in the basilica on Christmas Day 800. |
Alcuin | Return to Northumbria and back to Francia | Return to Northumbria and back to Francia
In 790, Alcuin returned from the court of Charlemagne to England, to which he had remained attached. He dwelt there for some time, but Charlemagne then invited him back to help in the fight against the Adoptionist heresy, which was at that time making great progress in Toledo, the old capital of the Visigoths and still a major city for the Christians under Islamic rule in Spain. He is believed to have had contacts with Beatus of Liébana, from the Kingdom of Asturias, who fought against Adoptionism. At the Council of Frankfurt in 794, Alcuin upheld the orthodox doctrine against the views expressed by Felix of Urgel, an heresiarch according to the Catholic Encyclopedia. Having failed during his stay in Northumbria to influence King Æthelred I in the conduct of his reign, Alcuin never returned home.
He was back at Charlemagne's court by at least mid-792, writing a series of letters to Æthelred, to Hygbald, Bishop of Lindisfarne, and to Æthelhard, Archbishop of Canterbury in the succeeding months, dealing with the Viking attack on Lindisfarne in July 793. These letters and Alcuin's poem on the subject, , provide the only significant contemporary account of these events. In his description of the Viking attack, he wrote: "Never before has such terror appeared in Britain. Behold the church of St Cuthbert, splattered with the blood of God's priests, robbed of its ornaments." |
Alcuin | Tours and death | Tours and death
In 796, Alcuin was in his 60s. He hoped to be free from court duties and upon the death of Abbot Itherius of Saint Martin at Tours, Charlemagne put Marmoutier Abbey into Alcuin's care, with the understanding that he should be available if the king ever needed his counsel. There, he encouraged the work of the monks on the beautiful Carolingian minuscule script, ancestor of modern Roman typefaces using a mixture of upper- and lower-case letters. Latin paleography in the 8th century leaves little room for a single origin of the script, and sources contradict his importance as no proof has been found of his direct involvement in the creation of the script. Carolingian minuscule was already in use before Alcuin arrived in Francia. Most likely he was responsible for copying and preserving the script while at the same time restoring the purity of the form.
Alcuin died on 19 May 804, some 10 years before the emperor, and was buried at St. Martin's Church under an epitaph that partly read:
The majority of details on Alcuin's life come from his letters and poems. Also, autobiographical sections are in Alcuin's poem on York and in the Vita Alcuini, a hagiography written for him at Ferrières in the 820s, possibly based in part on the memories of Sigwulf, one of Alcuin's pupils. |
Alcuin | Scholarly and literary output | Scholarly and literary output |
Alcuin | Mathematician | Mathematician
The collection of mathematical and logical word problems entitled Propositiones ad acuendos juvenes ("Problems to Sharpen Youths") is sometimes attributed to Alcuin. In a 799 letter to Charlemagne, the scholar claimed to have sent "certain figures of arithmetic for the joy of cleverness",Epistola 172, MGH Epistolae 4.2: 285: "aliquas figuras arithmeticae subtilitatis laetitiae causa" which some scholars have identified with the Propositiones.
The text contains about 53 mathematical word problems (with solutions), in no particular pedagogical order. Among the most famous of these problems are: four that involve river crossings, including the problem of three anxious brothers, each of whom has an unmarried sister whom he cannot leave alone with either of the other men lest she be defiled (Problem 17); the problem of the wolf, goat, and cabbage (Problem 18); and the problem of "the two adults and two children where the children weigh half as much as the adults" (Problem 19). Alcuin's sequence is the solution to one of the problems of that book. |
Alcuin | Theologian | Theologian
Alcuin's work as a theologian was more concerned with conservation than originality. His nine scriptural commentaries—on Genesis, the Psalms, the Song of Solomon, Ecclesiastes, Hebrew Names, the Gospel of John, the Epistles to Titus, Philemon, and the Hebrews, The Sayings of St. Paul, and the Apocalypse—consist mostly of sentences taken from the Church Fathers, the apparent motive being to collect into convenient form the observations on the more important scriptural passages of the best commentators who had preceded him. Alcuin also engaged in textual criticism of the Vulgate, which had many variant readings in his time. Four Bibles are shown by the dedicatory poems affixed to them to have been prepared by him, or under his direction at Tours, probably during the years 799–801. Whatever the exact changes made by Alcuin in the Bible text may have been, the known disposition of the man—that he intended to recover Jerome's original text as much as possible—no less than the limits of the scholarship of his time, makes it certain that these changes were not of a far-reaching kind.
