bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
C
roxton

P
lay of the
S
acrament
Authors: Hill‐Vásquez Heather
Published: June 2017

The Croxton
Play of the Sacrament
is a late‐fifteenth century dramatization of a Host desecration perpetrated by a group of Jews. The Jews' abuse of the Host results in a series of miracles – including a reenactment of Christ's Passion – and, in response, the abusers' conversion to Christianity. Scholarly approaches to the
Play of the Sacrament
tend to focus on the Jewish characters as representatives of heretical beliefs which challenged fundamental tenets of the Catholic Church (including the transubstantiation and priestly efficacy) – beliefs which are confuted by the conversion of the Jews and the accompanying reassertion of clerical authority with which the play ends.
Fair Unknown, The
Authors: Weldon James
Published: June 2017

The phrase “Fair Unknown” derives from the eponymous heroes of two medieval romances, Renaut de Bâgé's late twelfth‐centuryLi Biaus Descouneüsand the related anonymous fourteenth‐century Middle EnglishLybeaus Desconus(the French and Middle English names mean “the fair unknown”). Both stories reflect the common folklore motif where an unnamed and undervalued hero or heroine achieves great deeds. It also refers to a well‐known group of medieval romances known as the “Fair Unknown” romances, which are themselves often linked to the French and English Gawain romances and to the English Loathly Lady romances. All share common characteristics and overlapping episodes, but they also differ widely because of significant rewriting, intersection with the conventions and episodes from other romances, and different characters and settings.
B
ale,
J
ohn
Authors: Minton Gretchen E.
Published: June 2017

The wide‐ranging oeuvre of John Bale (1495–1563) includes polemics, drama, bibliography, martyrology, and exegesis. His life overlapped with the reigns of all five Tudor monarchs, and his biography mirrors the religious upheavals of sixteenth‐century England. Bale's perspective was always historical, and his works illustrate both the distinctive features of the mid‐Tudor era and the continuities between the late medieval and early modern periods.
Pilgrimage
Authors: Malo Robyn
Published: June 2017

In the British Middle Ages, pilgrimage consisted of a journey to a holy place. The most popular European pilgrimage sites, which pilgrims from Britain visited, included Canterbury, Rome, Jerusalem, and Compostela in Spain. The idea that God's miraculous grace infused the material world, and that some places were holier than others, contributed to the desire to visit sites in Jerusalem, for example, where Jesus had been; or, in other instances, to visit the place where a saint was enshrined, so as to be in close proximity to the material remains of a person thought to be in heaven.
Hagiography
Authors: Winstead Karen A.
Published: June 2017

Hagiography, or writings about saints, flourished in the British Isles throughout the Middle Ages and beyond. These writings took various forms, from fast‐paced adventure stories, to rhetorically embellished meditations, to epics replete with historical detail. Saints might be historical or fictional; as a rule, hagiographers were less concerned with historical fact than with spiritual and moral truth. However, the truths and morals they sought to convey varied as widely as the form and style of their narratives. Hagiography is thus a window into the values and beliefs of its producers and consumers.
S
imon
de F
resne
Authors: Russell Delbert
Published: June 2017

Simon de Fresne, or de Freine, wrote two poems in Anglo‐Norman French for lay audiences at the end of the twelfth century in Hereford. Simon, and his well‐known friend Gerald of Wales, with whom he exchanged letters in Latin verse, both praised Hereford as a center of learning in the twelfth century. Simon's
Roman de philosophie
(Romance of philosophy) is an adaptation of Boethius's
Consolation of Philosophy
, in which Philosophy and a clerk debate the vanity of the pursuit of earthly goals, and the fickle nature of Fortune. Simon de Fresne's
Vie de saint Georges
(Life of St. George) recounts the legendary martyrdom of the Christian soldier, and was probably written in support of the Third Crusade (1189–92); St. George offers lay audiences a model of martyrdom for potential crusaders, who risk violent death defending their faith.
A
lexander of
A
shby
Authors: Dinkova‐Bruun Greti
Published: June 2017

Alexander of Ashby was an Augustinian canon, poet, and sermon writer who died in 1208 or 1214. In addition to his active engagement in the ecclesiastical courts of his time, Alexander was also an accomplished literary figure. His production comprises meditations, sermons, and preaching aids, as well as poetry. Many of his works are clearly written with didactic and mnemonic purposes in mind and are addressed to a younger scholarly audience.
AlliterativeMorteArthure
Authors: Whetter K.S. , Crofts Thomas H.
Published: June 2017

The alliterativeMorte Arthureis justly famous for two reasons. One is the quality of its narrative. The second is the importance of the unique manuscript in which it survives, Lincoln Cathedral, MS 91, copied by Robert Thornton and generally called the Lincoln Thornton manuscript to differentiate it from its counterpart, the London Thornton manuscript. In addition to its own considerable merits the alliterativeMortefollows the Galfridian Brut tradition, is a major source for Thomas Malory, and arguably offers an heroic account of Gawayne, Arthur, and the downfall of Arthurian England.
Encomium Emmae Reginae
Authors: Parker Eleanor
Published: June 2017

