La Grammatica del Rohlfs e la storia della lingua italiana

This article examines the scholarly response to Gerhard Rohlfs's Grammatica storica dell'italiano e dei suoi dialetti, a work that has recently been republished (2021) by Il Mulino with introductory essays in each of its three volumes. The main stages of the genesis and reception of the work are reviewed, with particular attention to the transition from the German edition (Franke 1949-1954) to the second Italian edition and translation (Einaudi 1966-1969). The first part of the article focuses on Rohlfs's scientific background and methods and the setting of the work. This is followed by specific examples and case studies that bring light to the balance between traditional aspects, innovative aspects and Rohlfs's ability to capture linguistic regularities even with the theoretical tools available at his time