Of the three brief moral treatises Alcuin has left us, two, , and , are largely abridgments of the writing of Augustine on the same subjects, while the third, "On the Confession of Sins," is a concise exposition of the nature of confession, addressed to a congregation of monks. Closely allied to his moral writings in spirit and purpose are his sketches of the lives of saints Martin of Tours, Vedast, Richarius, and Willibrord, the last being a biography of considerable length.
Alcuin opposed the adoptionist Christology advanced by Felix of Urgell and Elipandus of Toledo, two bishops from Iberia. |
Alcuin | Liturgist | Liturgist
Besides his fame as an educator and a theologian, Alcuin was also the principal agent of the liturgical reform accomplished under the authority of Charlemagne. Upon Charlemagne's accession the Gallican Rite prevailed in France, but it was so modified by local customs and traditions as to constitute a serious obstacle to complete ecclesiastical unity. It was the purpose of the king to substitute the Roman Rite in place of the Gallican, or at least to bring about such a revision of the latter as to make it substantially one with the Roman. The strong leaning of Alcuin towards Roman traditions, combined with his conservative character and the universal authority of his name, qualified him for the accomplishment of a change which the royal authority in itself was powerless to effect.
The first of Alcuin's liturgical works appears to have been a homilary, or collection of sermons in Latin for use by priests. Another liturgical work of Alcuin consists of a collection of readings to be read on Sundays and holy days throughout the year, the . As, previous to his time, the portions of Scripture to be read at Mass were often merely indicated on the margins of the Bibles used, the commended itself by its convenience, and as he followed Roman usage here also, the result was another advance in the way of conformity to the Roman liturgy. The work of Alcuin which had the greatest and most lasting influence in this direction, however, was the missal which he compiled; prescribed as the official liturgical book of the Frankish church, Alcuin's missal soon came to be commonly used throughout Europe and was largely instrumental in bringing about uniformity in respect to the liturgy of the Mass in the whole Latin Church. Other liturgical productions of Alcuin were a collection of votive Masses drawn up for the monks of Fulda, a treatise called , a breviary for laymen, and a brief explanation of the ceremonies of baptism. |
Alcuin | Literary influence | Literary influence
Alcuin made the abbey school into a model of excellence and students flocked to it. He had many manuscripts copied using outstandingly beautiful calligraphy, the Carolingian minuscule based on round and legible uncial letters. He wrote many letters to his English friends, to Arno, bishop of Salzburg and above all to Charlemagne. These letters (of which 311 are extant) are filled mainly with pious meditations, but they form an important source of information as to the literary and social conditions of the time and are the most reliable authority for the history of humanism during the Carolingian age. Alcuin trained the numerous monks of the abbey in piety, and in the midst of these pursuits, he died.
Alcuin is the most prominent figure of the Carolingian Renaissance, in which three main periods have been distinguished: in the first of these, up to the arrival of Alcuin at the court, the Italians occupy a central place; in the second, Alcuin and the English are dominant; in the third (from 804), the influence of Theodulf of Orléans is preponderant.
Alcuin also developed manuals used in his educational work – a grammar and works on rhetoric and dialectics. These are written in the form of a dialogue, and in two of them the interlocutors are Charlemagne and Alcuin. He wrote several theological treatises: a De fide Trinitatis, and commentaries on the Bible. Alcuin is credited with inventing the first known question mark, though it did not resemble the modern symbol.