TheEncomium Emmae Reginaeis a Latin text commissioned by Emma of Normandy and written during the reign of her son Harthacnut, king of England and Denmark, in 1041 or 1042. It deals with the Danish conquest of England by Svein Forkbeard and his son Cnut, Emma's second husband, and with the political turmoil which followed Cnut's death in 1035. In its selective narrative of these events theEncomiumreflects the unique perspective of its female patron, a powerful influence at Harthacnut's court, and presents her as a pivotal figure in the establishment of the Anglo‐Danish regime.
Ymddiddan Arthur a'r Eryr
Authors: Williams Mark
Published: June 2017

A description of the Welsh poem “The Dialogue of Arthur and the Eagle” setting out its attestations and major themes.
Crusades in Literature
Authors: Norako Leila K.
Published: June 2017

The crusades – specifically those focused on the recovery of Jerusalem – had a sustained impact on the literary culture of medieval England. While medieval France, Italy, and Germany produced far greater numbers of crusaders, a significant number of Englishmen participated in a variety of crusading campaigns as well, and the idea of crusading remained deeply important to the culture of medieval England for centuries after the collapse of the Latin Kingdom in the late thirteenth century. The popularity of the subject matter pervaded a wide variety of cultural registers, and, perhaps surprisingly, seems to have gained literary traction as the frequency of crusades to Jerusalem waned in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.
Peterborough Abbey
Authors: Home Malasree
Published: June 2017

Peterborough Abbey in the twelfth century had an active scriptorium which produced a range of texts in both Latin and the vernacular. Of these, one was a modification of the vernacularAnglo‐Saxon Chronicleand the other a Latin house‐history written by Hugh Candidus. Both texts are significant as they demonstrate how historiography at the center is given a geographical identity, and the role of local ideologies in the interplay of form and function. Their overlap with other generic types points to a flexible and dynamic textual culture, and their content provides valuable insights into the reception of these texts amongst both lay and monastic audiences.
S
even
S
ages of
R
ome, The
Authors: Clifton Nicole
Published: June 2017

The Seven Sages of Rome
is a didactic frame‐story that overlaps both romance and folklore, pitting the wisdom of the sages and their princely pupil against the cunning of a wicked stepmother. Versions of it were known throughout medieval Europe and the Middle East. Often antifeminist, its tales draw a vivid picture of medieval society, and nine manuscripts and a sixteenth‐century print attest to its popularity.
L
indisfarne
Authors: Garcia Marcos
Published: June 2017

For more than two centuries, the tidal Island of Lindisfarne housed one of Anglo‐Saxon England's most influential communities. Extant artistic and literary products associated with this community, especially with the cult of St. Cuthbert, demonstrate its continued influence and importance, even after the community was forced to leave the island due to Viking attacks.
Syllogae
Authors: Garcia Marcos
Published: June 2017

Syllogaeare manuscript collections of epigraphic poems (tituli) transcribed by pilgrims to important Christian sites, particularly in Rome. Anglo‐Saxons participated in compiling and transmittingsyllogaefrom the seventh century on. They imitated and innovated the genres they found insyllogaeto authorize their own practices and identities. From early on, the inscriptional verse of thesyllogaewas supplemented by other kinds of epigram.
Civic Pageantry Including Royal Entries
Authors: Lancashire Anne
Published: June 2017

Civic pageantry involves ceremonial activities of public display which are sponsored or performed by the governing authorities of a city or town. Civic pageantry is social and political: confirming governing authority and fostering a public civic identity and harmonious civic relationships. (Religious pageantry with the primary purpose of religious worship/celebration, even when involving the civic government, is excluded from this description.) Civic pageantry consists, in medieval and early Tudor England, largely of formal street processions, which may or may not include pageants: displays involving costumed performers and/or constructed exhibits, either carried through the streets or located on stages positioned along the processional route. The three major forms of social/political civic pageantry, to 1541, were the royal entry, the marching Midsummer Watch, and the mayoral inauguration procession. Other forms also existed. Royal entries were especially prevalent in wealthy London, because of its geographical proximity to the court at Westminster, and London's Midsummer Watch and mayoral inauguration were also especially elaborate.
Seasons for Fasting
Authors: Richards Mary P.
Published: June 2017

Seasons for Fasting, a late Old English poem probably composed in the early eleventh century, focuses on proper fasting observances in England. The poem, composed in eight‐line stanzas, survives only in a sixteenth‐century transcript made by the antiquary Laurence Nowell. With its topics, vocabulary, sources, and style derived from those of contemporary ecclesiastical prose, it belongs to a school of late Old English poetry that only now is coming to be recognized and defined.
G
wynedd
Authors: Stephenson David
Published: June 2017

Gwynedd was a kingdom/principality covering north Wales, east and west of the Conwy. Its origin‐legend derives the First Dynasty (Maelgyning) from Cunedda, an arrival from north Britain in the fifth century. Gwynedd was consistently the most aggressive and expansionist of Welsh kingdoms: the Maelgyning Cadwallon ap Cadfan was notable for successes against the Anglo‐Saxons; under the Second Dynasty (Merfynion), founded c. 825, Gwynedd resumed its expansionist drive; expansion was continued under intrusive rulers in the mid‐eleventh century. But with the triumph of Gruffudd ap Cynan (d. 1137) the Merfynion provided a string of great princes of Gwynedd, who extended significant control over Wales. Gwynedd's expansion ended only with the Edwardian conquest of 1277–83. The ministerial aristocracy that developed under the thirteenth‐century princes continued to be influential, though the princes themselves were not forgotten.
Heraldic Literature
Authors: Moll Richard J.
Published: June 2017

