View source for Medieval literature

{{short description|Literary works of the Middle Ages}}

[[File:Statuta civitatis mutine reformata 1420 1485.jpg|thumb|upright=1|''Statuta Mutine Reformata'', 1420–1485; parchment [[codex]] bound in wood and leather with brass plaques worked the corners and in the center, with clasps.]]
{{Medieval and Renaissance literature}}
{{History of literature by era}}
'''Medieval literature''' is a broad subject, encompassing essentially all written works available in [[Europe]] and beyond during the [[Middle Ages]] (that is, the one thousand years from the [[fall of the Western Roman Empire]] ca. AD 500 to the beginning of the [[Renaissance]] in the 14th, 15th or 16th century, depending on country).<ref>{{Cite web |orig-date=May 19, 2025 |editor-last=Encyclopaedia Britannica |title=Middle Ages |url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Middle-Ages |access-date=June 11, 2025 |website=Britannica |publisher=Encyclopedia Britannica}}</ref> The literature of this time was composed of religious writings as well as secular works. Like modern literature, it is a broad field of study, from the utterly sacred to the exuberantly profane, touching all points in between. Works of literature are often grouped by place of origin, language, and genre.

==Languages==
Outside of Europe, medieval literature was written in [[Geʽez|Ethiopic]], [[Syriac language|Syriac]], [[Coptic language|Coptic]], [[Japanese language|Japanese]], [[Chinese language|Chinese]], and [[Arabic]], among many other languages.

In Western Europe, Latin was the common language for medieval writing, since [[Latin]] was the language of the [[Roman Catholic Church]], which dominated [[Western Europe|Western]] and [[Central Europe]], and since the Church was virtually the only source of education. This was the case even in some parts of Europe that were never Romanized.

In [[Eastern Europe]], the influence of the [[Eastern Roman Empire]] and the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]] made [[Greek language|Greek]] and [[Old Church Slavonic]] the dominant written languages.

In Europe the common people used their respective [[vernacular]]s. A few examples, such as the [[Old English language|Old English]] ''[[Beowulf]]'', the [[Middle High German]] {{Lang|de|[[Nibelungenlied]]}}, the [[Medieval Greek]] ''[[Digenis Acritas]]'', the [[Old East Slavic]] ''[[The Tale of Igor's Campaign|Tale of Igor's Campaign]]'', and the [[Old French]] ''[[Chanson de Roland]]'', are well known to this day. Although the extant versions of these [[epic poetry|epics]] are generally considered the works of individual (but [[Anonymity|anonymous]]) poets, there is no doubt that they are based on their peoples' older oral traditions. [[Celt]]ic traditions have survived in the [[Breton lai|lais]] of [[Marie de France]], the ''[[Mabinogion]]'' and the [[King Arthur#The Arthurian romance|Arthurian cycles]]. Another host of vernacular literature has survived in the [[Old Norse literature]] and more specifically in the [[saga]] literature of [[Iceland]].

==Anonymity==
A notable amount of medieval literature is [[Anonymity|anonymous]]. This is not only due to the lack of documents from a period, but also due to an interpretation of the [[author]]'s role that differs considerably from the [[romanticism|romantic]] interpretation of the term in use today. Medieval authors often deeply respected the [[classical antiquity|classical]] writers and the [[Church Fathers]] and tended to re-tell and embellish stories they had heard or read rather than invent new stories. And even when they did, they often claimed to be handing down something from an ''[[Author|auctor]]'' instead. From this point of view, the names of the individual authors seemed much less important, and therefore many important works were never attributed to any specific person.

==Types of writing==

===Religious===
Theological works were the dominant form of literature typically found in libraries during the Middle Ages. [[Catholic]] clerics were the intellectual center of society in the Middle Ages, and it is their literature that was produced in the greatest quantity.

Countless [[hymn]]s survive from this time period (both [[liturgy|liturgical]] and paraliturgical).  The liturgy itself was not in fixed form, and numerous competing missals set out individual conceptions of the order of the [[Mass (Liturgy)|mass]].  Religious scholars such as [[Anselm of Canterbury]], [[Thomas Aquinas]], and [[Pierre Abélard]] wrote lengthy [[theology|theological]] and [[philosophy|philosophical]] treatises, often attempting to reconcile the teachings of the Greek and Roman pagan authors with the doctrines of the Church.  [[Hagiography|Hagiographies]], or "lives of the saints", were also frequently written, as an encouragement to the devout and a warning to others.