Alcuin transmitted to the Franks the knowledge of Latin culture, which had existed in Anglo-Saxon England. A number of his works still exist. Besides some graceful epistles in the style of Venantius Fortunatus, he wrote some long poems, and notably he is the author of a history (in verse) of the church at York, Versus de patribus, regibus et sanctis Eboracensis ecclesiae. At the same time, he is noted for making one of the only explicit comments on Old English poetry surviving from the early Middle Ages, in a letter to one Speratus, the bishop of an unnamed English see (possibly Unwona of Leicester): ("Let God's words be read at the episcopal dinner-table. It is right that a reader should be heard, not a harpist, patristic discourse, not pagan song. What has Ingeld to do with Christ?").Donald A. Bullough, "What has Ingeld to do with Lindisfarne?", Anglo-Saxon England, 22 (1993), 93-125 (p. 93 for the Latin [quoted from Epistolae Karolini Aevi II, ed. by E. Dummler, Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Epistula 4 (Berlin, 1895), p. 183 (no. 12)]; p. 124 for the translation); . |
Alcuin | Perceived homoeroticism | Perceived homoeroticism
Some historians, including the queer historian John Boswell, have identified what they consider to be a homoerotic or homosexual subtext in Alcuin's writings. Others, like Allen Frantzen, have disputed this characterisation of his work; Frantzen identifies Alcuin's language with that of medieval Christian amicitia or friendship. Douglas Dales and Rowan Williams say "the use of language drawn [by Alcuin] from the Song of Songs transforms apparently erotic language into something within Christian friendship – 'an ordained affection. According to David Clark, passages in some of Alcuin's writings can be seen to display homosocial desire, even possibly homoerotic imagery, though he argues that it is not possible to necessarily determine whether they were the result of an outward expression of erotic feelings on the part of Alcuin. |
Alcuin | Legacy | Legacy
Alcuin is honoured in the Church of England and in the Episcopal Church on 20 May the first available day after the day of his death (as Dunstan is celebrated on 19 May).
Alcuin is also venerated as a Saint by Eastern Orthodox Christians in the British Isles and Ireland. The Orthodox Fellowship of John the Baptist publishes a liturgical calendar that is widely used in that region, and this calendar includes a feast for St Alcuin.
Alcuin College, one of the colleges of the University of York, is named after him. In January 2020, Alcuin was the subject of the BBC Radio 4 programme In Our Time. In December 2024, Alcuin was prominently featured in a Part 2 of a 3-part podcast series on Charlemagne in The Rest Is History (podcast). |
Alcuin | Selected works | Selected works
For a complete census of Alcuin's works, see Marie-Hélène Jullien and Françoise Perelman, eds., Clavis scriptorum latinorum medii aevi: Auctores Galliae 735–987, Tomus II – Alcuinus, Turnhout, Brepols, 1999. |
Alcuin | Poetry | Poetry
Carmina, ed. Ernst Dümmler, MGH Poetae Latini aevi Carolini I, Berlin, Weidmann, 1881, 160–351.
Godman, Peter, trad., Poetry of the Carolingian Renaissance, Norman, University of Oklahoma Press, 1985, 118–149.
Stella, Francesco, trad., comm., La poesia carolingia, Firenze: Le Lettere, 1995, pp. 94–96, 152–161, 266–267, 302–307, 364–371, 399–404, 455–457, 474–477, 503–507.
Isbell, Harold, trad.; The Last Poets of Imperial Rome, Baltimore, Penguin, 1971.
Poem on York, Versus de patribus, regibus et sanctis Euboricensis ecclesiae, ed. and trad. Peter Godman, The Bishops, Kings, and Saints of York, Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1982.
De clade Lindisfarnensis monasterii, "On the destruction of the monastery of Lindisfarne" (Carmen 9, ed. Dümmler, pp. 229–235). |
Alcuin | Letters | Letters
Of Alcuin's letters, over 310 have survived:
Epistolae, ed. Ernst Dümmler, MGH, Epistolae, IV.2, Berlin, Weidmann, 1895, 1–493;
Jaffé, Philipp, Ernst Dümmler, and W. Wattenbach, eds. Monumenta Alcuiniana, Berlin, Weidmann, 1873, 132–897;
Chase, Colin, ed. Two Alcuin Letter-books, Toronto, Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, 1975;
Allott, Stephen, trad. Alcuin of York, c. AD 732 to 804 – His life and letters, York, William Sessions, 1974;
Sturgeon, Thomas G., trad. The Letters of Alcuin – Part One, the Aachen Period (762–796). Harvard University PhD thesis, 1953. |
Alcuin | Didactic works | Didactic works
Ars grammatica. PL 101, 854–902;
De orthographia, ed. H. Keil, Grammatici Latini VII, 1880, 295–312; ed. Sandra Bruni, Alcuino de orthographia, Florence, SISMEL, 1997;
De dialectica, PL 101, 950–976;
Disputatio regalis et nobilissimi juvenis Pippini cum Albino scholastico, "Dialogue of Pepin, the Most Noble and Royal Youth, with the Teacher Albinus", ed. L. W. Daly and W. Suchier, Altercatio Hadriani Augusti et Epicteti Philosophi, Urbana, IL, University of Illinois Press, 1939, 134–146; ed. Wilhelm Wilmanns, "Disputatio regalis et nobilissimi juvenis Pippini cum Albino scholastic", Zeitschrift für deutsches Altertum, 14 (1869), 530–555, 562.
