Aymeric Picaud
Encyclopedia
Aymeric Picaud was a 12th century French scholar, monk and pilgrim
from Parthenay-le-Vieux
in Poitou
. He is most widely known today as being the author of the Codex Calixtinus
, an illuminated manuscript
giving background information for pilgrims travelling the Way of St. James
. In essence, he wrote one of the earliest known tourist guidebooks.
scholars, Amyeric's account of his journey to Santiago de Compostela
(around the year 1140) is considered as highly important because it contains some of the earliest Basque words and phrases of the post-Roman period.
The words and phrases he recorded are:
Pilgrim
A pilgrim is a traveler who is on a journey to a holy place. Typically, this is a physical journeying to some place of special significance to the adherent of a particular religious belief system...
from Parthenay-le-Vieux
Parthenay
Parthenay is an ancient fortified town and commune in the Poitou-Charentes region in western France, sited on a rocky spur that is surrounded on two sides by the River Thouet...
in Poitou
Poitou
Poitou was a province of west-central France whose capital city was Poitiers.The region of Poitou was called Thifalia in the sixth century....
. He is most widely known today as being the author of the Codex Calixtinus
Codex Calixtinus
The Codex Calixtinus is a 12th-century illuminated manuscript formerly attributed to Pope Callixtus II, though now believed to have been arranged by the French scholar Aymeric Picaud. The principal author is actually given as 'Scriptor I'....
, an illuminated manuscript
Illuminated manuscript
An illuminated manuscript is a manuscript in which the text is supplemented by the addition of decoration, such as decorated initials, borders and miniature illustrations...
giving background information for pilgrims travelling the Way of St. James
Way of St. James
The Way of St. James or St. James' Way is the pilgrimage route to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northwestern Spain, where tradition has it that the remains of the apostle Saint James are buried....
. In essence, he wrote one of the earliest known tourist guidebooks.
Aymeric's Basque material
Among BasqueBasque language
Basque is the ancestral language of the Basque people, who inhabit the Basque Country, a region spanning an area in northeastern Spain and southwestern France. It is spoken by 25.7% of Basques in all territories...
scholars, Amyeric's account of his journey to Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia, Spain.The city's Cathedral is the destination today, as it has been throughout history, of the important 9th century medieval pilgrimage route, the Way of St. James...
(around the year 1140) is considered as highly important because it contains some of the earliest Basque words and phrases of the post-Roman period.
The words and phrases he recorded are:
- andrea 'lady (of the house)' (modern andre)
- Andrea Maria, glossed as 'mother of God'
- aragui 'meat' (modern haragi)
- araign 'fish' (modern arrain)
- ardum 'wine', assumed to represent nasalised aɾdũ (modern ardo, from older ardano)
- aucona 'dart' (modern azkona)
- belaterra 'the priest' (modern beretter 'sacristanSacristanA sacristan is an officer who is charged with the care of the sacristy, the church, and their contents.In ancient times many duties of the sacristan were performed by the doorkeepers , later by the treasurers and mansionarii...
') - echea 'the house' (modern etxea)
- elicera 'to church' (modern elizara)
- ereguia 'the king' (modern erregea)
- gari 'wheat'
- iaona 'the master' (modern jauna)
- Iaona domne Iacue 'St James' (modern Jauna Done Iakue)
- ogui 'bread'
- Urcia, glossed as 'God' by Picaud (see UrtziUrtziUrtzi is a Basque term that has no convincing explanation as yet. It either represents an old common noun for the sky, or is the name for a pre-Christian sky deity.-The Urtzi controversy:...
) - uric 'any water' (modern urik)