The Carolingian period and the early Middle Ages (750–1100)
Brian Murdoch
The dominant language of written literature in Germany the early Middle Ages is Latin. Only a very small amount writing German has survived from reigns Charlemagne and his successors (from middle eighth century to tenth), Ottonian emperors (the tenth century) even Salians (taking us through eleventh century). Far making task presenting its earliest stages easier, however, this causes difficulties which do not arise once vernacular literary tradition established itself. Not only are definitions ‘German’ ‘literature’ problematic, but more important question arises whether at stage may be defined exclusively as German. Part interest period lies emergence, onwards, self-conscious within Christian-Latin intellectual context, fact remains that most Carolingian Latin, whereas material for part all. With what little there German, too, unconsidered acceptance idea ‘text’ impossible. Most survivals before 1100 exist unique manuscripts were affected start by inferior position language. One interesting poems period, Muspilli, dealing with destruction world, margins other spaces Latin manuscript, causing problems sense, structure, ordering sometimes decipherment.
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