The ''[[Golden Legend]]'' of [[Jacobus de Voragine]] reached such popularity that, in its time, it was reportedly read more often than the [[Bible]].  [[Francis of Assisi]] was a prolific poet, and his [[Franciscan]] followers frequently wrote poetry themselves as an expression of their piety. ''[[Dies Irae]]'' and ''[[Stabat Mater]]'' are two of the most powerful Latin poems on religious subjects. [[Goliardic poetry]] (four-line stanzas of satiric verse) was an art form used by some clerics to express dissent.  The only widespread religious writing that was not produced by clerics were the [[mystery play]]s: growing out of simple [[tableau vivant|tableaux]] re-enactments of a single Biblical scene, each mystery play became its village's expression of the key events in the [[Bible]].  The text of these plays was often controlled by local [[guild]]s, and mystery plays would be performed regularly on set feast-days, often lasting all day long and into the night.

During the Middle Ages, the [[Jew]]ish population of Europe also produced a number of outstanding writers. [[Maimonides]], born in [[Cordoba, Spain]], and [[Rashi]], born in [[Troyes]], [[France]], are two of the best-known and most influential of these [[Medieval Jewish literature|Jewish authors]].

===Secular===
[[File:Beowulf Cotton MS Vitellius A XV f. 132r.jpg|thumb|The first page of ''Beowulf'']]

[[Secular]] literature in this period was not produced in equal quantity as religious literature. The earliest tales are based on oral traditions: the British ''[[Y Gododdin]]'' and ''[[Preiddeu Annwfn]]'', along with the Germanic ''[[Beowulf]]'' and {{Lang|de|[[Nibelungenlied]]}}. They relate to myths or certain 6th-century events, but the surviving manuscripts date from centuries later—''Y Gododdin'' from the late 13th century, ''Preiddu Annwfn'' from the early 14th century, ''Beowulf'' from {{Circa|1000}}, and the {{Lang|de|Nibelungenlied}} from the 13th century. The makers and performers were ''[[bard]]s'' (British/Welsh) and ''[[scop]]s'' (Germanic), elite professionals attached to royal or noble courts to praise the heroes of legendary history.

Prose tales first emerged in Britain: the intricate [[Four Branches of the Mabinogi|Four Branches of the ''Mabinogi'']] about princely families, notably anti-war in theme, and the romantic adventure ''[[Culhwch and Olwen]]''. (The ''Mabinogi'' is not the same as the ''[[Mabinogion]]'', a collection of disconnected prose tales, which does, however, include both the ''Mabinogi'' and ''Culhwch and Olwen''.) These works were compiled from earlier oral tradition {{Circa|1100}}.

At about the same time a new poetry of "[[courtly love]]" became fashionable in Europe. Traveling singers—[[troubadour]]s and [[trouvère]]s—made a living from their love songs in [[French language|French]], [[Spanish language|Spanish]], [[Galician-Portuguese]], [[Catalan language|Catalan]], [[Occitan language|Provençal]], and [[Greek language|Greek]]. Germanic culture had its  [[Minnesinger|Minnesänger]] tradition. The songs of courtly love often express unrequited longing for an ideal woman, but there are also [[aubade]]s (dawn farewells by lovers) and humorous ditties.

Following the earliest epic poems, prose tales, and romances, more long poems were crafted—the ''[[Chanson de geste|chansons de geste]]'' of the late 11th and early 12th centuries. These extolled conquests, as in ''[[The Song of Roland]]'' (part of the [[Matter of France]]) and ''[[Digenis Acritas]]'' (one of the [[Acritic songs]]). The rather different [[chivalric romance]] tradition concerns adventures about marvels, love, and chivalry. They tell of the [[Matter of Britain]] and the [[Matter of Rome]].

[[Political poetry]] threads throughout the period from the very early ''[[Armes Prydein]]'' (10th-century Britain) to the [[goliard]] rebels of 12th and 13th centuries, who were church trained clerics unable or unwilling to be employed in the church.

Travel literature was highly popular in the Middle Ages, as fantastic accounts of far-off lands (frequently embellished or entirely false) entertained a society that supported sea voyages and trading along coasts and rivers, as well as [[pilgrimage]]s to such destinations as [[Jerusalem]]; [[Canterbury]] and [[Glastonbury]] in England; [[St. David's]] in Wales; and [[Santiago de Compostela]] in Spain. [[Geoffrey Chaucer]]'s ''[[Canterbury Tales]]'' became popular at the end of the 14th century.

