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Resource Guides
 

MEDIEVAL LITERATURE

Compiled by Juliet Mousseau, Ph. D. Cand. Theological Studies, Stefan Hall, Ph. D. English,
Jennifer Hart Weed, Ph. D. Cand. Philosophy, Sue Schulze, Ph. D. Cand. History
Maintained by Jamie Schmid, M.S.L.I.S., Reference Librarian and English Liaison Librarian
Updated November 13, 2007

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This guide identifies resources for the study of medieval literature found in Pius XII Memorial Library. The guide is intended for use by both beginning or advanced graduate students and faculty. It includes both English language and foreign language titles. The annotations are intended to provide basic information. Items whose contents are obvious from their titles are not annotated.
 

CONTENTS


General Resources || Old and Middle English (Beowulf, Chaucer, Langland, Arthurian) || Medieval Scots
Medieval Irish || Medieval Welsh || Anglo-Norman || Medieval French || Medieval Italian (Dante)
Medieval Spanish || Medieval Latin & Greek || Medieval Scandinavian || Medieval German
Medieval Eastern European (Slavic, Middle Eastern)
 

GENERAL RESOURCES


GENERAL PRINT INDEXES/SERIAL BIBLIOGRAPHIES

European Authors 1000-1900. Eds. Stanley J. Kunitz and Vineta Colby. New York: H. W. Wilson, 1967.
     Ref. PN451.K8
Short encyclopedic biographies of European authors, with lists of major works and editions.

European Writers: The Middle Ages and Renaissance. Vols. 1, 2 & 14. Ed. William T. Jackson. New York: Scribner, 1983.
     Ref. PN501.E9
The index can be found in volume 14. Search by authors or anonymous works. Long articles on each author or work with biographical information, short sections of literary criticism and interpretation, and bibliographical information.

Annual Bibliography of English Language and Literature. Vols. 6-76. Ed. John Horden. Leeds: Modern Humanities Research Assoc., 1969-.
     Ref. Z2011.M69
Annual. Indexed. Divided by literary periods.

Classical and Medieval Literature. 65 vols. Eds. Dennis Poupard and Jelena O. Krstovic. Detroit: Gale, 1988.
     Ref. PN610.C53
Massive indexed collection of short articles and literary criticism for the totality of Classical and Medieval literature with extensive bibliographies for each.

LIBRARY DATABASES

Remote access to library databases is available only to SLU students, faculty, and staff.

Arts and Humanities Citation Index - 1995-present
This database provides author and subject indexing of articles published worldwide in arts and humanities journals. It also supports citation indexing, which establishes links between cited articles and the most recent publications in which they are cited.

Early English Books Online -1473-1700
Contains full-text page images for almost 100,000 of the over 125,000 titles listed in Pollard and Redgrave's Short-Title Catalogue (1475-1640), Wing's Short-Title Catalogue (1641-1700), the Thomason Tracts (1640-1661), and the Early English Tract Supplement.  Covers a broad array of subject areas including English literature, history, philosophy, linguistics, theology, music, fine arts, education, mathematics, and science.
 
Humanities Full Text - 1984-present
Indexes and/or abstracts over 600 humanities periodicals. Full text is available from approximately 230 journals.

International Medieval Bibliography - Online - 1967-present
This bibliography of the European Middle Ages (c. 400-1500) indexes articles and review articles (but not book reviews per se) from about 4,500 journals, essays from Festschriften, conference proceedings, etc.

JSTOR
This archival journal resource provides access to the full-text of over 500 journal titles, including many literature journals. Note that the last 1 to 7 years of each journal are not available in this resource.

Iter Bibliography
Iter is the "Gateway to the Middle Ages and Renaissance." It indexes articles about the Middle Ages and Renaissance (400-1700) drawn from complete runs of over 1,026 journal titles publishing articles about this period, as well as over 51,000 citations to monographs and material found in monographs.

Iter Italicum - 1995
Electronic version of Paul Kristeller’s multi-volume listing of "uncatalogued or incompletely catalogued humanistic manuscripts of the Renaissance in Italian or other libraries." 

Periodicals Index Online - 1665-1995
Indexes the articles in over 4,000 periodicals in the humanities and social sciences from their first issues to 1995. Hundreds of journals are available in full text in the complementary database, Periodicals Archive Online. The focus is on 20th century periodicals. However, periodicals in the 20th century that extend back into the 17th, 18th, & 19th centuries are indexed from their earliest volumes. The scope is worldwide and includes journals in English, German, Italian, French, Spanish, and other Western languages.

MLA International Bibliography - 1926-present
Indexes books, book chapters, dissertations and articles from over 4,400 journals in language, linguistics, literature, and folklore.

Project Muse
This electronic journal collection provides full-text access to over 250 scholarly journals, including many literature journals.

MEDIEVAL MYTHOLOGY/FOLKLORE ENCYCLOPEDIAS

Classical Myths and Legends in the Middle Ages and Renaissance. H. David Brumble. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1998.
     Ref. PN669.B78
Covers mythology from the early Middle Ages to Miltion, with citation of classical sources for background. Entries include gods, goddesses, heroes, heroines, and mythological places. They present the traditional allegorical meanings in chronological order. Concise and well-written, with citations for further reading. Includes bibliographies of primary and secondary sources, appendices on music and bestiality.

