Thula (poetic genre)
Encyclopedia
Thula (ˈθuːlə, pl. thulas, from pl. þulur), is the name of an ancient poetic genre
in the Germanic literatures (but see below). Thulas are metrical name-lists or lists of poetic synonyms compiled, mainly, for oral recitation. The main function of thulas is thought to be mnemonic
. The Old Norse term was first applied to an English poem, the Old English Widsith
, by Andreas Heusler and Wilhelm Ranisch in 1903. Thulas occur as parts of longer poems, too; Old Norse
examples are found in various passages of the poetic and the prose Edda
(esp. Skáldskaparmál
with the Nafnaþulur
, Grímnismál
, Alvíssmál
), the Rígsþula as well as in the Völuspá
. Thulas can be considered as sources of once canonic knowledge, rooted in prehistoric beliefs and rituals. They generally preserve mythological and cosmogonical knowledge, often proper names and toponyms, but also the names of semi-legendary or historical persons. Their language is usually highly formalized, and they make extensive use of mnemonic
devices such as alliteration
. For a number of archaic words and formulas some thulas are the only available source. The term and the genre may go back to the function of the Thulr , who held the function of an orator and was responsible for the cultus.
in his Germania
mentions the names of tribes, among them the Angles, in a thula-like form:
"Reudigni deinde et Aviones et Anglii et Varini et Eudoses et Suardones et Nuithones fluminibus aut silvis muniuntur." (cap. 40)
More obviously in verse is the alliterating list in Claudius Ptolemy's Geographia:
"Saxones, Sigulones, Sabalingii, Cobandi, Chali, Phunusii, Charudes." (II,ii.7)
The different versions of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
start off with the names of the English rulers back to Woden
in metrical form:
"Cynric [wæs] Cerdicing, Cerdic Elesing, Elesa Esling, Esla Gewising, Gewis Wiging, Wig Freawining, Freawine Friðugaring, Friðugar Bronding, Brond Bædæging, Bældæg Wodening." (after The Parker Chronicle, ed. Plummer 1892-99)
The longest Old English thulas, though, are part of the poem Widsith
, listing, in the first thula, 30 kings, 54 tribes in the second, and 28 men in the third and last thula.
) and enumeratio
. Homer
, for instance, includes a catalogue of ships
in his Iliad
(2.494-759), Ovid
a catalogue of trees in his Metamorphoses (10.90-108). Lists in works by later medieval authors follow the classic models rather than the thulas, even though the poetic effect may be similar. A good example is found in Chaucer's Parlement of Foules
, which, among other things, features a list of trees:
The "Wood of Error" in Edmund Spenser
's in The Faerie Queene
(I.i.8-9) is a similar catalogue of trees, based on that of Ovid
.
Among modern authors, James Joyce
, for instance, includes numerous lists in his Ulysses
and Finnegans Wake
, e.g. a list of the books in Leopold Bloom
's library. (Ulysses
17.1357ff.)
Genre
Genre , Greek: genos, γένος) is the term for any category of literature or other forms of art or culture, e.g. music, and in general, any type of discourse, whether written or spoken, audial or visual, based on some set of stylistic criteria. Genres are formed by conventions that change over time...
in the Germanic literatures (but see below). Thulas are metrical name-lists or lists of poetic synonyms compiled, mainly, for oral recitation. The main function of thulas is thought to be mnemonic
Mnemonic
A mnemonic , or mnemonic device, is any learning technique that aids memory. To improve long term memory, mnemonic systems are used to make memorization easier. Commonly encountered mnemonics are often verbal, such as a very short poem or a special word used to help a person remember something,...
. The Old Norse term was first applied to an English poem, the Old English Widsith
Widsith
Widsith is an Old English poem of 144 lines that appears to date from the 9th century, drawing on earlier oral traditions of Anglo-Saxon tale singing. The only text of the fragment is copied in the Exeter Book, a manuscript of Old English poetry compiled in the late 10th century containing...
, by Andreas Heusler and Wilhelm Ranisch in 1903. Thulas occur as parts of longer poems, too; Old Norse
Old Norse
Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....
examples are found in various passages of the poetic and the prose Edda
Edda
The term Edda applies to the Old Norse Poetic Edda and Prose Edda, both of which were written down in Iceland during the 13th century in Icelandic, although they contain material from earlier traditional sources, reaching into the Viking Age...