The most prominent authors of [[Jewish]] secular poetry in the Middle Ages were [[Solomon ibn Gabirol]] and [[Yehuda Halevi]], both of whom were also renowned religious poets.

===Women's literature===
While it is true that women in the medieval period were never accorded full equality with men, some women were able to use their skill with the written word to gain renown.  Religious writing was the easiest avenue&mdash;women who would later be canonized as [[saint]]s frequently published their reflections, revelations, and prayers.  Much of what is known about [[women in the Middle Ages]] is known from the works of [[nun]]s such as [[Clare of Assisi]], [[Bridget of Sweden]], and [[Catherine of Siena]].

Frequently, however, the religious perspectives of women were held to be unorthodox by those in power, and the mystical visions of such authors as [[Julian of Norwich]], [[Mechthild of Magdeburg]], and [[Hildegard of Bingen]] provide insight into a part of the medieval experience less comfortable for the institutions that ruled Europe at the time.  Women wrote influential texts in the secular realm as well&mdash;reflections on courtly love and society by [[Marie de France]] and [[Christine de Pizan]] continue to be studied for their glimpses of medieval society.

Some women were patrons of books and owners of significant book collections. Female book collectors in the fifteenth century included [[Alice Chaucer, Duchess of Suffolk]]; [[Cecily Neville, Duchess of York]]; and [[Lady Margaret Beaufort]], Countess of Richmond and Derby. Lady Margaret Beaufort may also have completed translations as a testament to her piety, as Bishop Father John Fisher noted in a sermon dedicated to her after her death.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Middle-aged Women in the Middle Ages|date=2011|last=Niebrzydowski|first=Sue|publisher=D.S. Brewer|location=Cambridge|isbn=978-1-84615-793-6|oclc=774293897}}</ref>

For modern historical reflection, D.H. Green's (2007) historical work entitled, ''Women Readers of the Middle Ages'' explores literacy and literature in terms of women in medieval society.<ref>Green, D.H. "Women Readers of the Middle Ages". Cambridge University Press, England. {{ISBN|978-0-52187-9422}}</ref> The book has been reviewed as "a radical reassessment of women's contribution to medieval literary culture."<ref>McDonald, Nicola. [http://muse.jhu.edu/login?auth=0&type=summary&url=/journals/studies_in_the_age_of_chaucer/v031/31.mcdonald.html " Women Readers in the Middle Ages (review)"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305034312/http://muse.jhu.edu/login?auth=0 |date=2016-03-05 }}</ref>

===Allegory===
{{main|Allegory in the Middle Ages}}

While medieval literature makes use of many [[literary device]]s, [[allegory]] is so prominent in this period as to deserve special mention.  Much of medieval literature relied on allegory to convey the morals the author had in mind while writing—representations of abstract qualities, events, and institutions are thick in much of the literature of this time. Probably the earliest and most influential allegory is the ''[[Psychomachia]]'' (''Battle of Souls'') by [[Aurelius Clemens Prudentius]]. Other important examples include the ''[[Romance of the Rose]]'', ''[[Everyman (15th-century play)|Everyman]]'', ''[[Piers Plowman]]'', the ''[[Roman de Fauvel]]'', and the ''[[Divine Comedy]]''.

