Letter 28
Isidore of Seville [bishop and encyclopedist, c.560-636] sends Braulio of Zaragoza [his younger colleague and disciple, bishop of Zaragoza] the dedication and presumably the final text of the Etymologiae, the monumental encyclopedia that would become the most-copied reference work of the Middle Ages. Isidore acknowledges Braulio's role in bringing the work to completion and reflects on the project's scope and ambition. The Etymologiae — twenty books covering grammar, rhetoric, mathematics, medicine, theology, history, agriculture, warfare, and more — became the indispensable intellectual toolkit of medieval European scholars.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.