(esp. Skáldskaparmál
Skáldskaparmál
The second part of Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda the Skáldskaparmál or "language of poetry" is effectively a dialogue between the Norse god of the sea, Ægir and Bragi, the god of poetry, in which both Norse mythology and discourse on the nature of poetry are intertwined...
with the Nafnaþulur
Nafnaþulur
Nafnaþulur is a subsection of Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda, the last part of the Skáldskaparmál. It is a listing in verse of names that may be used in poetry for various items, such as gods, giants, people, animals, and weapons...
, Grímnismál
Grímnismál
Grímnismál is one of the mythological poems of the Poetic Edda. It is preserved in the Codex Regius manuscript and the AM 748 I 4to fragment. It is spoken through the voice of Grímnir, one of the many guises of the god Odin, who is tortured by King Geirröth...
, Alvíssmál
Alvíssmál
Alvíssmál is poem collected in the Poetic Edda, probably dating to the 11th century, that relates a conversation between Thor and a Dvergr called Alvíss .-Plot:...
), the Rígsþula as well as in the Völuspá
Völuspá
Völuspá is the first and best known poem of the Poetic Edda. It tells the story of the creation of the world and its coming end related by a völva addressing Odin...
. Thulas can be considered as sources of once canonic knowledge, rooted in prehistoric beliefs and rituals. They generally preserve mythological and cosmogonical knowledge, often proper names and toponyms, but also the names of semi-legendary or historical persons. Their language is usually highly formalized, and they make extensive use of mnemonic
Mnemonic
A mnemonic , or mnemonic device, is any learning technique that aids memory. To improve long term memory, mnemonic systems are used to make memorization easier. Commonly encountered mnemonics are often verbal, such as a very short poem or a special word used to help a person remember something,...
devices such as alliteration
Alliteration
In language, alliteration refers to the repetition of a particular sound in the first syllables of Three or more words or phrases. Alliteration has historically developed largely through poetry, in which it more narrowly refers to the repetition of a consonant in any syllables that, according to...
. For a number of archaic words and formulas some thulas are the only available source. The term and the genre may go back to the function of the Thulr , who held the function of an orator and was responsible for the cultus.
Examples
The earliest examples of any significance for Germanic history are found in the works of Latin authors. TacitusTacitus
Publius Cornelius Tacitus was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors...
in his Germania
Germania
Germania was the Greek and Roman geographical term for the geographical regions inhabited by mainly by peoples considered to be Germani. It was most often used to refer especially to the east of the Rhine and north of the Danube...
mentions the names of tribes, among them the Angles, in a thula-like form:
"Reudigni deinde et Aviones et Anglii et Varini et Eudoses et Suardones et Nuithones fluminibus aut silvis muniuntur." (cap. 40)
More obviously in verse is the alliterating list in Claudius Ptolemy's Geographia:
"Saxones, Sigulones, Sabalingii, Cobandi, Chali, Phunusii, Charudes." (II,ii.7)
The different versions of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is a collection of annals in Old English chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the Chronicle was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alfred the Great...
start off with the names of the English rulers back to Woden
Woden
Woden or Wodan is a major deity of Anglo-Saxon and Continental Germanic polytheism. Together with his Norse counterpart Odin, Woden represents a development of the Proto-Germanic god *Wōdanaz....
in metrical form:
"Cynric [wæs] Cerdicing, Cerdic Elesing, Elesa Esling, Esla Gewising, Gewis Wiging, Wig Freawining, Freawine Friðugaring, Friðugar Bronding, Brond Bædæging, Bældæg Wodening." (after The Parker Chronicle, ed. Plummer 1892-99)
The longest Old English thulas, though, are part of the poem Widsith
Widsith
Widsith is an Old English poem of 144 lines that appears to date from the 9th century, drawing on earlier oral traditions of Anglo-Saxon tale singing. The only text of the fragment is copied in the Exeter Book, a manuscript of Old English poetry compiled in the late 10th century containing...
, listing, in the first thula, 30 kings, 54 tribes in the second, and 28 men in the third and last thula.
Outside early medieval literature
Lists of names and objects abound in texts other than early Germanic ones, too. In classic Greek and Latin poetry, lists, or catalogues, function as forms of amplificatio (see amplificationAmplification (rhetoric)
In rhetoric, amplification refers to the act and the means of extending thoughts or statements to increase rhetorical effect, to add importance, or to make the most of a thought or circumstance...