Disputatio de rhetorica et de virtutibus sapientissimi regis Carli et Albini magistri, ed. and trad. Wilbur Samuel Howell, The Rhetoric of Alcuin and Charlemagne, New York, Russell and Russell, 1965 (1941); ed. C. Halm, Rhetorici Latini Minores, Leipzig, Teubner, 1863, 523–550;
De virtutibus et vitiis (moral treatise dedicated to Count Wido of Brittany, 799–800), PL 101, 613–638 (transcript available online). A new critical edition is being prepared for the Corpus Christianorum, Continuatio Medievalis;
De animae ratione (ad Eulaliam virginem) (written for Gundrada, Charlemagne's cousin), PL 101, 639–650;
De Cursu et Saltu Lunae ac Bissexto, astronomical treatise, PL 101, 979–1002;
(?) Propositiones ad acuendos iuvenes, ed. Menso Folkerts, "Die alteste mathematische Aufgabensammlung in lateinischer Sprache, Die Alkuin zugeschriebenen Propositiones ad acuendos iuvenes; Überlieferung, Inhalt, Kritische Edition", in idem, Essays on Early Medieval Mathematics: The Latin Tradition, Aldershot, Ashgate, 2003. |
Alcuin | Theology | Theology
Compendium in Canticum Canticorum: Alcuino, Commento al Cantico dei cantici – con i commenti anonimi Vox ecclesie e Vox antique ecclesie, ed. Rossana Guglielmetti, Firenze, SISMEL 2004;
Quaestiones in Genesim, PL 100, 515–566;
De Fide Sanctae Trinitatis et de Incarnatione Christi; Quaestiones de Sancta Trinitate, ed. E. Knibbs and E. Ann Matter (Corpus Christianorum – Continuatio Mediaevalis 249, Brepols, 2012). |
Alcuin | Hagiography | Hagiography
Vita II Vedastis episcopi Atrebatensis, Revision of the earlier Vita Vedastis by Jonas of Bobbio, Patrologia Latina, 101, 663–682;
Vita Richarii confessoris Centulensis, Revision of an earlier anonymous life, MGH Scriptores Rerum Merovingicarum, 4, 381–401;
Vita Willibrordi archiepiscopi Traiectensis, ed. W. Levison, Passiones vitaeque sanctorum aevi Merovingici, MGH Scriptores Rerum Merovingicarum, 7, 81–141. |
Alcuin | Notes and references | Notes and references |
Alcuin | Notes | Notes |
Alcuin | References | References |
Alcuin | See also | See also
Propositiones ad Acuendos Juvenes
Carolingian art
Carolingian Empire
Category: Carolingian period
Correctory
Codex Vindobonensis 795 |
Alcuin | Bibliography | Bibliography
Allott, Stephen; Alcuin of York, his life and letters
Dales, Douglas J.; "Accessing Alcuin – A Master Bibliography", The Lutterworth Press, Cambridge, 2013
Diem, Albrecht; "The Emergence of Monastic Schools – The Role of Alcuin", in: Luuk A. J. R. Houwen and Alasdair A. McDonald (eds.), Alcuin of York – Scholar at the Carolingian Court, Groningen 1998 (Germania Latina, vol. 3), pp. 27–44.
Duckett, Eleanor Shipley; Carolingian Portraits, (1962)
Ganshof, F.L.; The Carolingians and the Frankish Monarchy
Godman, Peter; Poetry of the Carolingian Renaissance
Lorenz, Frederick; The life of Alcuin, (Thomas Hurst, 1837).
McGuire, Brian P.; Friendship and Community – The Monastic Experience
Murphy, Richard E.; Alcuin of York – De Virtutibus et Vitiis, Virtues and Vices
Stehling, Thomas; Medieval Latin Love Poems of Male Love and Friendship.