A Dictionary of Medieval Heroes. Ed. Willem P. Gerritsen and Anthony G. van Melle. Trans. Tanis Guest. Woodbridge: The Boydell Press, 1998.
     Ref. PN682.C5V3513
Traces more than 80 characters through medieval narratives over time in lengthy entries. Includes an extensive bibliography and index by literary and historical figures.

Medieval Folklore: An Encyclopedia of Myths, Legends, Tales, Beliefs, and Customs. 2 vols. Eds. Carl Lindahl, John McNamara, and John Lindow. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, 2000.
     Ref. GR35.M43
Excellent resource. Each volume contains a list of entries at the beginning. The editors aim to present medieval times as they were rather than as they were recreated by later authors. The "References and Further Reading" sections at the end of each entry evaluate the works lists. Limited to Europe, 500-1500CE, and makes no claims of comprehensive coverage.

GENERAL WEB SITES

DScriptorium
Devoted to collecting, storing, and distributing digital images of Medieval Manuscripts.

Internet Medieval Sourcebook
Collection of public domain and copy-permitted historical texts.

The Labyrinth

Literary Resources on the Net - Medieval
A guide to Medieval literature Web sites.

Medieval Literature
Bibliographies, journals, authors, and links to various search engines.

Online Medieval and Classical Library
A collection of some of the most important literary works of the Middle Ages.

WWW Medieval Resources
Broad-based web site with links to different Medieval websites.

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OLD & MIDDLE ENGLISH LITERATURE


OLD & MIDDLE ENGLISH ENCYCLOPEDIAS

Medieval England: An Encyclopedia. Eds. Paul E. Szarmach, M. Teresa Tavormina, and Joel T. Rosenthal. New York: Garland, 1998.
     Ref. DA129.M43
An incredible resource for students of Medieval English literature and history, with entries on literary genres, authors, individual works of poetry and prose, as well as historical and cultural background information. Entries conclude with valuable bibliographic information.

The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Anglo-Saxon England. Eds. Michael Lapidge, John Blair, Simon Keynes, and Donald Scragg. Oxford: Blackwell, 1999.
     Ref. DA152.B58
The bibliographies which follow each entry are fairly short, but on the whole this is a handy quick reference encyclopedia for Anglo-Saxon historical and literary information.

OLD & MIDDLE ENGLISH INDEXES

The Index of Middle English Verse. Carleton Brown and Rossell Hope Robbins. New York: Columbia UP, 1943.
     Ref. PR1203.B76
Search titles, first lines, or acephalous poems. Indexed with appendices on Bodleian catalogue numbers and manuscripts in private possession.

Supplement to the Index of Middle English Verse.  Rossell Hope Robbins and John L. Cutler. Lexington: University of Kentucky Press, 1996<
    Ref. PR1203 .B76

A Manuscript Index to the Index of Middle English Verse. Richard Hamer. London: The British Library, 1995.
     Ref. PR311 .H35

A Manual of the Writings in Middle English, 1050-1500. 10 vols. Eds. J. Burke Severs (v.1-2) and Albert E. Hartung (V.3-10). New Haven: Connecticut Academy of Arts and Sciences, 1967-98.
     Ref. PR255.M3
Lists and describes everything written in the Middle English period. Vol.1 Romances; Vol.2. The Pearl Poet, Wyclyf, Saints Legends, et al; Vol.3 Debate poetry, Hoccleve, Malory and Caxton; Vol.4. Middle Scots writers, Chaucerian apochrypha; Vol.5. Dramatic pieces, poems on contemporary conditions; Vol.6. Carols, Ballads, Lydgate; Vol.7. Gower, Langland, travel literature, et al; Vol.8. Historical chronicles; Vol.9. Proverbs, precepts, mystical writing, tales; Vol.10. works on science and information.

OLD & MIDDLE ENGLISH LANGUAGE DICTIONARIES & CONCORDANCES

Dictionary of Old English Corpus - 2000
Consists of 3, 037 Old English texts. Remote access is available only to SLU students, faculty and staff.

An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary. Joseph Bosworth and T. Northcote Toller. Oxford: Clarendon, 1972.
     Ref. PE279.B5

A Concordance to the Anglo-Saxon Poetic Records. Ed. J. B. Bessinger, Jr. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1978.
     Ref. PR1506 .B47 1978
Based on The Anglo-Saxon Poetic Records edited by Krappe and Dobbie.

Middle English Dictionary. 19 volumes. Ed. Hans Kurath. Ann Arbor, MI: U of Michigan P, 1952-2001.
     Ref. PE679.M54

A Concordance to the Middle English Shorter Poem. 2 vols. Michael J. Preston. Leeds: W. S. Maney, 1975.
     Ref. PR1175.8.P7

OLD ENGLISH LANGUAGE & LITERATURE GUIDES

A Guide to Old English. 6th ed. Bruce Mitchell and Fred C. Robinson. Oxford: Blackwell, 2001.
     PE131.M5
An excellent introduction to the Anglo-Saxon language and literature. The first part of the guide focuses on teaching readers the fundamentals of Old English grammar. Also included are sections on Anglo-Saxon history, archaeology, and literature, with texts, glossary, bibliography, and notes.