) and enumeratio
Enumeratio
Enumeratio is the figure of amplification in which a subject is divided, detailing parts, causes, effects, or consequences to make a point more forcibly....
. Homer
Homer
In the Western classical tradition Homer , is the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, and is revered as the greatest ancient Greek epic poet. These epics lie at the beginning of the Western canon of literature, and have had an enormous influence on the history of literature.When he lived is...
, for instance, includes a catalogue of ships
Catalogue of Ships
The Catalogue of Ships is a passage in Book 2 of Homer's Iliad , which lists the contingents of the Achaean army that sailed to Troy...
in his Iliad
Iliad
The Iliad is an epic poem in dactylic hexameters, traditionally attributed to Homer. Set during the Trojan War, the ten-year siege of the city of Troy by a coalition of Greek states, it tells of the battles and events during the weeks of a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles...
(2.494-759), Ovid
Ovid
Publius Ovidius Naso , known as Ovid in the English-speaking world, was a Roman poet who is best known as the author of the three major collections of erotic poetry: Heroides, Amores, and Ars Amatoria...
a catalogue of trees in his Metamorphoses (10.90-108). Lists in works by later medieval authors follow the classic models rather than the thulas, even though the poetic effect may be similar. A good example is found in Chaucer's Parlement of Foules
Parlement of Foules
The "Parlement of Foules" is a poem by Geoffrey Chaucer made up of approximately 700 lines. The poem is in the form of a dream vision in rhyme royal stanza and is interesting in that it is the first reference to the idea that St...
, which, among other things, features a list of trees:
The bilder ook, and eek the hardy asshe;
The piler elm, the cofre unto careyne;
The boxtree piper; holm to whippes lasshe;
The sayling firr; the cipres, deth to pleyne;
The sheter ew, the asp for shaftes pleyne;
The olyve of pees, and eek the drunken vyne,
The victor palm, the laurer to devyne.
The "Wood of Error" in Edmund Spenser
Edmund Spenser
Edmund Spenser was an English poet best known for The Faerie Queene, an epic poem and fantastical allegory celebrating the Tudor dynasty and Elizabeth I. He is recognised as one of the premier craftsmen of Modern English verse in its infancy, and one of the greatest poets in the English...
's in The Faerie Queene
The Faerie Queene
The Faerie Queene is an incomplete English epic poem by Edmund Spenser. The first half was published in 1590, and a second installment was published in 1596. The Faerie Queene is notable for its form: it was the first work written in Spenserian stanza and is one of the longest poems in the English...
(I.i.8-9) is a similar catalogue of trees, based on that of Ovid
Ovid
Publius Ovidius Naso , known as Ovid in the English-speaking world, was a Roman poet who is best known as the author of the three major collections of erotic poetry: Heroides, Amores, and Ars Amatoria...
.
Among modern authors, James Joyce
James Joyce
James Augustine Aloysius Joyce was an Irish novelist and poet, considered to be one of the most influential writers in the modernist avant-garde of the early 20th century...
, for instance, includes numerous lists in his Ulysses
Ulysses (novel)
Ulysses is a novel by the Irish author James Joyce. It was first serialised in parts in the American journal The Little Review from March 1918 to December 1920, and then published in its entirety by Sylvia Beach on 2 February 1922, in Paris. One of the most important works of Modernist literature,...
and Finnegans Wake
Finnegans Wake
Finnegans Wake is a novel by Irish author James Joyce, significant for its experimental style and resulting reputation as one of the most difficult works of fiction in the English language. Written in Paris over a period of seventeen years, and published in 1939, two years before the author's...
, e.g. a list of the books in Leopold Bloom
Leopold Bloom
Leopold Bloom is the fictional protagonist and hero of James Joyce's Ulysses. His peregrinations and encounters in Dublin on 16 June 1904 mirror, on a more mundane and intimate scale, those of Ulysses/Odysseus in The Odyssey....
's library. (Ulysses
Ulysses (novel)
Ulysses is a novel by the Irish author James Joyce. It was first serialised in parts in the American journal The Little Review from March 1918 to December 1920, and then published in its entirety by Sylvia Beach on 2 February 1922, in Paris. One of the most important works of Modernist literature,...
17.1357ff.)
External links
- Baugh, Albert C. ²1967. A Literary History of England. Vol. 1 in GoogleBooks
- A modern recording of Icelandic thulas on CD
- Thu.la