Stella, Francesco; "Alkuins Dichtung" in Alkuin von York und die geistige Grundlegung Europas , Sankt Gallen, Verlag am Klosterhof, 2010, pp. 107–128.
Throop, Priscilla; trans. Alcuin – His Life; On Virtues and Vices; Dialogue with Pepin (Charlotte, VT: MedievalMS, 2011)
Andrew Fleming West Alcuin and the Rise of the Christian Schools (C. Scribner's Sons, 1912)
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Alcuin | External links | External links
Alcuin's book, Problems for the Quickening of the Minds of the Young
Introduction to Alcuin's writings by Robert Levine and Whitney Bolton
The Alcuin Society
Anglo-Saxon York on History of York site
Corpus Christianorum, Continuatio Mediaevalis – new critical editions in preparation
Corpus Grammaticorum Latinorum – complete texts and full bibliography
The Life of Alcuin by Frederick Lorenz
Category:730s births
Category:Year of birth unknown
Category:804 deaths
Category:8th-century astronomers
Category:8th-century Christian theologians
Category:8th-century English writers
Category:8th-century Frankish writers
Category:8th-century writers in Latin
Category:8th-century mathematicians
Category:8th-century philosophers
Category:8th-century poets
Category:9th-century Christian abbots
Category:9th-century Christian theologians
Category:9th-century English writers
Category:9th-century English clergy
Category:9th-century philosophers
Category:People educated at St Peter's School, York
Category:Anglo-Saxon poets
Category:Anglo-Saxon saints
Category:Anglo-Saxon writers
Category:Carolingian poets
Category:Christian hagiographers
Category:Deacons
Category:English monks
Category:Grammarians of Latin
Category:Texts of Anglo-Saxon England in Latin
Category:Medieval chancellors (government)
Category:Medieval English mathematicians
Category:Medieval English theologians
Category:Medieval Latin-language poets
Category:8th-century linguists
Category:People from York
Category:Saints from the Carolingian Empire
Category:Scholastic philosophers
Category:Sources on Germanic paganism
Category:Writers from the Carolingian Empire
Category:Anglican saints
Category:Yorkshire saints |
Alcuin | Table of Content | Short description, Biography, Background, York, Charlemagne, Return to Northumbria and back to Francia, Tours and death, Scholarly and literary output, Mathematician, Theologian, Liturgist, Literary influence, Perceived homoeroticism, Legacy, Selected works, Poetry, Letters, Didactic works, Theology, Hagiography, Notes and references, Notes, References, See also, Bibliography, External links |
Angilbert | Short description | Angilbert, Count of Ponthieu ( – 18 February 814) was a noble Frankish poet who was educated under Alcuin and served Charlemagne as a secretary, diplomat, and son-in-law. He is venerated as a pre-Congregation saint and is still honored on the day of his death, 18 February. |
Angilbert | Life | Life
thumb|A page from the Psalter of Charlemagne, copied between 795 and 800, and probably given by Charlemagne to Angilbert when the king visited Saint-Riquier for Easter 800Michel Huglo, "The Cantatorium, from Charlemagne to the Fourteenth Century", in Peter Jeffery (ed.), The Study of Medieval Chant: Paths and Bridges, East and West (Boydell Press, 2001), pp. 89–104, at 89–92.
Angilbert seems to have been brought up at the court of Charlemagne at the palace school in Aquae Granni (Aachen). He was educated there as the pupil and then-friend of the great English scholar Alcuin. When Charlemagne sent his young son Pepin to Italy as King of the Lombards, Angilbert went along as primicerius palatii, a high administrator of the satellite court. As the friend and adviser of Pepin, he assisted for a while in the government of Italy. Angilbert delivered the document on Iconoclasm from the Frankish Synod of Frankfurt to Pope Adrian I, and was later sent on three important embassies to the pope, in 792, 794, and 796. At one time, he served an officer of the maritime provinces. He accompanied Charlemagne to Rome in 800 and was one of the witnesses to his will in 811.