A Book of Middle English. 2nd ed. J. A. Burrow and Thorlac Turville-Petre. Oxford: Blackwell, 1996.
     PE535.B87
A good introduction to Middle English language and literature (1150-1400). Includes comprehensive sections on grammar, pronunciation, vocabulary, metre, manuscripts, and sixteen textual selections and glossary, with a select bibliography.

OLD & MIDDLE ENGLISH BIBLIOGRAPHIES

Old English Wisdom Poetry. Russell Poole. Cambridge: Brewer, 1998.
     PR215.P66
An indexed bibliography with fairly full annotations. Poole includes works published on the Old English charms, riddles, maxims, precepts, proverbs, The Fortunes of Men, The Gifts of Men, homiletic fragments, The Order of the World, The Rune Poem, Solomon and Saturn, and Vainglory. Despite the fact it was published in 1998, there are few entries from the 1990s, and there are no pre-1800 entries.

The Exeter Book: A Bibliography. Bernard James Muir. Exeter: U of Exeter P, 1992.
     PR201.M84
A useful bibliography which covers criticism of the poems in the Exeter Book.

The Language of Middle English Literature. David Burnley and Matsuji Tajima. Cambridge: Brewer, 1994.
     PR255.B925
An annotated bibliography of criticism on Middle English literature through 1993 or so, divided into early Middle English literature and late Middle English literature. Includes a handy appendix of doctoral theses on Middle English literature.

OLD & MIDDLE ENGLISH WEB SITES

The Labyrinth
Miscellany of Old and Middle English sources, including texts, bibliographies, and links.

Corpus of Middle English Prose and Verse
A collection of Middle English electronic texts from the University of Michigan and the Oxford Text Archive

Early Manuscripts at Oxford University
Digital facsimiles scanned directly from the manuscripts.

Luminarium
A brilliant site. An anthology of Middle English Literature, including full, searchable texts of Chaucer, Langland, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, et al.

TEAMS: Middle English Texts
A collection of Middle English electronic texts.

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BEOWULF RESOURCES


LITERARY GUIDES & BIBLIOGRAPHIES ON BEOWULF

A Beowulf Handbook. Eds. Robert E. Bjork and John D. Niles. Lincoln: U of Nebraska P, 1997.
     PR1585.B384
This collection of essays seeks to give a comprehensive overview of all of the published scholarship on the poem, and while it fails to do this in several of the essays, the extensive bibliography (60-plus pages) makes this book a great reference work. Notable contributions to the volume include essays on the poem's structure and unity, prosody, rhetoric and style, oral formulaic theories, Christian and pagan elements, social milieu, hero and theme, etc.

BEOWULF CONCORDANCE

A Concordance to Beowulf. Ed. J. B. Bessinger, Jr. Ithaca: Cornell UP, 1969.
     Ref.PR1585.A2 B4
Based on the text of Elliott Van Kirk Dobbie's Anglo-Saxon Poetic Records edition.

ELECTRONIC SOURCES FOR BEOWULF

The Electronic Beowulf. Ed. Kevin Kiernan. London: The British Library, 1999. CD-ROM.
     Ref.PR1580.B75
An interesting CD-ROM. View the Beowulf manuscript under different light conditions including ultraviolet.

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CHAUCER RESOURCES


CONCORDANCE TO THE WORKS OF CHAUCER

A Glossarial Concordance to the Riverside Chaucer. 2 vols. Larry D. Benson. New York: Garland, 1993.
     Ref.PR1941.B46
Based on Benson's popular standard edition, The Riverside Chaucer, this concordance provides a necessary tool for serious scholars of Chaucer's poetry, covering all of Chaucer's shorter poems as well as the Troilus and the Canterbury Tales.

OXFORD GUIDES TO CHAUCER SERIES

The Canterbury Tales. Helen Cooper. Oxford and New York: Oxford UP, 1996.
     PR1874.C64
A comprehensive guide to the General Prologue and Tales with a comprehensive bibliography, discussing the date, genre, style, theme, sources, et al. for each.

The Shorter Poems. A. J. Minnis, V. J. Scattergood, and J. J. Smith. Oxford: Clarendon, 1995.
     PR1924.M47
Covers The Book of the Duchess, The House of Fame, The Parliament of Fowls, The Legend of Good Women, and their social and cultural contexts, with a chapter on the short poems by Scattergood, an extensive bibliography, and an appendix on Chaucer's language by Smith.

Troilus and Criseyde. Barry Windeatt. Oxford: Clarendon, 1992.
     PR1896.W56
Discusses the date, text, sources, genre, structure, themes, style, etc, and includes a lengthy bibliography.

