WEMSK37:Byzantine (Medieval Greek)
Literature
WEMSK 37-- Byzantine (Medieval Greek) Literature
1. Surveys:
a. A general and easy to read
survey by Robert Browning,
"Byzantine," in The Penguin
Companion to Classical, Oriental &
African Literature, ed. David
M. Lang and Donald R. Dudley, vol. 3
(Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1969),
179-216. Some bibliography with
each item + a general bibliography.
b. Andre Mirambel, "Litterature
byzantine," Histoire des
litteratures, I, sous la direction
de Raymon Queneau. Encyclopedie
de la Pleiade 1 (Paris: Gallimard,
1955), 697-750. Reads well. Nice
general bibliography.
c. A more scholarly survey: Hans-Georg
Beck, "Ueberlieferungs-
geschichte der byzantinischen
Literatur," in Geschichte der
Textueberlieferung der antiken
und mittelalterlichen Literatur, ed.
Herbert Hunger et al., vol.
1 (Zurich: Atlantis Verlag, 1961), 423-
510. Do not forget to
look in the bibliography at the end of the
volume for individual authors
and works.
2. Bibliographic indices:
a. Author index of Byzantine
Studies [Microform] (Zug, Switzerland:
IDC, 1986). 160 microfiches,
index to Byzantinische Zeitschrift,
Krumbacher, Migne's Patrologia
Graeca, etc. Very useful. Done by
the Center for Byzantine Studies
at Dumbarton Oaks. With this and
Krumbacher, you have a fairly
complete, if difficult to use,
bibliography.
b. Dumbarton Oaks. Dictionary
Catalogue of the Byzantine Collection
of the Dumbaarton Oaks Research
Library, Washington, DC, 12 vols.
(Boston: G. K. Hall, 1975).
Outstanding.
c. Luci Berkowitz and Karl A.
Squitier, Thesaurus Linguae Graecae.
Canon of Greek Authors and Works,
2d ed. (Oxford: OUP, 1986).
Intends to be a list of works
in Greek up to 600 AD, and even
beyond. Can be of great use.
3. Guides:
a. Franz Joseph Doelger and Alfons
Maria Schneider, Byzanz.
Wissenschaftliche Forschungsberichte.
Geisteswissenschaftliche
Reihe 5 (Beern: Francke, 1952).
Still worth looking at.
b. H. W. Haussig, Kulturgeschichte
von Byzanz. Kroeners
Taschenausgabe 211 (Stuttgart:
Kroener, 1959. Good survey. English
translation: A History of Byzantine
Civilization, tr. J. M. Hussey
(NY: Praeger, 1971).
c. Otto Mazal, Handbuch der Byzantinistik
(Graz: Akademische Druck-
und Verlagsanstalt, 1989. Good
discussion and bibliographies,
broken up by subject.
This ought to be your first port of call.
Occasional schnitzer, e.g. p.
230: Vocabulary of the Geek
Testament. Bibliographies use
initials for first and second names.
A very useful "Verzeichnis ausgewaehlter
Fachausdruecke," 246-265,
in case you wonder what a "Mandylion"
is.
d. Gyula Moravcsik, Einfuehrung
in die Byzantinologie, transl. Geza
Engl (Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche
Buchgesellschaft, 1976). Not
much on literature.
e. Brigitte Gullath, Wie find
ich altertumswissenschaftliche
Literatur: Klassische Philologie,
Mittel- und Neulatein,
Byzantinistik ...? (Berlin:
Berlin Verlag, 1992), "Byzantinistik
und neugriechische Philologie,"
165-181.
4. Handbooks and Encyclopedias:
a. Byzantinisches Handbuch, section
XII of the Handbuch der
klassischen Altertumswissenschaft
(Munich: Beck). Warning! In my
library, Handbuch der klassischen
Altertumswissenschaft is not
analyzed, so we ostensibly do
not have this.
b. Reallexikon der Byzantinistik,
ed. Peter Wirt (Amsterdam:
Hakkert, 1970-76). Did not get
past vol. 1, but is good.
c. The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium,
ed. Alexander P. Kazhdan, 3
vols. (NY: OUP, 1991). "Prepared
at Dumbarton Oaks." Signed
articles, bibs. Occasionally
disappointing.
d. Encyclopedia of the Early
Church, ed. Angelo di Berardino,
transl. Adrian Walford, with
a foreword and bibliographic
amendments by W. H. C. Frend,
2 vols. (NY: OUP, 1992). Good.
5. Histories of Literature:
a. Wilhelm von Christ's Geschichte
der griechischen Literatur, ed.
Wilhelm Schmid and Otto Staehlin,
2d part, 2d half, 100 to 530 AD,
6th ed. Handbuch der klassischen
Altertumswissenschaft, 7th
section, vol. 2.2 (Munich: Beck,
1961; repr. of 1924 ed.).