There are various traditions concerning Angilbert's relationship with Bertha, daughter of Charlemagne. One holds that they were married, another that they were not. They had, however, at least one daughter and two sons, one of whom, Nithard, became a notable figure in the mid-9th century, while their daughter Bertha went on to marry Helgaud II, Count of Ponthieu. Control of marriage and the meanings of legitimacy were hotly contested in the Middle Ages. Bertha and Angilbert are an example of how resistance to the idea of a sacramental marriage could coincide with holding church offices. On the other hand, some historians have speculated that Charlemagne opposed formal marriages for his daughters out of concern for political rivalries from their potential husbands; none of Charlemagne's daughters were married, despite political offers of arranged marriages.
In 790, Angilbert retired to the abbey of Centulum, the "Monastery of St Richarius" () at present-day Saint-Riquier in Picardy. Elected abbot in 794, he rebuilt the monastery and endowed it with a library of 200 volumes. It was not uncommon for the Merovingian, Carolingian, or later kings to make laymen abbots of monasteries; the layman would often use the income of the monastery as his own and leave the monks a bare minimum for the necessary expenses of the foundation. Angilbert, in contrast, spent a great deal rebuilding Saint-Riquier; when he completed it, Charlemagne spent Easter of the year 800 there. In keeping with Carolingian policies, Angilbert established a school at Saint-Riquier to educate the local boys. |
Angilbert | Poetry | Poetry
Angilbert's Latin poems reveal the culture and tastes of a man of the world, enjoying the closest intimacy with the imperial family. Charlemagne and the other men at court were known by affectionate and jesting nicknames. Charlemagne was referred to as "David", a reference to the Biblical king David. Angilbert was nicknamed "Homer" because he wrote poetry, and was the probable author of an epic, of which the fragment which has been preserved describes the life at the palace and the meeting between Charlemagne and Leo III. It is a mosaic from Virgil, Ovid, Lucan and Venantius Fortunatus, composed in the manner of Einhard's use of Suetonius. Of the shorter poems, besides the greeting to Pippin on his return from the campaign against the Avars (796), an epistle to David (i.e., Charlemagne) incidentally reveals a delightful picture of the poet living with his children in a house surrounded by pleasant gardens near the emperor's palace. The reference to Bertha, however, is distant and respectful, her name occurring merely on the list of princesses to whom he sends his salutation.
The poem De conversione Saxonum has been attributed to Angilbert.
Angilbert's poems were published by Ernst Dümmler in the Monumenta Germaniae Historica. For criticisms of this edition, see Ludwig Traube in Max Roediger's Schriften für germanische Philologie (1888). |
Angilbert | Notes | Notes |
Angilbert | References | References
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Angilbert | Attribution | Attribution
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Angilbert | Further reading | Further reading
A. Molinier, Les Sources de l'histoire de France.
Category:8th-century births
Category:Year of birth unknown
Category:814 deaths
Category:Medieval Latin-language poets
Category:Saints from the Carolingian Empire
Category:8th-century writers in Latin
Category:8th-century Frankish writers |
Angilbert | Table of Content | Short description, Life, Poetry, Notes, References, Attribution, Further reading |
Amine | Short description | thumb|164x164px|Amine
In chemistry, amines (, ) are compounds and functional groups that contain a basic nitrogen atom with a lone pair. Formally, amines are derivatives of ammonia ((in which the bond angle between the nitrogen and hydrogen is 107°), wherein one or more hydrogen atoms have been replaced by a substituent such as an alkyl or aryl group (these may respectively be called alkylamines and arylamines; amines in which both types of substituent are attached to one nitrogen atom may be called alkylarylamines). Important amines include amino acids, biogenic amines, trimethylamine, and aniline. Inorganic derivatives of ammonia are also called amines, such as monochloramine ().
The substituent is called an amino group.
The chemical notation for amines contains the letter "R", where "R" is not an element, but an "R-group", which in amines could be a single hydrogen or carbon atom, or could be a hydrocarbon chain.
Compounds with a nitrogen atom attached to a carbonyl group, thus having the structure , are called amides and have different chemical properties from amines. |
Amine | Classification of amines | Classification of amines
Amines can be classified according to the nature and number of substituents on nitrogen. Aliphatic amines contain only H and alkyl substituents. Aromatic amines have the nitrogen atom connected to an aromatic ring.