CHAUCER BIBLIOGRAPHIES

The best printed bibliographies on Chaucer studies are The Chaucer Bibliographies, (General Editor Thomas Hann) from Toronto University Press. Individual volumes owned by Pius XII Library include:

Chaucer's General Prologue to the Canterbury Tales: An Annotated Bibliography, 1900 to 1982. Caroline D. Eckhardt. 1990.
     PR1868.P9E34

Chaucer's Miller's, Reeve's, and Cook's Tales: An Annotated Bibliography, 1900 to 1992. T. L. Burton and Rosemary Greentree. 1997.
     PR1868.M6B87

Chaucer's Wife of Bath's Prologue and Tale: An Annotated Bibliography, 1900 to 1995. Peter G. Beidler and Elizabeth M.Biebel. 1998.
     PR1868.W7C38

Chaucer's Pardoner's Prologue and Tale: An Annotated Bibliography, 1900 to 1995. Marilyn Sutton.
     PR1868.P3S88

Chaucer's Knight's Tale: An Annotated Bibliography, 1900 to 1995. Monica E. McAlpine. 1991.
     Z8164.M34

ELECTRONIC CHAUCER SOURCES

Chaucer: The General Prologue. Ed. Elizabeth Solopova. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2000. CD-ROM.
     Ref.PR1868.P8S65

Chaucer: Life and Times. Reading: Primary Source Media Limited, 1995. CD-ROM.
     Ref.PR1850

CHAUCER WEB SITES

Chaucer MetaPage
Navigation aids for Chaucer research on the Web.

New Chaucer Society
Biographical and contextual information on Chaucer.

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LANGLAND RESOURCES


An Annotated Critical Bibliography of Langland. Derek Pearsall. Ann Arbor, MI: U of Michigan P, 1990.
     PR2015.P4
An indexed, annotated bibliography covering works of criticism from 1900-88. Divided by subject: editions, extracts, translations, authorship, dialect, dates, metre, sources, literary relationships, social and historical contexts, allegory, dream vision, language, style, metaphor, imagery, wordplay, and themes.

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ARTHURIAN LITERATURE


ARTHURIAN ENCYCLOPEDIAS

The New Arthurian Encyclopedia. Ed. Norris J. Lacy. New York: Garland, 1996.
     Ref.DA152.5.A7 N48
The most up-to-date and comprehensive scholarly encyclopedia on Arthuriana from the middle ages through the late twentieth-century. There are extensive bibliographies after each entry.

ARTHURIAN BIBLIOGRAPHIES

Bulletin Bibliographique de la Societe Internationale Arthurienne. Bibliographical Bulletin of the International Arthurian Society. Paris, 1958-.
     Z8045.I5.
Pius XII Library has volume 10 (1958) through volume 52 (2000) of this exhaustive bibliography which is published annually.

Medieval Arthurian Literature: A Guide to Recent Research. Ed. Norris Lacy. New York: Garland, 1996.
     PN685.M43
Each section begins with an introductory essay which surveys the recent scholarship followed by a lengthy bibliography. Sections include Arthurian literature of England, Scandinavia, France, the Low Countries, Celtic lands, Italy, Germany, Spain and Portugal. The final section discusses translations.

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight: An Annotated Bibliography, 1978-1989. Meg Stainsby. New York: Garland, 1992.
     Ref.PR2065.G31S73
An indexed bibliography with short annotations for each entry.

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MEDIEVAL SCOTS LITERATURE


MEDIEVAL SCOTS LANGUAGE DICTIONARIES

A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue from the Twelfth Century to the End of the Seventeenth. William A. Craigie. Chicago: U of Chicago P, 1962-.
     Ref.PE2116.C7

MEDIEVAL SCOTS BIBLIOGRAPHIES

Middle Scots Poets: A Reference Guide to James I of Scotland, Robert Henryson, William Dunbar, and Gavin Douglas. Walter Scheps and J. Anna Looney. Boston, MA: G. K. Hall, 1986.
     PR8538.S33
Impressive for its scope, this volume provides useful annotated bibliographies of criticism up to about 1985 for these four important medieval Scots poets.

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MEDIEVAL IRISH LITERATURE


An Irish-English Dictionary. Rev. Patrick S. Dinneen. Dublin: Educational Company of Ireland, 1934.
     Ref.PB1291.D5

The Concise Oxford Companion to Irish Literature. Abridged and updated edition. Ed. Robert Welch. Oxford: Clarendon, 2000.
     PR8706.C66 (Available in print and e-book format.)

Early Irish Literature. Eleanor Knott and Gerard Murphy. New York: Barnes and Noble, 1966.
     PB1322.K6
Coverage includes bardic, Ossianic, and court poetry as well as ballads and medieval Irish sagas.

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MEDIEVAL WELSH LITERATURE


The Oxford Companion to the Literature of Wales. Ed. Meic Stephens. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1986.
     Ref.PB2202.O94
Though this volume covers the totality of Welsh literature, it has some useful information on the medieval period.

Medieval Welsh Literature. Andrew Breeze. Dublin: Four Courts P, 1997.
     PB2221.B74
A good overview of Welsh literature up to 1550. Especially good on the Mabinogion.

A History of Welsh Literature. Thomas Parry. Trans. H. Idris Bell. Oxford: Clarendon, 1955.
     PB2206.P33
The first five chapters deal with early Welsh literature including the Mabinogion.