The large corpus of heraldic writing falls into two general categories: treatises on the origins and duties of heralds and the symbolism of heraldic design; and narrative accounts of both war‐ and peace‐time events witnessed by heralds themselves. Heraldic treatises, written in French, Latin, and English, first appear in the fourteenth century, but flourished in the fifteenth century. There are several English authors (most notably Johannes de Bado Aureo and Nicholas Upton), but most heraldic treatises are anonymous translations and adaptations of French models. Heraldic narrative is similarly multilingual. Describing battles, diplomatic maneuvers, tournaments, marriages, coronations, and pageants, heraldic narratives were intended to spread detailed accounts of great events and to act as source material for civic and national chroniclers.
W
yclif,
J
ohn
Authors: van Dussen Michael
Published: June 2017

John Wyclif (c. 1328/31–84) was a philosopher, theologian, and preacher, based primarily at the University of Oxford. His early writing was shaped by the customary modes of medieval academic disputation, but his challenging positions on politics, sacraments, and the ecclesiastical hierarchy made clear that his teachings had controversial extramural applications. Wyclif has come to be associated with the so‐called Wycliffite Bible, the first complete translation of scripture into English, though his explicit involvement with the project has not been demonstrated. He is also known for his influence on the Wycliffite movement in late medieval England, and for inspiring Bohemian reformists in Prague.
Prophecy
Authors: Helbert Daniel G.
Published: June 2017

This entry traces the development of prophecy as a literary and political genre in Britain and Europe throughout the Middle Ages, from its origins in the writings of the Church Fathers and pagan shamanistic oral poetry of the early British Isles through the scholastic Latin tradition of prophecy made popular in the twelfth century by Geoffrey of Monmouth to the widespread vernacular prophetic writings of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. It argues that prophecy is a genre with applications to both religious and political circles and the study of prophecy continued as a serious scholarly pursuit well past the Middle Ages. This entry describes the general trends of the prophetic genre and notes exceptions to these trends with evidence from specific examples. It concludes by describing both the practical utilization of prophecy in the Middle Ages and the practical uses of the genre for medievalists today.
Anglo‐SaxonChronicle
Authors: Jorgensen Alice
Published: June 2017

The Anglo‐Saxon Chronicle is a set of closely related annalistic texts in five main manuscripts, conventionally labelled A–E. These preserve textual blocks compiled at different times, the earliest, or Common Stock, dates from the late ninth century, the latest is the Peterborough Continuations of the twelfth century. The record is heavily selective, and early sections in particular give a view of events centered on the West Saxon kings. The Chronicle is read as an important document for emerging Anglo‐Saxon identity. From 937 it intermittently incorporates poetry.
Pseudo‐Turpin ChronicleTradition
Authors: Ailes Marianne
Published: June 2017

ThePseudo‐Turpin Chroniclewas one of the most widespread medieval narrative texts. In Britain it circulated in all the main languages: Latin, Continental French, Anglo‐Norman, Middle English, Welsh, and Irish. It claims to be the eyewitness account of Charlemagne's wars in Spain written by Turpin, archbishop of Rheims. Much of its narrative material is shared with thechanson de gestetradition, but it contradicts that tradition: in theChanson de RolandTurpin is killed during the battle of Roncevaux. A prologue informs the reader that Charlemagne's wars in Spain were undertaken at the request of St. James. The chronicle was composed c. 1145, probably in France. It was used to promote the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela, as evidenced by its links to theLiber Sancti Jacobiin many manuscripts, including the most venerable, the Codex Calixtinus. It also supports a call to arms for the Reconquista of Spain.
C
anu
L
lywarch
H
en
Authors: Jacobs Nicolas
Published: June 2017

The relationship of the originally historical figure of Llywarch Hen to the series of stanzaic poems associated with his name (and of which he was long mistakenly supposed to be the author) is briefly sketched. An account is then given of modern theories of the nature and origin of these and the related series concerning Urien Rheged and Heledd. The sequences of stanzas relating to Llywarch are then summarized, and the commonly accepted view of the narrative progression of the saga in alternating prose and verse which is thought to lie behind the existing stanzas is outlined.
S
cottish
G
aelic
Authors: McLeod Wilson
Published: June 2017

The surviving Gaelic literature of medieval Scotland is much less plentiful than that of Ireland, but the connection to Ireland is fundamental to understanding its development. The Gaelic language appears to have been brought from Ireland early in the common era and its literary expression was then reinforced through political, ecclesiastical, and cultural connections over the subsequent centuries. The changing social and geographical position of the Gaelic language in Scotland has significant implications for the size and nature of the surviving corpus.
Beast Fables
Authors: Steel Karl
Published: June 2017

Medieval beast fables developed from late classical collections and, by the high Middle Ages, were part of the standard curriculum for training in literacy and interpretation. British adaptations of the tradition from Marie de France and Berechiah ha‐Nakdan in the twelfth century to William Caxton and Robert Henryson in the fifteenth used their animal characters to impart moral lessons, to condemn tyranny, to teach contentment with the so‐called natural order, and to pay varying amounts of attention to the actual bodies of animals.
Ælfric ofEynsham
Authors: Swain Larry J.
Published: June 2017

Ælfric is the most prolific writer of Old English whose works survive into the modern period. As such, he is vitally important to the study of late Old English language, particularly prose, literature, history, and the period in general. Ælfric lived during the late tenth and early eleventh centuries, contemporary with late Old English works and the construction of the four manuscripts containing most of Old English poetry and other important works.
B
adon
Authors: Rushton Cory James
Published: June 2017