Primary (1°) amine Secondary (2°) amine Tertiary (3°) amine 100px|primary amine 100px|secondary amine 100px|tertiary amineAmines, alkyl and aryl alike, are organized into three subcategories (see table) based on the number of carbon atoms adjacent to the nitrogen (how many hydrogen atoms of the ammonia molecule are replaced by hydrocarbon groups):
Primary (1°) amines—Primary amines arise when one of three hydrogen atoms in ammonia is replaced by an alkyl or aromatic group. Important primary alkyl amines include methylamine, most amino acids, and the buffering agent tris, while primary aromatic amines include aniline.
Secondary (2°) amines—Secondary amines have two organic substituents (alkyl, aryl or both) bound to the nitrogen together with one hydrogen. Important representatives include dimethylamine, while an example of an aromatic amine would be diphenylamine.
Tertiary (3°) amines—In tertiary amines, nitrogen has three organic substituents. Examples include trimethylamine, which has a distinctively fishy smell, and EDTA.
A fourth subcategory is determined by the connectivity of the substituents attached to the nitrogen:
Cyclic amines—Cyclic amines are either secondary or tertiary amines. Examples of cyclic amines include the 3-membered ring aziridine and the six-membered ring piperidine. N-methylpiperidine and N-phenylpiperidine are examples of cyclic tertiary amines.
It is also possible to have four organic substituents on the nitrogen. These species are not amines but are quaternary ammonium cations and have a charged nitrogen center. Quaternary ammonium salts exist with many kinds of anions. |
Amine | Naming conventions | Naming conventions
Amines are named in several ways. Typically, the compound is given the prefix "amino-" or the suffix "-amine". The prefix "N-" shows substitution on the nitrogen atom. An organic compound with multiple amino groups is called a diamine, triamine, tetraamine and so forth.
Lower amines are named with the suffix -amine.
center|thumb|butan-1-amine
Higher amines have the prefix amino as a functional group. IUPAC however does not recommend this convention, but prefers the alkanamine form, e.g. butan-2-amine.
center|thumb|135x135px|2-aminobutane (or butan-2-amine) |
Amine | Physical properties | Physical properties
Hydrogen bonding significantly influences the properties of primary and secondary amines. For example, methyl and ethyl amines are gases under standard conditions, whereas the corresponding methyl and ethyl alcohols are liquids. Amines possess a characteristic ammonia smell, liquid amines have a distinctive "fishy" and foul smell.
The nitrogen atom features a lone electron pair that can bind H+ to form an ammonium ion R3NH+. The lone electron pair is represented in this article by two dots above or next to the N. The water solubility of simple amines is enhanced by hydrogen bonding involving these lone electron pairs. Typically salts of ammonium compounds exhibit the following order of solubility in water: primary ammonium () > secondary ammonium () > tertiary ammonium (R3NH+). Small aliphatic amines display significant solubility in many solvents, whereas those with large substituents are lipophilic. Aromatic amines, such as aniline, have their lone pair electrons conjugated into the benzene ring, thus their tendency to engage in hydrogen bonding is diminished. Their boiling points are high and their solubility in water is low. |
Amine | Spectroscopic identification | Spectroscopic identification
Typically the presence of an amine functional group is deduced by a combination of techniques, including mass spectrometry as well as NMR and IR spectroscopies. 1H NMR signals for amines disappear upon treatment of the sample with D2O. In their infrared spectrum primary amines exhibit two N-H bands, whereas secondary amines exhibit only one. In their IR spectra, primary and secondary amines exhibit distinctive N-H stretching bands near 3300 cm−1. Somewhat less distinctive are the bands appearing below 1600 cm−1, which are weaker and overlap with C-C and C-H modes. For the case of propyl amine, the H-N-H scissor mode appears near 1600 cm−1, the C-N stretch near 1000 cm−1, and the R2N-H bend near 810 cm−1. |
Amine | Structure | Structure |
Amine | Alkyl amines | Alkyl amines
thumb|right|Inversion of an amine spatial configuration: Amine "flip-flop" like an umbrella turned over by the wind. The pair of dots represents the lone electron pair on the nitrogen atom.
Alkyl amines characteristically feature tetrahedral nitrogen centers. C-N-C and C-N-H angles approach the idealized angle of 109°. C-N distances are slightly shorter than C-C distances. The energy barrier for the nitrogen inversion of the stereocenter is about 7 kcal/mol for a trialkylamine. The interconversion has been compared to the inversion of an open umbrella into a strong wind.
