Heldenbücher is the conventional title under which a group of German manuscripts and prints of the 15th and 16th centuries has come down to us. Each Heldenbuch contains a collection of primarily epic poetry, typically including material from the Theodoric cycle, and the cycle of Hugdietrich, Wolfdietrich and Ortnit. The Heldenbuch texts are thus based on medieval German literature, but adapted to the tastes of the Renaissance.
Lambert of Hersfeld was a medieval chronicler. His work represents a major source for the history of the German kingdom of Henry IV and the incipient Investiture Controversy in the eleventh century.
Ulrich von Türheim was a German writer from the Augsburg area writing during the first half of the 13th century. Three of his works have survived: a conclusion to the version of the Tristan legend left unfinished by Gottfried von Strassburg; Rennewart, a continuation of Willehalm, left unfinished by Wolfram von Eschenbach; and fragments of a version of Cligès based on that of Chrétien de Troyes. It is not known whether this last work was a separate work or also a continuation, in this case of a now lost Cligès by Konrad Fleck. The relative chronology of these works is disputed, though Rennewart is generally regarded as the last.
Heinrich von Morungen or Henry of Morungen was a German Minnesinger.
Der von Kürenberg or Der Kürenberger was a Middle High German poet and one of the earliest Minnesänger. Fifteen strophes of his songs are preserved in the Codex Manesse and the Budapest Fragment.
Dietmar von Aist was a Minnesinger from a baronial family in the Duchy of Austria, whose work is representative of the lyric poetry in the Danube region.
Kulm law, Culm law or Chełmno Law was a legal constitution for a municipal form of government used in several Central European cities during the Middle Ages.
Otfrid of Weissenburg was a monk at the abbey of Weissenburg and the author of a gospel harmony in rhyming couplets now called the Evangelienbuch. It is written in the South Rhine Franconian dialect of Old High German. The poem is thought to have been completed between 863 and 871. Otfrid is the first German poet whose name we know from his work.
The Annolied is an Early Middle High German poem in praise of Archbishop Anno II of Cologne. Anno died in 1075 and the poem, probably written in the years immediately after his death, can be seen as part of a campaign for his canonisation, which was finally achieved in 1183.
Friedrich von Hausen was a medieval German poet, one of the earliest of the Minnesingers; born sometime between 1150–60; d. 6 May 1190.
Renier of St Laurent was a twelfth-century Benedictine monk of St Laurent Abbey, Liège. He is known as a writer of theological and exegetical works, controversial and historical works, and numerous biographical and hagiographical works. Works by him are in Patrologia Latina and Monumenta Germaniae Historica.
Berchtold of Engelberg, German Berchtold von Engelberg was a Swiss German Benedictine monk, who was Abbot of Engelberg Abbey in Switzerland.
Upper German is a family of High German dialects spoken primarily in the southern German-speaking area.
Albrecht von Rapperswil is one of the Minnesingers featured in the Codex Manesse. He was a ministerialis in the service of the counts of Rapperswil, in the rank of a marchschal. Albrecht is depicted in Codex Manesse fol. 192v in the act of jousting. Three songs attributed to him are recorded on fol. 193r. The songs are in three verses, with the first verse of each describing nature in springtime, and the second and third verse dedicated to the beauty of the beloved lady.
Sieglinde Hartmann is a German medievalist, expert on the medieval poet Oswald von Wolkenstein and president of the Oswald von Wolkenstein-Gesellschaft.
Nigel Fenton Palmer FBA was a British Germanist and Professor Emeritus at the University of Oxford.
Mittellateinisches Wörterbuch is a project for the edition of a comprehensive Medieval Latin dictionary, organised by a committee of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities and published with C. H. Beck.
Meinloh von Sevelingen was a 12th Century Minnesänger from Swabia and one of the earliest poets in the tradition.
Dietrich und Wenezlan is a fragmentary Middle High German poem about the legendary hero Dietrich von Bern, the counterpart of the historical Ostrogothic king Theodoric the Great in Germanic heroic legend. It usually considered part of the so-called "historical" Dietrich material, as it appears to cite Dietrich's exile at the court of Etzel described in the "historical poems" Dietrichs Flucht and the Rabenschlacht. The fragment of about 500 lines tells of Dietrich's challenge by Wenezlan of Poland, who has captured one of Dietrich's warriors. It is unclear whether the fragment was the main focus of a poem or a single episode from a longer poem.
Wolfgang Golther was a German philologist who specialized in Germanic studies. A professor at the University of Rostock, Golther was a prominent authority on Medieval German literature and Germanic religion.