Famous as Arthur's final victory against the invading Anglo‐Saxons, the location and timing of the battle of Badon Hill is uncertain. Despite this, it has become a core element in the “historical” legend of Arthur.
Guilds
Authors: Davis James
Published: June 2017

Guilds were a source of solidarity, trust, and mutual support for medieval laypeople. These voluntary associations were a means by which people gathered together in a formal manner to achieve collective goals. For all guilds, one of the main aims was salvation. The members of guilds all contributed money, time, and personal energy, and they were expected to participate in regular religious services, attend funerals, and pray for the souls of brethren. By cooperating, guilds advanced their common interests and provided a collective means of protection that other institutions could not. For urban merchant and craft guilds, there were additional economic concerns, whether this was to control wages and quality of production in their trade or to influence the governance and social order of their towns.
Grammars and Rhetorics
Authors: Cornelius Ian
Published: June 2017

Grammar and rhetoric were the disciplines charged with teaching correct and effective use of language in antiquity. In the Middle Ages, these twin disciplines served to maintain Latin as a language of culture, religion, and administration over much of Europe. Grammatical studies flourished in medieval England following the conversion of the Anglo‐Saxons to Christianity. Subsequent developments in grammatical and rhetorical studies in Britain in the Middle Ages track deep changes in the social conditioning of literacy and social demands upon literacy. Among the medieval British innovations in these disciplines were the teaching of Latin as a foreign language, the cultural accommodation of grammar and rhetoric to Christianity, the creation of new genres of rhetorical textbooks, and the development of bilingual pedagogies that paired Latin with vernacular languages.
B
ozon,
N
icholas
Authors: Postlewate Laurie
Published: June 2017

The early fourteenth‐century Franciscan writer Nicholas Bozon composed texts in Anglo‐Norman in a variety of forms and registers: a legendary of saints' lives, allegorical poetry (
Char d'Orgueil
and
La Lettre de l'Empereur Orgueil
), prose exempla (
Contes moralisés
), verse proverbs (
Proverbes de bon enseignement
), verse sermons on multiple vices in society, and poetry of affective devotion. The moral content and spiritual appeal of Bozon's works correspond to the aims of the Lateran IV era to engage and speak to the needs of the laity who desired a more active religious life; his texts promote self‐examination, recognition of sin, and the need for confession, as well as an affective attachment to the figures of Christ, Mary, and the saints.
Alliterative Poetry: Metre and Versification
Authors: Putter Ad
Published: June 2017

From the perspective of verse form, the alliterative poetry of the later Middle Ages constitutes a very diverse corpus. The unrhymed poems of the alliterative revival show both continuities and discontinuities with Old English verse, with regard to alliterative patterning as well as rhythmical constraints. The introduction of rhyme created further formal variety, and encouraged alliterative poets to develop anisometric strophes, including bob‐and‐wheel stanzas.
Lancastrian Literature
Authors: Nolan Maura
Published: June 2017

Lancastrian literature was produced during the reigns of Henry IV, Henry V, and Henry VI of England and responds to the Lancastrian need to legitimate their regime as well as to new conditions of literary patronage. Poets like John Lydgate and Thomas Hoccleve wrote for a wide variety of patrons, imagining themselves as descendants of Chaucer and constructing a new English literary history. Lydgate also produced a large body of public literary and dramatic works designed to support the dual monarchy with France during the minority of Henry VI in the 1420s. As the reign of Henry VI progressed, humanism became a prominent influence for later Lancastrian writers, including those who would write defenses of the Lancastrian king against the Yorkists, who usurped the throne in 1460 and again in 1471.
V
era Historia
de
Morte
A
rthuri
Authors: Echard Siân
Published: June 2017

The
Vera historia de morte Arthuri
is a short Latin prose narrative about the death of King Arthur after the battle of Camlann. Some Celtic motifs, along with the mysterious disappearance of the king's body, have led readers to view it in the context of the Breton hope (the idea that Arthur is not dead and will return to lead the Britons again when they have need of him). The story sometimes accompanies manuscripts of Geoffrey of Monmouth's
Historia regum Britannie
(
History of the Kings of Britain
), and it is perhaps understood as an alternative to Geoffrey's account.
S
ong of
D
ermot and the
E
arl/
G
este
des E
ngleis
en Y
rlande
Authors: Whelan Caoimhe
Published: June 2017

The
Song of Dermot and the Earl
is a Hiberno‐French
chanson de geste
which was composed in Ireland and survives only in a later thirteenth‐century medieval copy, London, Lambeth Palace Library, Carew MS 596. The
Song
is a key historical source for the history of Ireland in the twelfth century, and presents a heroic narrative recounting the story of the 1169 English invasion of Ireland at the behest of the Irish lord, Diarmait MacMurchada, in an attempt to regain his lost kingdom of Leinster and seeks to justify the invasion and conquest of Ireland from the English perspective.
O
ld
N
orse in
E
ngland
Authors: Jesch Judith
Published: June 2017

The Scandinavian raiders and traders who began to settle in eastern and northern parts of England in the latter part of the ninth century brought with them a language that scholars generally call Old Norse, though “Old Scandinavian” might be a better term for it. The English evidence for the language spoken by the incomers comes from names of both places and people (both often recorded in later documents), occasional loan‐words in contemporary texts, and regional dialect forms recorded in later texts (from the Middle English period onwards).
H
istory of
W
illiam
M
arshal
Authors: Kjær Lars
Published: June 2017

