Categories_of_New_Testament

Categories of New Testament manuscripts

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New Testament manuscripts are categorized into five groups.^[1] This categorization scheme was introduced in 1981 by Kurt and Barbara Aland in Der Text des Neuen Testaments. The categories are based on how each manuscript relates to the various text-types. Generally speaking, earlier, Alexandrian manuscripts are category I while later, Byzantine manuscripts are category V.

1 Description of categories
2 Distribution of Greek manuscripts by century and category
3 Number of manuscripts by century and category
4 Limitations
5 See also
6 Notes
7 References
8 External links

Description of categories

Category I

This category represents the earliest and best manuscripts. Fourth century and earlier papyri and uncials are in this category, as are manuscripts of the Alexandrian text-type. The manuscripts in this category are important when considering textual problems and are considered to be a good representation of the autograph.

Category II

The manuscripts in this category are similar to category I manuscripts, and are important in textual consideration of the autograph. However, the texts usually contain some alien influences, such as those found in the Byzantine text-type. Egyptian texts falls in this category.

Category III

The manuscripts in category III are important when discussing the history of the textual traditions and to a lesser degree for establishing the original text. The manuscripts usually contain independent readings, and have a distinctive character. f¹, f¹³ are examples of manuscript families that fall within this category.

Category IV

Category IV contains the few manuscripts that follow the text of the Codex Bezae (D). These texts are of the Western text-type.

Category V

Byzantine and mostly Byzantine texts fall under this category.

Distribution of Greek manuscripts by century and category

See [Aland:159-162].

