IMC 2017: Sessions
Session 513: Origo gentis: The Origin Legends of Medieval Europe, I
Tuesday 4 July 2017, 09.00-10.30
Organisers: | Ben Guy, Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse & Celtic, University of Cambridge Rebecca Thomas, Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse & Celtic, University of Cambridge |
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Moderator/Chair: | Ben Guy, Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse & Celtic, University of Cambridge |
Paper 513-a | Origin Stories of the Lex salica (Language: English) Index terms: Historiography - Medieval, Language and Literature - Latin, Law, Political Thought |
Paper 513-b | Bede and 410: Myth-Making and the Creation of the gens Anglorum (Language: English) Index terms: Ecclesiastical History, Historiography - Medieval, Language and Literature - Latin, Political Thought |
Paper 513-c | Origin Legends of Transmarine Settlement within the Irish Sea Cultural Zone (Language: English) Index terms: Geography and Settlement Studies, Historiography - Medieval, Language and Literature - Celtic, Language and Literature - Latin |
Abstract | It was a universal practice to record stories about the origins of peoples, kingdoms, and dynasties in the Middle Ages. These stories enabled individuals to locate themselves and their societies within a larger historical and mythological context. There are certain features common to the origin legends of different peoples and regions, such as genealogy and migration, which served an aetiological function in helping people understand the present as an outcome of the past. Origin legends were not always consistent with each other however, as they were often used to press conflicting claims. These three sessions explore aspects of origin legends from across medieval western Europe. |