The
History of William Marshal
is an Old French poem of just over 19,000 lines, chronicling the achievements of the English aristocrat William Marshal (c. 1147–1219).
Libraries and Book Collections
Authors: Willoughby James M.W.
Published: June 2017

Libraries were the central support to scholarship in the Middle Ages, but since the break‐up of nearly all the institutional libraries of medieval England at the time of the Reformation, their contents, arrangement, and management have had to be inferred from the evidence of the surviving books and booklists. These allow a formulation on what constituted a typical library in the Middle Ages and enable a typology of libraries to be made.
S
iôn
C
ent
Authors: Lewis Barry James
Published: June 2017

The best‐known religious poet in the medieval Welsh canon, Siôn Cent is the author of moralizing, didactic religious verse with a strong element of social criticism. He flourished in the first half of the fifteenth century and may have been associated with Brycheiniog (Breconshire) in southeast Wales. His name may suggest that he had English connections. He participated in a bardic debate with another poet in which he fiercely criticized the immorality of the Welsh tradition of praise‐poetry. The canon of his works is uncertain since their textual tradition is very fluid.
Cywyddwyr
Authors: Lewis Barry James
Published: June 2017

The poets of late medieval and early modern Wales (fourteenth–early seventeenth centuries) are collectively known as thecywyddwyror asBeirdd yr Uchelwyr(“Poets of the Gentry”). The term derives from the most popular metre of the time, thecywydd, which consists of rhyming couplets withcynghanedd(a complex system of internal rhyme and consonance). The poetry covers such genres as praise, elegy, love poetry, prophecy, poems of asking for and giving thanks for gifts, satire, bardic disputations, and religious verse. There are several hundred knowncywyddwyrand the scale of the corpus of this poetry is not yet known for certain, but it is very substantial. The poets were very often highly trained professionals, though there was also a large amateur and semi‐professional element. Most of the poetry would have been performed in the houses of Welsh gentry. There are some manuscript sources from the late Middle Ages, but the bulk of the verse survives in early modern copies.
Irish Language
Authors: Stifter David
Published: June 2017

The Irish language has been the main but never the sole means of communication on the island of Ireland from the dawn of history until the beginning of the modern period when it began to be superseded by English. Over the more than 1500 years of its written attestation, it has undergone substantial changes in its grammatical and lexical aspects, partly reflecting its changing sociolinguistic and cultural role.
HenryII
Authors: Summerlin Danica
Published: June 2017

This entry provides a brief biography of Henry II, king of England (1154–89) and count of Anjou.
Catraeth
Authors: Leach Katherine
Published: June 2017

This entry discusses the literary place name of Catraeth, found in early Welsh poetry. It is traditionally associated with Catterick, Yorkshire, England, and corresponds with the Latin name for the Roman fort of Cataractonium. Although the name Catraeth is not found outside of a small number of Welsh literary references, Catterick, or Cataractonium, is mentioned in several medieval annals and chronicles.
A
pollonius of Tyre
Authors: Archibald Elizabeth
Published: June 2017

The story of Apollonius of Tyre remained popular from late classical times to the Renaissance, where it was adapted by Shakespeare as
Pericles
. It survives in numerous Latin and vernacular versions, some very innovative. Its main motifs of incest, kingship, separated family, and recognition scenes link it to both Hellenistic and medieval romance, but it was also read as exemplary.
Aneirin
Authors: Henley Georgia
Published: June 2017

Aneirin is known as the author of the elegiac poemY Gododdin, one of the earliest extant Welsh poems. Attribution to him is based on a rubric in the Book of Aneirin, which in addition to theGododdincontains four poems known as thegorchanau. Aneirin's status as a sixth‐century historical personage is contested, as is a proposed sixth‐century date for the poem and the events it describes. Though scholars generally agree that the poem is based on an early core, his status as historical figure or poetic persona remains uncertain. He was associated with theGododdinby court poets of Wales in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, a few of whom reference him and theGododdinin their poetry, mostly to evoke themes of loss or poetic inspiration. He appears to have enjoyed a later reputation as a moralist and author of various groups of gnomic verse, receiving attribution in a number of sixteenth‐ and seventeenth‐century manuscripts.
R
heged
Authors: Jacques Michaela
Published: June 2017

This entry discusses the northern British kingdom of Rheged, ruled over by the figure Urien Rheged in the sixth century, who is commemorated in the praise‐poetry of Taliesin. It mentions the possible locations that have been suggested for the historical Rheged, however notes that our evidence for the territory is literary and not necessarily historical.
Literacy
Authors: Christie E.J.
Published: June 2017

Writing was a defining technology, and the growth of literacy a crucial social trajectory, of the Middle Ages. The study of medieval literacy attempts to account for what seems like a foundational paradox, that the vast majority of the population was in the strict sense illiterate and yet medieval culture was profoundly oriented toward the authority of written knowledge. In order to accommodate this paradox, medieval literacy must be understood as more than the ability of individuals to read and write. Where writing can be thought of as a technology, and reading as a skill, literacy simultaneously names the capacity of individuals to read and write with varying levels of sophistication and the conceptual and ideological ramifications of such sophistication; it is the complex state of culture in which societies depend on or structure themselves around texts, for example, by institutionalizing power through written records. A literate society is thus not only, or even necessarily, one in which a preponderance of the population can read and write, but one which enshrines its laws, conducts its business, and records its history in writing and which comes therefore to evince a widespread belief in the authority of writing.
M
edb
Authors: Mhurchú Síle Ní
Published: June 2017

