Tales of the unexpected
L.D.Reynolds & N.G.Wilson. Scribes and Scholars: A Guide to the Transmission of Greek and Latin Literature. 3rd ed. Oxford: 1991.
p. 121
[on translating Greek authors into Latin in the medieval Latin West]
It should be noted that as a rule medieval translations were made word by word, and quite often the translator was out of his depth when dealing with technicalities or the finer points of idiom. Nor was Latin the ideal medium for rendering all the subtleties of the originals. The lack of a definite article made it impossible to deal with many abstract expressions, and from 1266 onwards Moerbeke decided to make good the deficiency by using the French 'le'
p. 121
[on translating Greek authors into Latin in the medieval Latin West]
It should be noted that as a rule medieval translations were made word by word, and quite often the translator was out of his depth when dealing with technicalities or the finer points of idiom. Nor was Latin the ideal medium for rendering all the subtleties of the originals. The lack of a definite article made it impossible to deal with many abstract expressions, and from 1266 onwards Moerbeke decided to make good the deficiency by using the French 'le'