Studies of the language of Late Latin authors cannot easily escape a comparative stance or avoid the questions of whether, how, and how much its vocabulary, syntax, and other rhetorical and stylistic features deviate from the standards of Classical Latin. h is can be investigated on the one hand by comparing the texts involved with their Classical counterparts, and on the other by looking for similarities with other texts that are even later or closer to the spoken language, in order to trace elements that foreshadow later developments of Latin. For authors such as Symmachus and Sidonius Apollinaris this perspective has yielded neat characterizations of the language of their texts. 1 he conclusion is that both authors display, as far as the language per se is involved, a very high standard of literary Latin, which ‘deviates’ only slightly from the Classical Latin of their literary models (such as, eg, Cicero and Pliny for Sidonius’ letters), mostly in the field of vocabulary, hardly at all in syntax. he few colloquialisms that we find can usually be traced back to Cicero’s letters or even Roman comedy, rather than being associated with later developments of Latin. 2 If these authors are nevertheless unequivocally characterized as Late Latin authors, this is primarily a literary qualification and concerns their mannerism and their recherché style, which has led to harsh judgements over the last century. 3 Only more recently, especially under the influence of Robert’s