In the
Táin Bó Cuailnge
, the central tale of the Ulster Cycle, Queen Medb of Connacht with her husband Ailill plots a raid on Ulster and seeks to acquire the Donn Cuailnge, a famous bull. The incursions of Medb's army into Ulster are foiled by the warrior Cú Chulainn and they lose in battle against the men of Ulster. Cú Chulainn spares Medb's life and although she acquires the Donn Cuailnge, he is killed after winning the battle of the bulls at the end of the
Táin
. Medb was interpreted by earlier scholars of the
Táin
as a sovereignty goddess but more recent studies tend to discuss Medb as a literary character: the extent to which the portrayal of Medb in the
Táin
may be seen as misogynous has been of particular concern. Medb also features in a number of other Ulster Cycle tales.
NormanConquest
Authors: Hayward Paul Antony
Published: June 2017

Having briefly outlined the main events that comprise the Norman Conquest of England (1066 to c. 1100), this entry addresses four questions: to what extent and in what ways did the Conquest transform the country; in what ways did it affect the production of high‐status literary texts; to what extent did the Norman regime produced license and constrain literary expression; and how was the Conquest itself represented, criticized, and defended in near‐contemporary texts. The entry argues that Conquest created a literary sphere fraught with tensions that are typical of colonial societies.
Demandesd'Amour
Authors: Patterson Serina
Published: June 2017

Thedemandes d'amourare a literary genre that grew in popularity among the aristocracy in France, England, and elsewhere between the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries. They began as oral debates and games and were integrated into poems and narratives. Collections ofdemandes d'amourappeared in the fourteenth century. Aristocratic social games also created using thedemandes d'amourand were referenced frequently in literature. In England, thedemandes d'amourwere appropriated as pedagogical material, though they were still occasionally used for amusement.
Frithegod of Canterbury
Authors: Tedford Margaret
Published: June 2017

Frithegod of Canterbury was a tenth‐century scholar and Latin poet, whose most well‐known work is the
Breviloquium vitae Wilfridi
, a Latin metrical version of Stephen of Ripon's eighth‐century prose Life of St. Wilfrid. Very little is known about his life, but he is believed to be of Frankish origin, his name being an Anglicization of the Frankish “Fredegaud.” He was a member of the household of Archbishop Oda, who commissioned him to write the
Breviloquium
. He was renowned for his learning and was the tutor of Oda's nephew Oswald, who later became archbishop of Canterbury.
A
nnwn,
A
nnwfn
Authors: Wood Juliette
Published: June 2017

Annwn or Annwfn (both spellings are found) signifies a supernatural realm which features in medieval Welsh literary and folk traditions. The second element of the word,
dwfn
“deep” or “world,” suggests that it meant “the deep” or “the not‐world.” The most common characterization in Welsh tradition is an Otherworld realm lying under the earth, across the sea, or in parallel to the mortal world.
E
main
M
acha
Authors: Swift Catherine
Published: June 2017

Emain Macha was the royal center of the Ulaid where they came together in assembly and where the boy‐hero of the epic
Táin Bó Cuailnge
, Cú Chulainn, was fostered by his uncle, King Conchobar mac Nessa.
Geoffrey ofMonmouth
Authors: Echard Siân
Published: June 2017

Geoffrey of Monmouth is a twelfth‐century Anglo‐Latin writer, best known for hisHistoria regum Britannie(History of the Kings of Britain). TheHistorypopularized the idea that Britain was founded by Trojan refugees, and offered many memorable accounts of British rulers, some fictional, some quasi‐historical. TheHistoriafamously presented the first connected narrative of the life and deeds of King Arthur. Geoffrey also brought attention to Merlin, bringing the prophet of Celtic tradition into the ambit of the Arthurian court in theHistoria, and focusing on Merlin's madness and recovery in theVita Merlini. TheHistoriawas one of the most popular and influential texts of the Middle Ages, frequently copied, translated, and adapted.
Hawes,Stephen
Authors: Bergen Richard Angelo
Published: June 2017

Stephen Hawes (born c. 1470, d. before 1529) was a Tudor court poet, and largely wrote under the auspices and patronage of Henry VII, serving as the groom of his chamber. He saw himself as writing in the tradition of John Lydgate and Geoffrey Chaucer, and is often thought of as being remarkably “medieval” for a sixteenth‐century writer. He wrote five surviving poems, the longest of which isThe Pastime of Pleasure. He is often perceived as prefiguring the allegorical romance of Edmund Spenser, and is important to the history of personification allegories; he also provides a significant window into the rhetorical concerns of Tudor politics as it related to poets.
Harold
Authors: Rouse Robert
Published: June 2017

Harold Godwineson (c. 1022–October 14, 1066), also known as Harold II, was the last Anglo‐Saxon king of England. Defeated at the battle of Hastings, Harold's death punctuated the Norman Conquest of 1066 and opened the way for a new ruling dynasty founded by William the Bastard, Duke of Normandy (William the Conqueror). Harold's death is memorialized in the Bayeux Tapestry, but despite this, numerous stories of his miraculous survival flourished in the years following the Conquest.
G
uthlac Roll
Authors: Echard Siân
Published: June 2017