== Preservation ==
A recent study has concluded that only about 68 percent of all medieval works have survived to the present day, including fewer than 40 percent of [[English language|English]] works, around 50 percent of [[Dutch language|Dutch]] and [[French language|French]] works, and more than three quarters of [[German language|German]], [[Icelandic language|Icelandic]], and [[Irish language|Irish]] works.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bushwick |first=Sophie |date=8 March 2022 |title=How Much Medieval Literature Has Been Lost? |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-much-medieval-literature-has-been-lost/ |website=Scientific American |access-date=8 March 2022 |archive-date=8 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220308115003/https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-much-medieval-literature-has-been-lost/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Notable literature of the period==
[[File:European Output of Manuscripts 500–1500.png|thumb|250px|Estimated medieval output of manuscripts in terms of copies<ref>Buringh, Eltjo; van Zanden, Jan Luiten: "Charting the “Rise of the West”: Manuscripts and Printed Books in Europe, A Long-Term Perspective from the Sixth through Eighteenth Centuries", ''The Journal of Economic History'', Vol. 69, No. 2 (2009), pp.&nbsp;409–445 (416, table 1)</ref>]]
{{Div col}}
*''[[Alexiad]]'', [[Anna Comnena]]
*''[[Beowulf]]'', [[Anonymous work|anonymous]] [[Anglo-Saxons|Anglo-Saxon]] author
*''[[Cædmon's Hymn]]''
*''[[Cantigas de Santa Maria]]'', [[Galician language literature|Galician]] 
*''[[The Book of the City of Ladies]]'', [[Christine de Pizan]]
*''[[Book of the Civilized Man]]'', [[Daniel of Beccles]]
*''[[The Book of Good Love]]'', [[Juan Ruiz]]
*''[[The Book of Margery Kempe]]'', [[Margery Kempe]]
*''[[Brut (Layamon)|Brut]]'', [[Layamon]]
*''[[Roman de Brut|Brut]]'', [[Wace]]
*''[[The Canterbury Tales]]'', [[Geoffrey Chaucer]]
*''[[Consolation of Philosophy]]'', [[Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius|Boethius]]
*''[[David of Sassoun]]'', anonymous [[Armenia]]n author
*''[[Decameron]]'', [[Giovanni Boccaccio]]
*''The Dialogue'', [[Catherine of Siena]]
*''[[Digenis Acritas]]'', [[Anonymous work|anonymous]] [[Greek literature|Greek author]]
*''[[The Diseases of Women]]'', [[Trotula of Salerno]]
*''[[The Divine Comedy|La divina commedia]]'' (''The Divine Comedy''), [[Dante Alighieri]]
*''[[Dukus Horant]]'', the first extended work in Yiddish.
*''[[Elder Edda]]'', various [[Iceland]]ic authors
*''[[Das fließende Licht der Gottheit]]'', [[Mechthild of Magdeburg]]
*''[[First Grammatical Treatise]]'', 12th-century work on Old Norse phonology
*{{Lang|la|[[Gesta Danorum]]}}, [[Saxo Grammaticus]]
*{{Lang|is|[[Heimskringla]]}}, [[Snorri Sturluson]]
*{{Lang|la|[[Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum]]}} (''The Ecclesiastical History of the English People''), the Venerable [[Bede]]
*''[[Holy Cross Sermons]]'', anonymous [[Poland|Polish]] author
*''[[The Knight in the Panther's Skin]]'', [[Shota Rustaveli]]
*''[[The Lais of Marie de France]]'', [[Marie de France]]
*''[[The Letters of Abelard and Heloise]]''
*{{Lang|es|[[Libro de los ejemplos del conde Lucanor y de Patronio]]}} (''Book of the Examples of Count Lucanor and of Patronio''), Don [[Juan Manuel, Prince of Villena]]
*''[[Ludus de Antichristo]]'', anonymous [[Germany|German]] author
*''[[Mabinogion]]'', various [[Wales|Welsh]] authors
*''[[Metrical Dindshenchas]]'', [[Irish literature|Irish]] onomastic poems
*''[[The Travels of Marco Polo|Il milione]]'' (''The Travels of Marco Polo''), [[Marco Polo]]
*''[[Le Morte d'Arthur]]'', Sir [[Thomas Malory]]
*{{Lang|de|[[Nibelungenlied]]}}, anonymous [[Germany|German]] author
*''[[Njál's saga]]'', anonymous [[Iceland]]ic author
*''[[Parzival]]'', [[Wolfram von Eschenbach]]
*''[[Piers Plowman]]'', [[William Langland]]
*''[[Cantar de Mio Cid|Poem of the Cid]]'', anonymous [[Spain|Spanish]] author
*''[[Proslogion|Proslogium]]'', [[Anselm of Canterbury]]
*''[[Queste del Saint Graal]]'' (''The Quest of the Holy Grail''), anonymous [[France|French]] author
*''[[Revelations of Divine Love]]'', [[Julian of Norwich]]
*''Le Roman de [[Perceforest]]''
*''[[Roman de la Rose]]'', [[Guillaume de Lorris]] and [[Jean de Meun]]
*''[[Sadko]]'', anonymous [[Rus' (people)|Russian]] author
*''[[Scivias]]'', [[Hildegard of Bingen]]
*{{Lang|la|[[Sic et Non]]}}, [[Abelard]]
*''[[Sir Gawain and the Green Knight]]'', anonymous [[English people|English]] author
*''[[The Song of Roland]]'', anonymous [[France|French]] author
*''[[Gertrude the Great|Spiritual Exercises]]'', [[Gertrude the Great]]
*''[[Summa Theologica|Summa Theologiae]]'', [[Thomas Aquinas]]
*''[[Táin Bó Cúailnge]]'', anonymous [[Ireland|Irish]] author
*''[[The Tale of Igor's Campaign]]'', anonymous [[Rus' (people)|Russian]] author
*''[[Tirant lo Blanc]]'', [[Joanot Martorell]]
*''[[The Travels of Sir John Mandeville]]'', [[John Mandeville]]
*''[[Tristan]]'', [[Thomas d'Angleterre]]
*''[[Tristan]]'', [[Béroul]]
*''[[Tristan]]'', [[Gottfried von Strassburg]]
*''[[Troilus and Criseyde]]'', [[Geoffrey Chaucer]]
*''[[Waltharius]]''
*''[[Younger Edda]]'', [[Snorri Sturluson]]
*''[[Yvain: The Knight of the Lion]]'', [[Chrétien de Troyes]]
{{Div col end}}