Excellent for those parts of
our period it covers.
b. Karl Krumbacher, Geschichte
der byzantinischen Literatur von
Justinian bis zum Ende des Ostroemischen
Reiches (527-1453), 2
vols. Handbuch der klassischen
Altertumswissenschaft 9 (Munich:
Beck, 1897). Still the
first port of call. Repr., Burt Franklin
Bibliographical Series XIII
(NY: Burt Franklin, n. d.)
c. Boerje Knoes, Histoire de
la litterature neo-grec. Studia Graeca
Upsalensia 1 (Stockholm: Almquist
& Wiksell, 1962). Byzantine
literature, 39-157. Thin.
d. Hans-Georg Beck, Kirche und
theologische Literatur im
byzantinischen Reich, 2d ed.
Handbuch der klassischen
Altertumswissenschaft XII.2.1
(Munich: Beck, 1977). Replaces
Krumbacher for religious literature.
e. Herbert Hunger, Die hochsprachliche
profane Literatur der
Byzantiner. 2 vols. Byzantinisches
Handbuch. Handbuch der
Altertumswissenschaft XII.5.1&2
(Munich: Beck, 1978).
f. Hans-Georg Beck, Geschichte
der byzantinischen Volksliteratur.
Byzantinisches Handbuch. Handbuch
der Altertumswissenschaft XII.2.3
(Munich: Beck, 1971).
6. If you need a translation:
a. Emily Albu Hanawalt, An Annotated
Bibliography of Byzantine
Sources in English Translation
(Brookline, MA: Hellenic College,
1988). Based on Farrar &
Evans and Ferguson. Not all annotated.
b. "Byzantine Literature, AD
300 to 1453," by Procope S. Costas, in
The Literatures of the World
in English Translation. A
Bibliography. Vol. 1, The Greek
and Latin Literatures, compiled by
George B. Parks andd Ruth Z.
Temple (NY: Ungar, 1968), 147-182.
7. If you need some Greek help
(Middle Greek is not always easy,
even for those who know Ancient
or even Koine Greek); WEMSK will
have a section on the Greek
language, but in the meanwhile:
a. Geoffrey Horrocks, Greek.
A History of the Language and its
Speakers. Longman Linguistics
Library (London: Longman, 1997). Has
interlinear translations and
even a `phonetic' rendition. No
Xatzidakis, but good.
b. Robert Browning, Medieval
and Modern Greek, 2d ed. (Cambridge:
CUP, 1983). A good readthrough.
8. WEMSK has a section on liturgies,
but you might like to consult
for the moment: Joseph-Marie
Sauget, Bibliographie des liturgies
orientales (Rome, 1962).
Own, but cannot find at the moment.
Lagniappe - Some Milestones on the Way
1. Greek Romance. The Greek romances
are grand sources for romance
in the West and elsewhere.
These will get you started:
a. Roderick Beaton, The Medieval
Greek Romance, 2d ed. (London:
Routledge, 1996). Good book.
Intends in the bibliography to bring
Beck and Hunger up to 1994.
The bibliography is not always to be
trusted in small matters. It
cites authors by initial, e.g. "O.
Smith," and occasionally has
annoying schnitzer, e.g.
"Byzantinische Handbuch," p.
280. "Gregoire, H. 1942. Ho Digenes
Akritas. New York."
b. Panagiotis A. Agapitos and
Ole L. Smith, The Study of Medieval
Greek Romance: A Reassessment
of Recent Work. Opuscula Graecolatina
33 (Copenhagen: Museum Tuscalanum
Press, 1992). Mostly a critique
of Beaton; in spite of the first
author's name, often quite
ascerbic.
c. Ben E. Perry, The Ancient
Romances: A Literary-Historical
Account of their Origins (Berkeley:
UCal, 1967).
2. Constantine Porphyrogenitus (905-59):
a. Constantine Porphyrogenitus,
De administrando imperio, Greek
text ed. Gyula Moravcsik, Engl.
tr. Romily J. H. Jenkins, rev. ed.
Dumbarton Oaks Texts 1 (Washington,
DC: Dumbarton Oaks, 1967.
b. Constantine Porphyrogenitus,
De administrando imperio, II.
Commentary, ed. R. J. H. Jenkins
et al. (London: Athlone, 1962).
Great! Just look at the stuff
on the Dniepr Rapids, 38 ff.
3. Byzantium and the Vikings:
a. Sigfus Bloendal, The Varangians
of Byzantium, transl, revised
and rewritten by Benedikt S.
Benedikz (Cambridge: CUP, 1978).
b. Byzantium and Islam in Scandinavia:
Acts of a Symposium at
Uppsala University, June 15-16,
1966, ed. Elisabeth Piltz. Studies
in Mediterranean Archaeology
126 (Jonsered: Estroem, 1998).
c. H. R. Ellis Davidson, The
Viking Road to Byzantium (London:
Allen & Unwin, 1976).
c. Marchand on Byzantium and the Vikings, Medtextl archives.