The Guthlac Roll is an early thirteenth‐century parchment roll. Damaged at the beginning, it now contains 18 roundels with ink drawings illustrating episodes in the life of St. Guthlac, an Anglo‐Saxon monk and hermit who died in 714. The pictures on the roll are based largely on an eighth‐century Latin account of Guthlac's life. Crowland Abbey, with which the roll is associated, was one of the most important East Anglian abbeys in the later Middle Ages.
C
astle of
P
erseverance, The
Authors: Geck John A.
Published: June 2017

The Castle of Perseverance
is a 3650‐line Middle English morality play dating from c. 1395–1425, preserved uniquely in Washington, DC, Folger Library, MS V.a.354 (“the Macro manuscript”), which presents an allegorical representation of the battle between sin and virtue for control of the soul of humankind. Exceptional among the other early morality plays for its large cast size, extant set diagram, and length,
The Castle of Perseverance
stands as a testament to the particularly lavish nature of both drama and devotional practice in East Anglia.
Reginald of Canterbury
Authors: Echard Siân
Published: June 2017

Reginald of Canterbury was a French Benedictine monk, who relocated some time before 1100 from France to the abbey of St. Augustine's, Canterbury. He was an extremely inventive poet, author of many short, sometimes intricate poems, as well as of a six‐book verse epic version of the life of St. Malchus, based on, but considerably expanding, a prose Life written by St. Jerome.
Map,Walter
Authors: Echard Siân
Published: June 2017

Walter Map was a twelfth‐century cleric‐courtier of Welsh heritage, who spent much time in and around the peripatetic court of the Angevin king Henry II. His only surviving work isDe nugis curialium(Courtier's Trifles), a collection of short anecdotes, longer narratives, eye‐witness accounts of the court and of British history, and invective. Much of the work is satirical, humorous, or a bit of both. He had a particular interest in Welsh narrative, though he is often highly critical of the people he calls his compatriots.
Aidan
Authors: Fay Jacqueline A.
Published: June 2017

Aidan (d. 651) was an Ionan monk invited as a missionary by King Oswald to Northumbria, where Aidan founded the abbey and bishopric of Lindisfarne in 635. Aidan was a vigorous proponent of Christianity and monasticism in Northumbria, furthering both through his preaching and the ecclesiastical appointments that he made as bishop of Lindisfarne. He is known predominantly through Bede's narrative of his life and death in theHistoria ecclesiastica, which describes his close association first with King Oswald and, after Oswald's death, King Oswine. Bede's high praise for Aidan's asceticism and devotion, along with his description of miracles performed before and after Aidan's death, establish him as a saint.
M
ichael of
C
ornwall
Authors: Echard Siân
Published: June 2017

Michael of Cornwall was a poet of the mid‐thirteenth century, known to us today chiefly for his “flyting” – exchange of elaborate, poetic insults – with Henry of Avranches. There are four surviving poetry contests associated with Henry. Michael's is considered to be the most virtuosic of all of these. In this case, only Michael's side of the flyting survives.
Merugud Uilix Maic Leirtis
Authors: Swift Catherine
Published: June 2017

Merugud Uilix maic Leirtis
is a Middle Irish adaption of incidents drawn ultimately from Homer's
Odyssey
through Virgil's
Aeneid
, married to an international folktale. An Irish‐style hero escapes from Troy and visits various islands, rescuing his men, killing a Cyclops, and meeting a Judge of Truth who gives him advice. Arriving home he finds a beautiful young man in his wife's chamber and, about to kill him, he is told that the young man is their son. Unrecognizable at first, the hero is identified through a brooch and his old dog's devotion.
M
esca
U
lad
Authors: Swift Catherine
Published: June 2017

Mesca Ulad
or the Intoxication of the Ulstermen is one of the Ulster Cycle sagas, detailing how warriors leave their feasting hall on the river Bann to travel south on a wild ride to Dundalk but miss their objective and end up at Temair Luachra in Limerick. The Munstermen attempted to burn them out, setting fire to an iron house hidden inside plank facades but they escape through the leadership of Cú Chulainn and the passivity of the Connacht king and return safely to Dundalk.
Túatha Dé Danann
Authors: Swift Catherine
Published: June 2017

The Túatha Dé Danann are a group whose characteristics mirror the structures of Irish medieval society. Their antecedents appear to lie in Romano‐Celtic gods and goddesses but their depiction in Middle Irish literature appears to have been strongly influenced by a knowledge of Otherworld figures in Norse, Welsh and classical traditions.
Jongleur
Authors: Taylor Andrew
Published: June 2017

Jongleur is a common term in northern medieval French for a performer, someone who entertains, usually alone but occasionally as part of a small group, chiefly by singing or reciting. The jongleur is a common symbolic figure but reliable historical references to actual performances are very rare.
Monkwearmouth‐JarrowAbbey
Authors: Fay Jacqueline A.
Published: June 2017

