Carmina Burana
“Carmina Burana” by David A. Traill, published by Harvard University Press in 2018, is a comprehensive edition of the renowned medieval songbook. This volume, consisting of 794 pages, presents nearly 250 poems that explore a range of topics, including sex, gambling, crusades, and corruption. Compiled in the thirteenth century in South Tyrol, this collection is the largest surviving anthology of secular Medieval Latin verse, offering valuable insights into the social, spiritual, and intellectual life of the Middle Ages.
Readers will find a rich tapestry of voices within “Carmina Burana,” featuring works by notable Latin poets such as the Archpoet and Walter of Châtillon, alongside contributions from German lyric poets. This edition not only preserves more than half of the poems that exist nowhere else but also makes the anthology accessible to both Latin enthusiasts and English readers. The multilingual codex serves as a significant literary collection that reflects the diverse cultural landscape of medieval Europe, making it a noteworthy addition for those interested in history, poetry, and literary criticism.
Official synopsis Publisher
Carmina Burana, literally “Songs from Beuern,” is named after the village where the manuscript was found. The songbook consists of nearly 250 poems, on subjects ranging from sex and gambling to crusades and corruption. Compiled in the thirteenth century in South Tyrol, a German-speaking region of Italy, it is the largest surviving collection of secular Medieval Latin verse and provides insights into the vibrant social, spiritual, and intellectual life of the Middle Ages. The multilingual codex includes works by leading Latin poets such as the Archpoet, Walter of Châtillon, and the canonist Peter of Blois, as well as stanzas by German lyric poets. More than half these poems are preserved nowhere else.
A selection from Carmina Burana first appeared in Victorian England in 1884 under the provocative title Wine, Women and Song. The title Carmina Burana remains fixed in the popular imagination today, conjured vividly by Carl Orff’s famous cantata-no Medieval Latin lyrics are better known throughout the world. This new presentation of the medieval classic in its entirety makes the anthology accessible in two volumes to Latin lovers and English readers alike.
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