	I	II	III	IV	V
150	P⁵², P⁹⁰, P¹⁰⁴
200	P³², P⁴⁶, P^64/67, P⁶⁶, P⁷⁷, 0189
250	P¹, P⁴, P⁵, P⁹, P¹², P¹⁵, P²⁰, P²², P²³, P²⁷, P²⁸, P²⁹, P³⁰, P³⁹, P⁴⁰, P⁴⁵, P⁴⁷, P⁴⁹, P⁵³, P⁶⁵, P⁷⁰, P⁷⁵, P⁸⁰, P⁸⁷, 0220		0212	P⁴⁸, P⁶⁹
300	P¹³, P¹⁶, P¹⁸, P³⁷, P⁷², P⁷⁸, 0162, p¹¹⁵			P³⁸, 0171
350	P¹⁰, P²⁴, P³⁵, 01, 03	P⁶, P⁸, P¹⁷, P⁶², P⁷¹, P⁸¹, P⁸⁶, 0185	P⁸⁸, 058?, 0169, 0188, 0206, 0207, 0221, 0228, 0231, 0242
400	057	P¹⁹, P⁵¹, P⁵⁷, P⁸², P⁸⁵, 0181, 0270	P²¹, P⁵⁰, 059, 0160, 0176, 0214, 0219
450	02 (except Gospels), 0254	P¹⁴, 04, 016, 029, 048, 077, 0172, 0173, 0175, 0201, 0240, 0244, 0274	02 (Gospels), 032, 062, 068, 069, 0163, 0165?, 0166, 0182, 0216, 0217, 0218, 0226, 0227, 0236, 0252, 0261	05	026, 061
500		P⁵⁶, 071, 076, 088, 0232, 0247	P⁵⁴, P⁶³, 072, 0170, 0186, 0213
550		P³³⁺⁵⁸, 06, 08, 073, 081, 085, 087, 089, 091, 093 (1 Peter), 094, 0184, 0223, 0225, 0245	P², P³⁶, P⁷⁶, P⁸³, P⁸⁴, 06, 015, 035, 040, 060, 066, 067, 070, 078, 079, 082, 086, 0143, 0147, 0159, 0187, 0198, 0208, 0222, 0237, 0241, 0251, 0260, 0266		022, 023, 024, 027, 042, 043, 064, 065, 093 (Acts), 0246, 0253, 0265?
600	P²⁶	P⁴³, P⁴⁴, P⁵⁵, 083	P³, 0164, 0199
650	P⁷⁴, 098	P¹¹, P³¹, P³⁴, P⁷⁹, 0102, 0108, 0111, 0204	P⁵⁹, P⁶⁸, 096, 097, 099, 0106, 0107, 0109, 0145, 0167, 0183, 0200, 0209, 0210, 0239, 0259, 0262		0103, 0104, 0211
700		P⁴², P⁶¹,	P⁶⁰
750		019, 0101, 0114, 0156, 0205, 0234	P⁴¹, 095, 0126, 0127, 0146, 0148, 0161, 0229, 0233, 0238, 0250, 0256		07, 047, 054?, 0116, 0134
800		044 (Catholic epistles)	044 (except Catholic epistles)
850	33 (except Gospels)	010, 038, 0155, 0271, 33 (Gospels), 892, 2464	012, 025 (except Acts, Rev), 037, 050, 0122, 0128, 0130, 0131, 0132, 0250, 0269, 565		09, 011, 013, 014, 017, 018, 020, 021, 025 (Acts, Rev), 030, 031, 034, 039, 041, 045, 049, 053?, 063, 0120, 0133, 0135, 0136?, 0151, 0197, 0248, 0255, 0257, 0272, 0273?, 461
900		1841	0115, 1424		1424, 1841
950	1739	0177, 0243?, 1739, 1891, 2329	051, 075, 0105, 0121a, 0121b, 0140, 0141, 0249, 307, 1582, 1836, 1845, 1874, 1875, 1912, 2110, 2193, 2351		028, 033, 036, 046, 052, 056, 0142, 1874, 1891
1050	1175, 1243, 2344	81, 323, 945, 1006, 1854, 1962, 2298	28, 104, 181, 323, 398, 424, 431, 436, 451, 459, 623, 700, 788, 1243, 1448, 1505, 1838, 1846, 1908, 2138, 2147, 2298, 2344, 2596?		103, 104, 181, 398, 431, 451, 459, 945, 1006, 1448, 1505, 1846, 1854, 2138, 2147, 2298
1100		256, 1735	1735, 1910		256
1150	1241	36, 610, 1611, 2050, 2127	1 (Gospels), 36, 88, 94?, 157, 326, 330, 346, 378, 543, 826, 828, 917, 983, 1071, 1241, 1319, 1359, 1542b, 1611, 1718, 1942, 2030, 2412, 2541, 2744		1 (except Gospels), 180, 189, 330, 378, 610, 911, 917, 1010, 1241, 1319, 1359, 1542b?, 2127, 2541
1200			1573		1573
1250	2053, 2062	442, 579, 1292, 1852	6 (CE, Paul), 13, 94, 180, 206, 218, 263, 365, 441, 614, 720, 915, 1398, 1563, 1641, 1852, 2374, 2492, 2516, 2542, 2718?		6 (Gospels, Acts), 94?, 180, 206, 218, 263, 365, 597, 720, 1251?, 1292, 1398, 1642, 1852, 2374, 2400, 2492?, 2516
1300			1342
1350	2427	1067, 1409, 1506, 1881	5, 209, 254, 429, 453, 621, 629, 630, 1523, 1534, 1678?, 1842, 1877, 2005, 2197, 2200, 2377		5?, 189, 209, 254, 429, 1067, 1409, 1506, 1523, 1524, 1877, 2200
1400			2495
1450		322	69, 205, 322, 467, 642, 1751, 1844, 1959, 2523, 2652		69, 181, 205, 429, 467, 642, 886, 2523, 2623, 2652?
1500			61 (epistles, Rev), 522, 918, 1704, 1884		61 (Gospels, Acts), 522, 918, 1704
1550-			849, 2544 (Paul)		2544 (except Paul)

Number of manuscripts by century and category

Century	Category I	Category II	Category III	Category IV	Category V
II	3
II/III	6
III	25		1	2
III/IV	8			2
IV	5	8	10
IV/V	1	7	7
V	2	16	19	1	2
V/VI		6	6
VI		15	31		12
VI/VII	1	4	3
VII	2	8	17		3
VII/VIII		2	1
VIII		6	12		5
VIII/IX		1	1
IX	3	7	12		5
IX/X		1	2		2
X	1	5	18		10
XI	3	7	24		16
XI/XII		2	2		1
XII	1	5	24		16
XII/XIII			1		1
XIII	2	4	21		18
XIII/XIV			1
XIV	1	4	17		12
XIV/XV			1
XV		1	11		9
XVI			5		4
XVI/XVII			2		1

Limitations

This system of classification prefers Alexandrian text-type. Manuscripts represented Western text-type are classified to IV Category in Gospels, and to II/III Category in Pauline Letters. Some manuscripts were not classified. Uncial 055, because it is a commentary rather, and according some authorities written in a minuscule hand. P⁷³, Uncial 080, Uncial 0100, 0174, 0263, 0264, 0267, 0268 are too brief to classify.

Notes

^ Aland:106f,332-337.

References

Aland, Kurt and Aland, Barbara. The text of the New Testament: an introduction to the critical editions and to the theory and practice of modern textual criticism. Second revised edition. Translated by Erroll F Rhodes. Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1995. ISBN 0802840981.

External links

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