==Specific articles==
===By region or language===
{{Div col}}
*[[Anglo-Norman literature]]
*[[Arabic literature#Classical Arabic literature|Classical Arabic literature]]
*[[Armenian literature#Medieval era|Medieval Armenian literature]]
*[[Medieval literacy of Bosnia and Herzegovina|Medieval Bosnian literature]]
*[[Breton literature|Old Breton literature]]
*[[Byzantine literature]]
*[[Medieval Bulgarian literature]]
*[[Catalan literature#Middle Ages|Medieval Catalan literature]]
*[[Croatian literature#Croatian medieval literature|Medieval Croatian literature]]
*[[Dutch literature|Old and Middle Dutch literature]]
*[[Old English literature]]
*[[Middle English literature]]
*[[Early English Jewish literature]]
*[[Medieval French literature]]
*[[Sicilian School]]
*[[Old High German literature]]
*[[Middle High German literature]]
*[[Georgian literature#Literary and other written works|Medieval Georgian literature]]
*[[Medieval Hebrew literature]]
*[[Icelandic literature]]
*[[Irish literature#Early and medieval literature|Medieval Irish literature]]
*[[Italian literature|Medieval Italian literature]]
*[[Medieval Latin literature]]
**[[Latin translations of the 12th century]]
*[[Occitan literature]]
*[[Old Norse literature]]
*[[Pahlavi literature]]
*[[Persian literature#Persian literature of the medieval and pre-modern periods|Medieval Persian literature]]
*[[Portuguese literature|Medieval Portuguese literature]]
*[[Medieval Serbian literature]]
*[[Scottish literature|Medieval Scottish literature]]
*[[Medieval Spanish literature]]
*[[Medieval Welsh literature]]
{{Div col end}}

===By genre===
*[[Medieval poetry]]
*[[Medieval drama]]
*[[Medieval allegory]]
*[[Christian mysticism#Middle ages|Medieval mysticism]]
*[[Fabliau]]
*[[Medieval travel literature]]
*[[Arthurian literature]]
*[[Alexander romances]]
*[[Chanson de geste]]
*[[Chivalric romance]]
*[[Eddic poetry]]
*[[Skaldic poetry]]
*[[Alliterative verse]]
*[[Miracle plays]]
*[[Morality plays]]
*[[Mystery plays]]
*[[Passion plays]]

===By period===
*[[Early Medieval literature]] (6th to 9th centuries)
*[[10th century in literature]]
*[[11th century in literature]]
*[[12th century in literature]]
*[[13th century in literature]]
*[[14th century in literature]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://mcllibrary.org/ The Medieval and Classical Literature Library]
*[http://labyrinth.georgetown.edu/ The Labyrinth: Resources for Medieval Studies]
*[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook.html The Internet Medieval Sourcebook Project]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110218052112/http://cdi.uvm.edu/collections/getCollection.xql?pid=manuscripts&title=Medieval%20and%20Renaissance%20Manuscripts Medieval and Renaissance manuscripts, Vulgates, Books of Hours, Medicinal Texts and more, 12 - 17th century, Center for Digital Initiatives, University of Vermont Libraries]
*[http://www.luminarium.org/medlit/ Luminarium: Anthology of Middle English Literature]
*[http://www.sagadb.org/ Medieval Nordic Literature] at the Icelandic Saga Database

{{Medieval women writers}}
{{Middle Ages wide 2}}
{{portal bar|Literature|Poetry|Mythology|Middle Ages}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Medieval literature| ]]
[[Category:History of literature|03]]
[[Category:Medieval culture|Literature]]