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ANGLO-NORMAN LITERATURE


ANGLO-NORMAN LANGUAGE DICTIONARIES

Anglo-Norman Dictionary. 7 vols. Eds. Louise W. Stone and William Rothwell. London: The Modern Humanities Research Association, 1977.
     Ref. PC2946.M6

ANGLO-NORMAN LITERARY GUIDES

The French Tradition and the Literature of Medieval England. William Calin. Toronto: U of Toronto P, 1994.
     PR128.C35
A brilliant survey of Anglo-Norman literature and the French influence on English literature in the middle ages. Some of the high points are his discussions of selected Lais of Marie de France, saint's lives, the Roman de la Rose tradition, Machaut, Froissart, Chaucer, Gower, and Hoccleve, Middle English verse romances, and Malory. Includes a forty-two-page bibliography.

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MEDIEVAL FRENCH LITERATURE


MEDIEVAL FRENCH LITERATURE GUIDES & ENCYCLOPEDIAS

Guide to French Literature: Beginnings to 1789. vol 1. Anthony Levi. Detroit: St James Press, 1992.
     Ref.PQ226.L48
Entries are alphabetically-organized, covering authors, literary institutions, reviews, and movements. The index connects authors with related entries. The volume includes a list of entries, a chronology, a glossary, and title and general indices.

The New Oxford Companion to Literature in French. Ed. Peter France. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1995.
     Ref.PQ41.N49 1995
Includes maps, a chronology, and encyclopedic entries on writers, works, social and political history, intellectual and cultural movements, religious history, institutions, etc. Lengthy articles on general topics are included, and many make suggestions for further reading.

Medieval French Literature: An Introduction. Michel Zink. Trans. Jeff Rider. Binghamton, NY: Medieval & Renaissance Texts & Studies, 1995.
     PQ151.Z5313 1995
Translation of Litterature Française. Includes bibliographical references and index.

Le Moyan Age. Robert Bossuat, Louis Pichard et Guy Raynaud de Lage. Fayard: 1994.
     Ref. PQ41.D53 1994 v. 1
First volume of the Dictionnaire des lettres Francaises. Encyclopedic entries on literary forms, ideas, and periods. Entries include bibliographical information.

Repertoire des noms propres de personnes et de lieux cites dans les chansons de geste francaises et les oeuvres etrangeres derivees. 2 vols. Andre Moisan. Geneve: Droz, 1986.
     Vat.Ref.PN689.M65 1986

MEDIEVAL FRENCH LITERATURE BIBLIOGRAPHIES

Bibliographie des Chansons de Geste. Léon Gautier. Paris: H. Welter, 1897.
     Ref.Z2172.G27
I-Bibliographie générale
II-Bibliographie spéciale, by subject, with a subject index at the back

A Critical Bibliography of French Literature: vol. 1 The Mediaeval Period. Urban T. Holmes, Jr. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 1947.
     Ref.Z2171.C3
Covers French literary criticism through the beginning of World War II, with some later additions when possible. Divisions include General Studies; Biblical, Liturgical, and Moral Material; Scientific Works; the Epic; Romances; Medieval Drama; Provençal Literature; etc. Contains short annotations and lists of reviews.

The Medieval Charlemagne Legend: An Annotated Bibliography. Susan E. Farrier. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc., 1993.
     Ref. PQ203.5C45 F371993
Comprehensive and detailed bibliography with brief annotations. Subdivided into three main categories of materials: "The Historical Charlemagne," "Between History and Legend (Medieval Biography and Chronicle)," and "Charlemagne Literature." Appendices list Charlemagne's obscure relatives and Charlemagne texts by language. Indexed by authors/editors/translators, subjects and works, modern translations, and festschrift honorees.

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MEDIEVAL ITALIAN LITERATURE


Storia della Letteratura Italiana. Eds. Emilio Cecchi and Natalino Sapegno. Garanti, 1965.
     Ref.PQ4037.C4
Volumes are organized by century, with essays on various people and aspects of society. Each volume includes a bibliography and a name index.

Dictionary of Italian Literature. Eds. Peter Bondanella and Julia Conway Bondanella. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1979.
     Ref.PQ4006.D45
Contains short entries on authors, genres/poetic forms, and literary schools and movements. Arranged alphabetically. Covers the twelfth century to the present. Appendices present a timeline and subject list. Also includes a list of reference aids and an index by name/pseudonym.

The Cambridge History of Italian Literature. Eds. Peter Brand and Lino Pertile. Rev. Ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999.
     PQ4038.C35 1999

Dizionario Enciclopedico della Letteratura Italiana. 6 vols. Ed. Giuseppe Petronio. Bari: Laterza, Roma: Unedi, 1966.
     Ref.PQ4006.D5
Includes general information from the origins of literature to the present day. Entries include major and minor Italian author, foreign and classical authors who influenced Italian writers, anonymous work, literary movements, cultural institutions, schools, libraries, literary journals, etc. Most entries have bibliographies.

