12th century in literature
Encyclopedia
See also: 12th century in poetry
, 11th century in literature
, 13th century in literature
, list of years in literature.
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The 12th century saw an increase in the production of Latin texts and a proliferation of literate clerics from the multiplying cathedral schools. At the same time, vernacular literatures ranging from Provençal to Icelandic embodied in lyric and romance the values and worldview of an increasingly self-conscious and prosperous courtly aristocracy. These two trends contributed to a sweeping revival of letters with a lasting influence on the development of literature in the following centuries.
12th century in poetry
-Events:* Emergence of the troubadour, trouvère and minnesänger traditions, in the Occitan, Langues d'oïl and Middle High German vernaculars respectively-Major works:* 1180 to 1210 - Nibelunglied...
, 11th century in literature
11th century in literature
See also: 11th century in poetry, 10th century in literature, 12th century in literature, list of years in literature.-New books:*1000 - Al-Tasrif, by Abu al-Qasim al-Zahrawi...
, 13th century in literature
13th century in literature
See also: 13th century in poetry, 12th century in literature, other events of the 13th century, 14th century in literature, list of years in literature.-Events:*1211 - Hélinand of Froidmont begins compiling his Chronicon....
, list of years in literature.
----
The 12th century saw an increase in the production of Latin texts and a proliferation of literate clerics from the multiplying cathedral schools. At the same time, vernacular literatures ranging from Provençal to Icelandic embodied in lyric and romance the values and worldview of an increasingly self-conscious and prosperous courtly aristocracy. These two trends contributed to a sweeping revival of letters with a lasting influence on the development of literature in the following centuries.
Histories
- early 12th c. Gesta FrancorumGesta FrancorumThe so-called Gesta Francorum or in full De Gesta Francorum et aliorum Hierosolimitanorum is a Latin chronicle of the First Crusade written in circa 1100-1101 by an anonymous author connected with Bohemund I of Antioch.It narrates the events of the First Crusade from the inception in November...
- 1108 Dei gesta per FrancosDei gesta per FrancosDei gesta per Francos is a narrative of the First Crusade by Guibert of Nogent written between 1107 and 1108...
by Guibert of NogentGuibert of NogentGuibert of Nogent was a Benedictine historian, theologian and author of autobiographical memoirs. Guibert was relatively unknown in his own time, going virtually unmentioned by his contemporaries... - c. 1136 Historia Regum BritanniaeHistoria Regum BritanniaeThe Historia Regum Britanniae is a pseudohistorical account of British history, written c. 1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth. It chronicles the lives of the kings of the Britons in a chronological narrative spanning a time of two thousand years, beginning with the Trojans founding the British nation...
by Geoffrey of MonmouthGeoffrey of MonmouthGeoffrey of Monmouth was a cleric and one of the major figures in the development of British historiography and the popularity of tales of King Arthur... - 1113 Chronicle of NestorPrimary ChronicleThe Primary Chronicle , Ruthenian Primary Chronicle or Russian Primary Chronicle, is a history of Kievan Rus' from about 850 to 1110, originally compiled in Kiev about 1113.- Three editions :...
- 1122-1154 Peterborough ChroniclePeterborough ChronicleThe Peterborough Chronicle , one of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles, contains unique information about the history of England after the Norman Conquest. According to philologist J.A.W...
- early 12th c. ÍslendingabókÍslendingabókÍslendingabók, Libellus Islandorum or The Book of Icelanders is an historical work dealing with early Icelandic history. The author was an Icelandic priest, Ari Þorgilsson, working in the early 12th century. The work originally existed in two different versions but only the younger one has come...
- ca. 1140 Chronicon RoskildenseChronicon RoskildenseChronicon Roskildense a small Danish historical work, which except for few yearbooks, is the oldest known attempt to write a coherent account of Danish history by a Danish author, from the time of the introduction of Christianity in Denmark to the author's own time...
- ca. 1170 Chronicon LethrenseChronicon LethrenseChronicon Lethrense is a small Danish medieval work from the 12th century, written in Latin.-Themes:...
- 1171 Chronicon SlavorumChronicon SlavorumChronica Slavorum is a historical record attributed to Helmold. It is a continuation of Deeds of bishops of the Hamburg Church by Adam von Bremen. Chronica describes events related to North-West Slavic tribes known as the Wends up to 1171. Chronica is a very significant historic record of...
by Adam of BremenAdam of BremenAdam of Bremen was a German medieval chronicler. He lived and worked in the second half of the eleventh century. He is most famous for his chronicle Gesta Hammaburgensis Ecclesiae Pontificum .-Background:Little is known of his life other than hints from his own chronicles... - Topographia Hibernica ("Topography of Ireland", 1188) by Gerald of Wales
- 1190s Chronicle of the Priest of DukljaChronicle of the Priest of DukljaThe Chronicle of the Priest of Duklja is a medieval chronicle originally written by a Catholic monk of the Cistercian order by the name of Roger for the Croatian Ban Paul Šubić because an order form by Ban Šubić and a quote of Catholic monk have been discovered...