4. Digenes Akritas, a grand heroic
poem of a border watcher,
"Twyborn the Borderer," who
"guarded the marches of the Byzantine
Empire in the tenth or eleventh
century."
a. Digenes Akrites, ed. with
an introduction, translation and
commentary, John Mavrogordato
(Oxford: Clarendon, 1956).
b. I bought this when I was an
undergraduate and have always liked
it: Digenis Akritas, The Byzantine
Epic in History and Poetry, by
Henri Gregoire (NY: The National
Herald, 1942). Maps, bibliography,
good introductory material.
c. If you get interested: S.
Kyriakides, "Forschungsbericht zum
Akritas-Epos," Berichte zum
XII. internationalen Byzantinisten-
Kongress (Munich, 1958).
d. Roderick Beaton and David
Ricks, eds., Digenes Akrites: New
Approaches to Byzantine Heroic
Poetry, (Brookfield, Vt.: Variorum,
1993).
5. Anna Comnena.
a. The Alexiad of Anna Comnena,
trans. Edgar R. A. Sewter
(Harmandsworth: Penguin, 1969).
Anna (1083-1153) wrote this about
her father's reign. Her style
is quite personal and comes through
in Sewter's translation.
b. Anna Komnene and Her Times,
ed. Thalia Gouma Peterson & Angeliki
Laiou, Garland Medieval Casebooks
29 (NY: Garland, 2000). A
collection of articles.
6. Michael Psellus:
a. Michael Psellus, Fourteen
Byzantine Rulers, trans. by Edgar R.
A. Sewter (Harmandsworth: Penguin,
1966). This is a translation of
his Chronographia, covering
ca. 976-1078. He lived 1018-1096.
b. Look at Emmanouel Kriaras's
article in Pauly-Wissowa. Normally,
I will not mention such a standard
source, assuming you will
consult it.
7. Journals:
a. Byzantinische Forschungen (Amsterdam : A.M. Hakkert, 1966-).
b. Byzantinische Zeitschrift
(Munich: Beck, 1892-). Contains the
standard periodical bibliography.
c. Jahrbuch der oesterreichischeen
Byzantinistik (Vienna: Verlag
der Oesterreichischen Akademie
der Wissenschaften (1951-).
d. Byzantinoslavica (Czech Academy of Sciences, 1929-).
e. Dumbarton Oaks Papers (Dumbarton
Oaks Center for Byzantine
Studies, 1941-).
f. Byzantion (Brussels: Fondation Byzantine, 1924-).
g. Revue des etudes byzantines
(Paris, Institut Francais d'Etudes
Byzantines, 1943-).
Golden Oldies and Paperbacks
a. Charles Diehl, Byzantium:
Greatness and Decline, transl. Naomi
Walford (New Brunswick, NJ:
Rutgers UP, 1957). Good bibliography,
by Peter Charanis, 301-57.
b. Byzantium: An Introduction
to East Roman Civilization. Ed.
Norman H. Baynes and H. St.
L. B. Moss. (Oxford: Clarendon, 1948;
Oxfore Paperbacks, 1961). A
collection of signed articles by
authorities; good bibliography.
c. The Cambridge Medieval History.
Vol. IV: The Eastern Roman
Empire (717-1453). Cambridge
Univ. Pr., 1923. Repr. rev. 2d ed.
by Joan M. Hussey, 1964, in
2 parts: 1. Byzantium and Its
Neighbours; 2. Government, Church,
and Civilization. Plates, maps,
bibliography. Always good to
consult.
d. Herbert Hunger, ed., Byzantinische
Geisteswelt, von Konstantin
dem Grossen bis zum Fall Konstantinopels
(Baden-Baden: Hohe-Verlag,
1958). With a nice list of German
translations, pp. 303-311.
e. Joan M. Hussey, The Byzantine
World. Hutchinson's Universal
Library (London: Hutchinson,
1957; Harper Torchbook paperback,
1961)
f. George Ostrogorsky, History
of the Byzantine State, Tr. Joan
Hussey (New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers,
1957). A newer German version
in the Handbuch der Byzantinistik.
g. Alexander A. Vasiliev, History
of the Byzantine Empire,
324-1453, 2 vols., 2d ed. (Madison:
University of Wisconsin Press,
1952; paperback, 1958).
h. Egon Wellesz, A History of
Byzantine Music and Hymnology, rev.
& enl. (Oxford: Clarendon,
1961). Still THE authority. Hymnology is
important for Byzantine studies.
i. Not old, but not bad: Warren
Treadgold, A History of the
Byzantine State and Society
(Stanford, CA: Stanford UP, 1997).
Good bibliographical guide with
a Stichtag of 1992. He has also a
short version of this book.