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DANTE RESOURCES


DANTE CONCORDANCES

Dantis Alagherii Operum Latinorum Concordantiae. Ed. Edward Kennard Rand. New York: Russell & Russell, 1970.
     Ref.PQ4311.A5R3

Concordanza delle Opere Italiane in Prosa e del Canzoniere di Dante Alighieri. Edward Stevens Sheldon. New York: Russell & Russell, 1969.
     Ref.PQ4308.Z5S5 1969

DANTE ENCYCLOPEDIA

The Dante Encyclopedia. Ed. Richard Lansing. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc., 2000.
     Ref.PQ4333.D36
The preface states that the goal of this work is to provide readers with knowledge about the works themselves and of their settings. Entries are arranged alphabetically in English, including every named character in Dante's otherworld (plus most refered to indirectly), geographical locations, topological features, and other works refered to in Dante's works. Other topics included are to provide an understanding of the intellectual and cultural situation, and of his reception after death. At the end of the volume is a chronology of Dante's life, a list of popes before and during his lifetime, a list of Roman and Holy Roman Emperors before and during his lifetime, a list of musical settings of the Commedia, and a bibliography of reference works. Indexed by proper names in Dante's works; also includes a general index.

DANTE MANUSCRIPT CATALOGUE

Illuminated Manuscripts of the Divine Comedy. 2 vols. Peter H. Brieger, Millard Meiss, Charles S. Singleton. Princeton University Press, 1969.
     Oversize Ref.PQ4366.B7
Volume 1 contains three essays on textual concerns, general medieval illustrations, and particular Commedia illustrations. These are followed by an analysis of the illustrations and a catalogue of illustrated codices of the Commedia. Also includes a section of comparative illustrations from other works, a general bibliography, an iconographic index, and a general index. The second volume contains facsimiles of 1100 miniatures, including 16 pages of color facsimiles.

DANTE INTERNET RESOURCES

Dante Society of America
Provides online resources for Dante scholars including bibliographies, electronic texts, etc.

Digital Dante
Bibliographies, maps, classroom resources, discussion groups

Princeton Dante Project
Annotated electronic text of Dante's Comedy.

Renaissance Dante in Print
An online exhibition of illuminated Renaissance editions of Dante's Divine Comedy

The American Dante Bibliography
A searchable format of annotated bibliographies published annually in Dante Studies since 1953.

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MEDIEVAL SPANISH LITERATURE


Dictionary of Spanish Literature. Maxim Newmark. New York: Philosophical Library, 1956.
     Ref.PQ6006.N4
"Concise, factual, and objective" treatment of names and topics of Spanish literature, aimed at the American student. Includes anonymous works, major and minor writers and literary critics, all with biographies, critical evaluations, main works, and critical references. Also includes articles on significant movements, schools, literary genres, etc.

Bibliografia de la Literatura Hispanica. 12 vols. Jose Simon Diaz. Madrid: Instituto "Miguel de Cervantes" de Filologia Hispanica, 1960-1984.
     Ref.Z2691.S5
Of particular interest are volume III: "Literatura Castellana: Edad Media," and volumes IV and following: "Literatura Castellana: Siglos de Oro." Contains extensive bibliographies organized by century and genre.

A New History of Spanish Literature. Richard E. Chandler and Kessel Schwartz. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1991.
     Ref.PQ6033.C45 1991
A narrative description of Spanish literature by literary genre, including sections on "Epic and Narrative Poetry," "The Drama," "Prose Fiction," and "Nonfiction Prose." Each section is further divided into time periods and/or pertinent issues of the topic.

The Oxford Companion to Spanish Literature. Ed. Philip Ward. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1978.
     Ref.PQ6006.O95
Alphabetically organized list of entries, most on authors and works. Covers Roman Spain to 1977. Most entries include references for further reading.

Diccionario Bibliographico Portuguez. Innocencio Francisco Da Silva. Lisboa: Imprensa Nacional, 1859.
     Ref.Z2720.S58

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MEDIEVAL LATIN & GREEK LITERATURE


MEDIEVAL GREEK DICTIONARIES

Glossarium ad Scriptores Mediae et Infimae Gracitatis. Charles du Fresne du Cange. Graz: Akademische Druk - U. Verlagsanstalt, 1958.
     Ref.O'size PA1125.D8

Glossary of Later and Byzantine Greek. E.A. Sophocles. Boston: Welch, Bigelow, and Company, 1860.
     Ref.O'size PA1125.S69

MEDIEVAL LATIN DICTIONARIES

Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin. Leo F. Stelten. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1995.
     Ref.PA2891.D53

Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources. 5 vols. R.E. Latham, M.A. London: Oxford University Press, 1975.
     Ref.O'size PA2891.L28

Lexicon Graeco-latinum. Joannis Scapulae. Oxonii: Typographeo Clarendoniano, 1820.
     Ref.O'size PA442.S25

Lexicon Latinitatis nederlandicae Medii Aevi: Woordenboek van het Middeleeuws Latinj van de Noordelijke Nederlanden. 6 vols. Johan Wilhelmus Fuchs et Olga Weijers. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1977.
     Ref.O'size PA2893.D99

Lexicon Totius Latinitatis. 6 vols. Aegidio Forcellini, Iosepho Fulanetto, Francisco Corradini, Iosepho Perin. Patavii: Typis Seminarii, 1940.
     Ref.O'size PA2361.F7

Medieval Latin Word-List from British and Irish Sources. J. H. Baxter and Charles Johnson. London: Oxford University Press, 1934.
     PA 2891.B3

Thesaurus Linguae Latinae. 10 vols. Lipsiae: B.G. Teubneri, 1900.
     Ref.O'size PA2361.T45

MEDIEVAL LATIN & GREEK ENCYCLOPEDIAS & BIBLIOGRAPHIES

Medieval Latin: An Introduction and Bibliographical Guide. Eds. F. A. C. Mantello and A. G. Rigg. Washington: The Catholic University of America Press, 1996.
     Ref.PA2802.M43
A standard guide to the Latin language and literature from c200 to 1500 CE. Divided into three parts: General Reference and Research Tools, Philology and Varieties of Medieval Latinity, and Varieties of Medieval Latin Literature. Contains short descriptions of the topics followed by bibliographies.