Amines of the type NHRR' and NRR′R″ are chiral: the nitrogen center bears four substituents counting the lone pair. Because of the low barrier to inversion, amines of the type NHRR' cannot be obtained in optical purity. For chiral tertiary amines, NRR′R″ can only be resolved when the R, R', and R″ groups are constrained in cyclic structures such as N-substituted aziridines (quaternary ammonium salts are resolvable). |
Amine | Aromatic amines | Aromatic amines
In aromatic amines ("anilines"), nitrogen is often nearly planar owing to conjugation of the lone pair with the aryl substituent. The C-N distance is correspondingly shorter. In aniline, the C-N distance is the same as the C-C distances.G. M. Wójcik "Structural Chemistry of Anilines" in Anilines (Patai's Chemistry of Functional Groups), S. Patai, Ed. 2007, Wiley-VCH, Weinheim. |
Amine | Basicity | Basicity
Like ammonia, amines are bases. Compared to alkali metal hydroxides, amines are weaker.
Alkylamine or aniline pKa of protonated amine Kb Methylamine (MeNH2) 10.62 Dimethylamine (Me2NH) 10.64 Trimethylamine (Me3N) 9.76 Ethylamine (EtNH2) 10.63 Aniline (PhNH2) 4.62 4-Methoxyaniline (4-MeOC6H4NH2) 5.36 N,N-Dimethylaniline (PhNMe2) 5.07 3-Nitroaniline (3-NO2-C6H4NH2) 2.46 4-Nitroaniline (4-NO2-C6H4NH2) 1.00 4-Trifluoromethylaniline (CF3C6H4NH2) 2.75
The basicity of amines depends on:
The electronic properties of the substituents (alkyl groups enhance the basicity, aryl groups diminish it).
The degree of solvation of the protonated amine, which includes steric hindrance by the groups on nitrogen. |
Amine | Electronic effects | Electronic effects
Owing to inductive effects, the basicity of an amine might be expected to increase with the number of alkyl groups on the amine. Correlations are complicated owing to the effects of solvation which are opposite the trends for inductive effects. Solvation effects also dominate the basicity of aromatic amines (anilines). For anilines, the lone pair of electrons on nitrogen delocalizes into the ring, resulting in decreased basicity. Substituents on the aromatic ring, and their positions relative to the amino group, also affect basicity as seen in the table. |
Amine | Solvation effects | Solvation effects
Solvation significantly affects the basicity of amines. N-H groups strongly interact with water, especially in ammonium ions. Consequently, the basicity of ammonia is enhanced by 1011 by solvation. The intrinsic basicity of amines, i.e. the situation where solvation is unimportant, has been evaluated in the gas phase. In the gas phase, amines exhibit the basicities predicted from the electron-releasing effects of the organic substituents. Thus tertiary amines are more basic than secondary amines, which are more basic than primary amines, and finally ammonia is least basic. The order of pKb's (basicities in water) does not follow this order. Similarly aniline is more basic than ammonia in the gas phase, but ten thousand times less so in aqueous solution.
In aprotic polar solvents such as DMSO, DMF, and acetonitrile the energy of solvation is not as high as in protic polar solvents like water and methanol. For this reason, the basicity of amines in these aprotic solvents is almost solely governed by the electronic effects. |
Amine | Synthesis | Synthesis |
Amine | From alcohols | From alcohols
Industrially significant alkyl amines are prepared from ammonia by alkylation with alcohols:
ROH + NH3 -> RNH2 + H2O |
Amine | From alkyl and aryl halides | From alkyl and aryl halides
Unlike the reaction of amines with alcohols the reaction of amines and ammonia with alkyl halides is used for synthesis in the laboratory:
RX + 2 R'NH2 -> RR'NH + [RR'NH2]X
In such reactions, which are more useful for alkyl iodides and bromides, the degree of alkylation is difficult to control such that one obtains mixtures of primary, secondary, and tertiary amines, as well as quaternary ammonium salts.
Selectivity can be improved via the Delépine reaction, although this is rarely employed on an industrial scale. Selectivity is also assured in the Gabriel synthesis, which involves organohalide reacting with potassium phthalimide.
Aryl halides are much less reactive toward amines and for that reason are more controllable. A popular way to prepare aryl amines is the Buchwald-Hartwig reaction. |