De edificacione castri Morungen.
The Rebuilding of Morungen
In 1327, Brother Hermann of Elbing rebuilt the town of Morungen near Salfeld, named for the pond on whose shore it stands.
In the year of our Lord 1327, Brother Hermann, commander from Elbing and hospitaller of the principal house, rebuilt the town called Morungen near the city of Salfeld — a name it draws from a pond on whose shore it is situated.12
Read the original Latin
Anno domini mcccxxvii frater Hermannus commendator de Elbingo et hospitalarius domus principalis civitatem dictam Morungen circa civitatem Salfelt, nomen suum trabens a stagno, in cujus sita est littore, instauravit.
Notes
- 1 ↩The Latin participial phrase 'nomen suum trabens a stagno' is syntactically attached to 'Morungen' and appears to offer an etymological explanation: the town's name derives from a nearby pond (stagnum). The attachment of 'circa civitatem Salfelt' to 'Morungen' (locative apposition) rather than to 'instauravit' is the most natural reading, though some ambiguity exists.
- 2 ↩Instauravit (perfect of instauro) in the context of castle/town building may carry the sense of 'rebuilt,' 'fortified,' or 'restored,' not merely 'established.' The translation 'rebuilt' is chosen as the most likely sense given the military-administrative context of the Teutonic Order's activities in Prussia.
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