The Greek and Latin Literatures. Eds. George B. Parks and Ruth Z. Temple. New York: Frederick Ungar Publishing Co., 1968.
     Ref.Z6514.T7E85

Clavis des Auteurs Latins Du Moyen Age: Territoire Français 735-987. 2 vols. Ed. Marie-Hélène Jullien et Françoise Perelman. Turnholti: Typographi Brepols Editores Pontifici, 1994.
     Ref.PA8045.F7C52
Two volumes, with separate indices. Volume 2 is devoted to Alcuin.

Greek and Latin Authors 800 BC - AD 1000. Michael Grant. New York: H. W. Wilson Company, 1980.
     Ref. PA 31. G7
Each entry includes a brief life sketch, a description of title and contents of works, and commentary on nature and quality of works, followed by a bibliography of the most useful editions, translations, and books on the author.

Dictionnaire des Auteurs Grecs et Latins de L'Antiquite et du Moyen Age. Wolfgang Buchwald, Armin Hohlweg, and Otto Prinz. Trans. Jean denis Berger and Jacques Billen. Turnholt: Brepols, 1991.
     Ref.PA31.T814 1991
French translation of Tusculum-Lexikon griechischer und lateinischer Autoren des Altertums und des Mittelalters (1982).

Catalogus translationum et commentariorum: Mediaeval and Renaissance Latin Translations and Commentaries. 7 vols. Ed. Paul Oskar Kristeller. Washington, DC: Catholic University of America, 1960.
     Ref.PA3001.K9 1960
Volume 1 contains lists of Greek and Latin works and authors, bibliography of reference literature, etc. Each volume has lengthy articles on particular authors and later responses to their writings.

Bibliographie Annuelle du Moyen Age Tardif: Auteurs et Textes Latins, vers 1250-1500. 10 vols. Jean-Pierre Rothschild. Turnhout: Brepols, 1991-.
     Ref.D113.B53
Covers Latin authors and texts from 1250 to 1500.

Index Scriptorum Mediae Latinitatis ab anno DCCC usque ad annum MCC. Hafniae: Ejnar Muksgaard, 1957.
     Ref.O'size PA 2893.F7 N6

Medioevo Latino: Bollettino bibliografico della cultura europea dal secolo VI al XIII. Vols. 1-20. Ed. Claudio Leonardi. Spoleto: Centro Italiano Di Studi Sull'Alto Medioevo, 1980.
     Ref.O'size PN661.M4
An extensive annual bibliography of primary and secondary sources, often annotated. Classified arrangement with indices of authors and manuscripts. Includes citations to critical reviews. Considered one of the standard bibliographies for the period.

LATIN & GREEK MEDIEVAL LITERATURE ELECTRONIC FULL-TEXT COLLECTIONS

Patrologia Latina Database - 1993-1995
A vast compilation of patristic and medieval Latin literature.

Thesaurus Linguae Graecae (TLG). In-library access on Reference computer.
     Ref. PA3405 .T494 CD-ROM
Full-text database of classical, patristic, and medieval Greek literature. For more information on the TLG project visit the Thesaurus Linguae Graecae home page

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MEDIEVAL SCANDINAVIEN LITERATURE


MEDIEVAL SCANDINAVIAN BIBLIOGRAPHIES

Old Norse-Icelandic Literature: A Critical Guide. Eds. Carol J. Clover and John Lindow. Islandica 45. Ithaca: Cornell UP, 1985.
     Ref.PT7161.O4
A collection of essays-come-annotated bibliographies surveying the major scholarship on several genres of Old Norse literature, including mythological works, Eddic poetry, skaldic poetry, Íslendinga sögur (the Icelandic family sagas), Konungas`gur (Kings' sagas) and Riddaras`gur (the late-medieval Icelandic romances). Indispensable as a bibliographic source.

MEDIEVAL SCANDINAVIAN ENCYCLOPEDIAS

Medieval Scandinavia: An Encyclopedia. Eds. Philip Pulsiano and Kirsten Wolf. New York: Garland, 1993.
     Ref.DL30.M43 1993
Includes material on all of Scandinavia (as well as Finland), covering mythology, religion, art, archaeology, history, and literature. It is especially useful for students of Old Norse literature, with entries on major literary genres, individual sagas and poems, and extensive bibliographies following each entry.

A Catalogue of Persons Named in Germanic Heroic Literature (700-1600). George T. Gillespie. Oxford: Clarendon, 1973.
     Ref.PT204.G5
Covers Germanic, Scandinavian, and Anglo-Saxon literature of the middle ages, with short entries for the names that list all works in which the names appear as well as variant spellings of the names. Great bibliography. Indexed.