- late 12th c. Gesta DanorumGesta DanorumGesta Danorum is a patriotic work of Danish history, by the 12th century author Saxo Grammaticus . It is the most ambitious literary undertaking of medieval Denmark and is an essential source for the nation's early history...
by Saxo GrammaticusSaxo GrammaticusSaxo Grammaticus also known as Saxo cognomine Longus was a Danish historian, thought to have been a secular clerk or secretary to Absalon, Archbishop of Lund, foremost advisor to Valdemar I of Denmark. He is the author of the first full history of Denmark.- Life :The Jutland Chronicle gives... - Brevis Historia Regum Dacie by Sven AggesenSvend AagesenSvend Aggesen is most famous, in Denmark at least, as the author of one of the first attempts to write a coherent history of Denmark covering the period 300AD-1185AD...
- Annales Lundenses
- Historia rerum in partibus transmarinis gestarum by William of TyreWilliam of TyreWilliam of Tyre was a medieval prelate and chronicler. As archbishop of Tyre, he is sometimes known as William II to distinguish him from a predecessor, William of Malines...
Philosophy/Theology
- ca. 1120 Sic et NonSic et NonSic et Non, an early scholastic text whose title translates from Medieval Latin as "Yes and No," was written by Pierre Abélard. In the work, Abélard juxtaposes apparently contradictory quotations from the Church Fathers on many of the traditional topics of Christian theology...
by Pierre Abélard - ca. 1150 - Hayy ibn YaqdhanHayy ibn YaqdhanḤayy ibn Yaqẓān is an Arabic philosophical novel and allegorical tale written by Ibn Tufail in the early 12th century.- Translations :* from Wikisource* English translations of Hayy bin Yaqzan...
by Ibn TufailIbn TufailIbn Tufail was an Andalusian Muslim polymath: an Arabic writer, novelist, Islamic philosopher, Islamic theologian, physician, vizier,... - ca. 1150 - The Four Books of SentencesSentencesThe Four Books of Sentences is a book of theology written by Peter Lombard in the twelfth century. It is a systematic compilation of theology, written around 1150; it derives its name from the sententiae or authoritative statements on biblical passages that it gathered together.-Origin and...
(Libri Quattuor Sententiarum) by Peter LombardPeter LombardPeter Lombard was a scholastic theologian and bishop and author of Four Books of Sentences, which became the standard textbook of theology, for which he is also known as Magister Sententiarum-Biography:Peter Lombard was born in Lumellogno , in... - ca. 1160 PolicraticusPolicraticusPolicraticus is a book of ethical and political philosophy written by John of Salisbury around 1159. Although addressing a wide variety of ethical questions, it is most famous for attempting to define the responsibilities of kings and their relationship to their subjects...
by John of SalisburyJohn of SalisburyJohn of Salisbury , who described himself as Johannes Parvus , was an English author, educationalist, diplomat and bishop of Chartres, and was born at Salisbury.-Early life and education:...
Biography/Hagiography
- c. 1124 Vita Anselmi (life of Anselm of CanterburyAnselm of CanterburyAnselm of Canterbury , also called of Aosta for his birthplace, and of Bec for his home monastery, was a Benedictine monk, a philosopher, and a prelate of the church who held the office of Archbishop of Canterbury from 1093 to 1109...
) by EadmerEadmerEadmer, or Edmer , was an English historian, theologian, and ecclesiastic. He is known for being a contemporary biographer of his contemporary archbishop and companion, Saint Anselm, in his Vita Anselmi, and for his Historia novorum in Anglia, which presents the public face of Anselm...
Epic/Saga/Chanson du Geste
- 1148 AlexiadAlexiadThe Alexiad is a medieval biographical text written around the year 1148 by the Byzantine historian Anna Comnena, daughter of Emperor Alexius I....
by Anna KomneneAnna KomneneAnna Komnene, Latinized as Comnena was a Greek princess and scholar and the daughter of Emperor Alexios I Komnenos of Byzantium and Irene Doukaina... - ca. 1160, Roman d'EnéasRoman d'EnéasLe Roman d'Enéas is a romance of Medieval French literature, dating to ca. 1160. It is written in French octosyllabic couplets totaling a little over 10,000 lines. Its subject matter is the tale of Aeneas, based on Virgil's Aeneid...
