Ars dictaminis
Ars dictaminis is the art of letter-writing, which often intersects with the art of rhetoric.
History of letter-writing
Greco-Roman theory
Early examples of letter-writing theory can be found in C. Julius Victor's Ars rhetorica and Cassiodorus Senator's Variae epistolae. Other examples can be found in the Pseudo-Demetrius' Typoi epistolikoi, Pseudo-Libanius' Epistolimaioi kharacteres, Demetrius' Peri hermeneias, Philostratus of Lemnos' treatise, and Gregory of Nazianus' ''Epistle 51.''Latin Middle Ages
During the Latin medieval period, the standing assumption was that these writings would be composed in Latin, and according to well worked-out models. This made the arts of composition a subfield of rhetoric.Medieval letter writing developed for ecclesiastical, government, and business purposes.
Important figures in the early development of Latin letter writing and document composition include Alberic of Monte Cassino, his critic Adalbert of Samaria, Hugh of Bologna, Bernard of [Bologna |Bernard of Bologna]'s Introductiones prosaici dictaminis and Baldwin. Early anonymous works include Aurea gemma, Rationes dictandi, Precepta prosaici dictaminis secundum Tullium and Ad plenam scientiam dictaminum. Guido Faba, Lawrence of Aquilegia and Quichilino [da Spello] are later representatives of the genre.
Letter conventions include some form of address ; salutation ; notification ; exposition ; disposition ; and valediction. Clerks and scribes wrote the letters based on those rules.