MEDIEVAL SCANDINAVIAN LANGUAGE DICTIONARIES & CONCORDANCES

An Icelandic-English Dictionary. Richard Cleasby and Guðbrandur Vigfússon. 2nd ed. revised and expanded by Sir William A. Craigie. Oxford: Clarendon, 1957.
     Ref.PD2379.C5

Glossary to the Poetic Edda. Beatrice La Farge and John Tucker. Heidelberg: Carl Winter, 1992.
     PT7235.L23 1992
Based on Edda : Die Lieder des Codex Regius edited by Gustav Neckel and Hanz Kuhn (Heidelberg: Carl Winter, 1983.)

Concordance to Eddic Poetry. Robert Kellogg. East Lansing: Colleagues P, 1988.
     Ref.PT7235.K45 1988

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MEDIEVAL GERMAN LITERATURE


Medieval Germany: An Encyclopedia. Ed. John H. Jeep. New York: Garland, 2001.
     Ref.DD126.M43
Entries cover the years 500-1500, focusing on important people, places, literature, and history. The geographical coverage of the encyclopedia includes the Netherlands and the Holy Roman Empire. Each entry is followed by a helpful bibliography.

A Catalogue of Persons Named in Germanic Heroic Literature (700-1600). George T. Gillespie. Oxford: Clarendon, 1973.
     Ref.PT204.G5
Covers Germanic, Scandinavian, and Anglo-Saxon literature of the middle ages, with short entries for each name (including ethnic names) that list all works in which the names appear as well as variant spellings of the names. Great bibliography. Indexed.

Die Deutsche Literatur Des Mittelalters: Verfasserlexikon. 10 vols. Wolfgang Stammler. Berlin: Walter De Gruyter, 1933.
     Vat.Ref.Z2230.S78
German language encyclopedia with entries on authors and works of the middle ages and short bibliographies for each.

German Writers and Works of the Early Middle Ages: 800-1170. Ed. Will Hasty and James Hardin. New York: Gale Research, 1995.
     Ref.PT183.G47
Short articles on 26 named authors, 25 anonymous works of literature, with biographies, lists of major writings, and bibliographies for each entry. Includes two informative appendices, one on Old German hagiographical works from 850-1190, and the other on illuminated German manuscripts from 1150-1300.

German Writers and Works of the Renaissance and Reformation, 1280-1580. Eds. James Hardin and Max Reinhart. Detroit: Gale Research, 1997.
     Ref.PT241.G47
Short articles for 40 German writers of the late medieval period, Renaissance and Reformation in Germany, with biographies, lists of major writings, and bibliographies for each entry.

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MEDIEVAL EASTERN EUROPEAN LITERATURE


SLAVIC LITERATURE

Slavic Studies: A Guide to Bibliographies, Encyclopedias, and Handbooks. Ed. Murlin Croucher. 2 vols. Wilmington, DE: Scholarly Resources, 1993.
     Ref.DJK27.S554
This indexed bibliography lists all known bibliographies,encyclopedias, et al on Slavic literature. Arranged by Library of Congress subject headings within the geographical regions Eastern Europe and the Balkans, Bulgaria, Republic of Czechs and Slavs, Poland, the Soviet Union, the former Yugoslavia.

Slavic Europe: A Selected Bibliography in the Western European Languages, Comprising History, Languages, and Literatures. Robert Joseph Kerner. New York: Russell & Russell, 1969.
     Ref.Z7041.K37
This indexed bibliography covers the history, languages, and literatures of the Slavic peoples divided by geographical area: Slavic Europe in general, Russia, Poland, Bohemia, and the southern Slavic countries.

Reference Guide to Russian Literature. Ed. Neil Cornwell. London: Fitzroy Dearborn, 1998.
     Ref.PG2940.R43
This tome covers the totality of Russian literature but has a nice introductory essay on Old Russian literature. Entries are indexed and arranged by author and anonymous works, each with extensive biographical and bibliographical information.

MIDDLE EASTERN LITERATURE

Encyclopedia of Arabic Literature. 2 vols. Eds. Julie Scott Meisami and Paul Starkey. New York: Routledge, 1998.
     Ref.PJ7510.E53
A comprehensive encyclopedia of people, places, works of literature, history, et al. Each entry is followed by a handy bibliography.

A Literary History of Persia. 4 vols. Edward G. Browne. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1964.
     Ref.PK6097.B7
Volume one covers literature up to 1000 AD, volume two covers 1000-1290 AD, and volume three covers 1265-1502 AD. Has a useful section on the origins of the Persian language and people.

Jewish Literature from the Eighth to the Eighteenth Century. Moritz Steinschneider. New York: Hermon, 1970.
     Ref.PJ5016.S823
The second section of this work which covers works from the 8th to 15th century will be useful to students of medieval literature. It begins with a short historical overview and then is divided as follows: chronicle writing, theology and philosophy, mysteries and the Kabbala, Karaitic literature, polemics, Hebrew philology, exegesis, poetry, rhetoric, stylistics, liturgical (Pijjutim) and non-liturgical poetry. All citations are indexed.

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Updated November 13, 2007 by Jamie Schmid, M.S.L.I.S., Reference Librarian and English Liaison Librarian


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