- ca. 1180 Chanson d'AntiocheChanson d'AntiocheThe Chanson d'Antioche is a chanson de geste in 9000 lines of alexandrines in stanzas called laisses, now known in a version composed about 1180 for a courtly French audience and embedded in a quasi-historical cycle of epic poems inspired by the events of 1097 – 1099, the climax of the First...
- late 12th c. Táin Bó CúailngeTáin Bó Cúailngeis a legendary tale from early Irish literature, often considered an epic, although it is written primarily in prose rather than verse. It tells of a war against Ulster by the Connacht queen Medb and her husband Ailill, who intend to steal the stud bull Donn Cuailnge, opposed only by the teenage...
- late 12th c. The Tale of Igor's CampaignThe Tale of Igor's CampaignThe Tale of Igor's Campaign is an anonymous epic poem written in the Old East Slavic language.The title is occasionally translated as The Song of Igor's Campaign, The Lay of Igor's Campaign, and The Lay of...
- ca. 1200 NibelungenliedNibelungenliedThe Nibelungenlied, translated as The Song of the Nibelungs, is an epic poem in Middle High German. The story tells of dragon-slayer Siegfried at the court of the Burgundians, how he was murdered, and of his wife Kriemhild's revenge....
- Digenis AcritasDigenis AcritasDigenes Akrites , known in folksongs as Digenes Akritas , is the most famous of the Acritic Songs. The epic details the life of its eponymous hero, Basil, a man, as the epithet signifies, of mixed Roman and Syrian blood...
- Metrical Dindshenchas
- Poetic EddaPoetic EddaThe Poetic Edda is a collection of Old Norse poems primarily preserved in the Icelandic mediaeval manuscript Codex Regius. Along with Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda, the Poetic Edda is the most important extant source on Norse mythology and Germanic heroic legends, and from the early 19th century...
, possibly by Sæmundr fróðiSæmundr fróðiSæmundr Sigfússon was an Icelandic priest and scholar. Sæmundr is known to have studied abroad. Previously it has generally been held that he studied in France, but modern scholars rather believe his studies were carried out in Franconia. In Iceland he founded a long-lived school at Oddi... - ca. 12th c. The Knight in the Panther's SkinThe Knight in the Panther's SkinThe Knight in the Panther's Skin is an epic poem, consisting of over 1600 shairi quatrains, was written in the 12th century by the Georgian epic-poet Shota Rustaveli, who was a Prince and Treasurer at the royal court of Queen Tamar of Georgia. The Knight in the Panther's Skin is often seen as...
by Shota RustaveliShota RustaveliShota Rustaveli was a Georgian poet of the 12th century, and one of the greatest contributors to Georgian literature. He is author of "The Knight in the Panther's Skin" , the Georgian national epic poem.... - ca. 12th c. MabinogionMabinogionThe Mabinogion is the title given to a collection of eleven prose stories collated from medieval Welsh manuscripts. The tales draw on pre-Christian Celtic mythology, international folktale motifs, and early medieval historical traditions...
- Chanson de Jerusalem
Lyric
- late 12th c. LaisThe Lais of Marie de FranceThe Lais of Marie de France are a series of twelve short narrative Breton lais by the poet Marie de France. They are written in the Anglo-Norman and were probably composed in the late 12th century. The short, narrative poems generally focus on glorifying the concept of courtly love through the...
by Marie de FranceMarie de FranceMarie de France was a medieval poet who was probably born in France and lived in England during the late 12th century. She lived and wrote at an undisclosed court, but was almost certainly at least known about at the royal court of King Henry II of England... - 1140s-50s Goliardic poetryGoliardThe Goliards were a group of clergy who wrote bibulous, satirical Latin poetry in the 12th and 13th centuries. They were mainly clerical students at the universities of France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and England who protested the growing contradictions within the Church, such as the failure of the...
by Hugh Primas of OrléansHugh PrimasHugh Primas of Orléans was a Latin lyric poet of the 12th century, a scholar from Orléans who was jokingly called Primas, "the Primate", by his friends at the University of Paris. He was probably born in the 1090s and may have died about 1160... - 1160s Goliardic poetryGoliardThe Goliards were a group of clergy who wrote bibulous, satirical Latin poetry in the 12th and 13th centuries. They were mainly clerical students at the universities of France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and England who protested the growing contradictions within the Church, such as the failure of the...
by the ArchpoetArchpoetThe Archpoet , or ' , is the name given to a 12th century anonymous author of ten poems from medieval Latin literature, the most famous being his "Confession" found in the manuscript...