The twin monasteries of Monkwearmouth and Jarrow were founded in c. 673 and c. 681, respectively, as part of the extraordinarily productive period during the seventh and eighth centuries known as the “Golden Age of Northumbria.” Famous as the home of Bede, Anglo‐Saxon England's most famous writer, Monkwearmouth‐Jarrow was widely renowned as a center of book production during the early medieval period. During the later medieval period through to contemporary times, the monastery received sporadic development, but never regained the importance it held during the earlier period. Both sites contain parish churches that are still in use, parts of which date to the Anglo‐Saxon period.
GereintvabErbin/Geraint Son of Erbin
Authors: Fulton Helen
Published: June 2017

Gereint vab Erbin(Geraint son of Erbin), is an Arthurian prose romance in Middle Welsh dating from the first half of the thirteenth century. The story describes how Geraint, a Cornish ruler, meets and marries Enid and then tests her loyalty through a series of hardships before they are reconciled. The figure of Geraint is known as a historical sixth‐century king of Cornwall, and is celebrated in early Welsh poetry.
M
yvyrian
A
rchaiology of
W
ales, The
Authors: Evans Geraint
Published: June 2017

The Myvyrian Archaiology of Wales
is an anthology of medieval Welsh texts which was first published in London between 1801 and 1807. Many of these texts had not previously appeared in printed editions and the publication of the
Archaiology
was one of the founding steps in the creation of a canon of medieval Welsh literature.
L
ordship of the
I
sles
Authors: Foley Áine
Published: June 2017

The Lordship of the Isles was the most significant Gaelic lordship of medieval Scotland. This territory was located on the western seaboard of Scotland and was a bastion of Gaelic culture, before it was incorporated into the kingdom of Scotland in the fifteenth century.
D
ál
R
iata
Authors: Foley Áine
Published: June 2017

Dál Riata was a Gaelic kingdom that encompassed parts of west Scotland and the northeast of Ireland. This kingdom was in existence from the mid‐sixth century up to at least the latter half of the eighth century.
Statistics of Earthquakes
Authors: Özel Gamze
Published: June 2017

Earthquake statistics is important in understanding the impacts and costs of earthquakes. They concern seismologists, geologists, engineers, government officials, insurers, and statisticians among others. Developing reliable statistics on earthquakes is important because local, state, and federal spending is prioritized and allocated according to these numbers and because life‐and‐death decisions are based on this information. The accurate identification of earthquake statistics is also valuable to international agencies in their attempt to determine the security of their investments in developing countries.
Estimation of the shielding ability of a tungsten functional paper for diagnostic x‐rays and gamma rays
Authors: Monzen Hajime , Kanno Ikuo , Fujimoto Takahiro , Hiraoka Masahiro
Published: June 2017

Tungsten functional paper (TFP) is a novel paper‐based radiation‐shielding material. We measured the shielding ability of TFP against x‐rays and gamma rays. The TFP was supplied in 0.3‐mm‐thick sheets that contained 80% tungsten powder and 20% cellulose (C6H10O5) by mass. In dose measurements for x‐rays (60, 80, 100, and 120 kVp), we measured doses after through 1, 2, 3, 5, 10, and 12 TFP sheets, as well as 0.3 and 0.5 mm of lead. In lead equivalence measurements, we measured doses after through 2 and 10 TFP sheets for x‐rays (100 and 150 kVp), and 0, 7, 10, 20, and 30 TFP sheets for gamma rays from cesium‐137 source (662 keV). And then, the lead equivalent thicknesses of TFP were determined by comparison with doses after through standard lead plates (purity >99.9%). Additionally, we evaluated uniformity of the transmitted dose by TFP with a computed radiography image plate for 50 kVp x‐rays. A single TFP sheet was found to have a shielding ability of 65%, 53%, 48%, and 46% for x‐rays (60, 80, 100, and 120 kVp), respectively. The lead equivalent thicknesses of two TFP sheets were 0.10 ± 0.02, 0.09 ± 0.02 mmPb, and of ten TFP sheets were 0.48 ± 0.02 and 0.51 ± 0.02 mmPb for 100 and 150 kVp x‐rays, respectively. The lead equivalent thicknesses of 7, 10, 20, and 30 sheets of TFP for gamma rays from cesium‐137 source were estimated as 0.28, 0.43, 0.91, and 1.50 mmPb with an error of ± 0.01 mm. One TFP sheet had nonuniformity, however, seven TFP sheets provided complete shielding for 50 kVp x‐rays. TFP has adequate radiation shielding ability for x‐rays and gamma rays within the energy range used in diagnostic imaging field.
Photoaligned Nanorod Enhancement Films with Polarized Emission for Liquid‐Crystal‐Display Applications
Authors: Srivastava Abhishek K. , Zhang Wanlong , Schneider Julian , Rogach Andrey L. , Chigrinov Vladimir G. , Kwok Hoi‐Sing
Published: June 2017

Semiconductor nanorods (NR) emit polarized light, which is expected to bring manifold benefits, in terms of brightness and color enhancement, for modern liquid‐crystal displays (LCD). In this regard, photoaligned nanorod enhancement films (NREF) for color and polarization conversion for LCD backlights are introduced here. The photoinduced anchoring forces, by the photoalignment layer, stimulate well‐ordered self‐assembly of NR in the thin polymer films. Green and red emitting NR with a quantum yield of ≈80% are aligned unidirectionally and in‐plane, showing a polarization ratio of >7:1 and a degree of polarization of >0.81. The photoalignment technique facilitates the fabrication of mixed and multiple stacked NREF for LCDs, which improves the color gamut and polarization efficiency, and is thus expected to increase the optical efficiency of conventional LCDs by ≈60%.