Hello--
see also Marc Caball and Kaarina Hollo, Chapter 3, “The Literature of later medieval Ireland, 1200-1600: from the Normans to the Tudors,” in The Cambridge History of Irish Literature vol. I, pp. 74-139: 124-7. These pages (written by Hollo) discuss translations from English to Irish, esp by the 15th-century author Uilleam Mac an Leagha, who had connections to the house of Ormond and who translates lives of Hercules, Bevis of Hampton and Guy of Warwick, all out of English and found in one of his MSS (TCD MS H.2.7). Bevis (Bibus) is translated into an ornamental prose style, which was the norm in Irish for such a work (there are also original Irish Arthurian romances), and has many hallmarks of Irish lit. Mac an Leagha also translates religious material, incl a life of St Mary of Egypt.
Despite the heavy Anglo-Norman influence in the later middle ages, “There is no evidence for translation from French into Irish; all known translations of originally French texts can be shown to be based on English intermediaries.” (Hollo 124) There are, however, French texts written in Ireland, including the long verse chronicle “The Song of Dermot and the Earl”, about the late-12th century Anglo-Norman conquest of Ireland and written sometime between 1200 and 1225 (Caball 86).
Sincerely, Thomas
On 8/2/11 1:58 PM, "Sean Henry" <[log in to unmask]">[log in to unmask]> wrote:
Taking up Anne Coldiron's remark about Nordic languages, Roger, I passed on your question to a friend who is a scholar of mediaeval Icelandic, Russell Poole, whose response is below.
Sean Henry.
From Russell Poole, University of Western Ontario:
Some C15th and 16th Icelandic poetry may represent translations of
Middle English poetry. Although not exactly a lyric, the "Pistell of
Swete Susan" is one example of a ME poem that seems to been adapted
into Icelandic. Martin Chase at Fordham U is the current expert on
this and I have heard him give a couple of papers on related topics
over the past few months.
I would lay good money (not too much, though) that some "mansöngr"
stanzas in the later medieval/early modern Icelandic poetry might
represent translations or -- more likely -- adaptations of Harley
Lyric-type effusions, e.g., "Lent is cumen with lufe to toun".
You'll recall that the C15th is called the "English century/enska öld"
in Iceland, b/c of all the contact during that time, centering on
fishing but also encompassing other trade and perhaps with Lincoln as
the strongest contact-point. Shakespeare's "Iceland cur" (forgive me
for this approximation, Sean) represents one aspect of this trade.
The Icelandic texts are mostly inedited and not really accessible to
any practical purpose. Martin reckons this is a shame and that there
is much good stuff there.
-------------------------------------------------
Sean Henry, B.A., M.A., PhD.
Lecturer, Department of English
University of Victoria, B.C., Canada
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