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Hystoria gweryddon yr Almaen ‘The history of the virgins of Germany’

Huw Pennant (Syr)
  • Middle Welsh
  • prose
Middle Welsh adaptation of the legend of St Ursula and the 11,000 virgins. The text was written by Syr Huw Pennant, as the colophon at the end of the text states, and survives, in his own hand, in Peniarth MS 182.
Title
Hystoria gweryddon yr Almaen
‘The history of the virgins of Germany’
Also known as Buchedd Wrsula (‘The Life of Ursula’).
First words (prose)
  • Yn yr amser yr oedd Gustennin vab Maxen o Elen verch Eudaf o Gaer Sallawc i vam yn vrenin ym Prydyn ac Ywain i vrawd, hwn a elwid Ywain Vinddu, yn varchoc vrddol a’r trydydd brawd oedd Beblic Sant: yn [y] kyfamser hyn yr oeddynt amraevael vrenhinedd yn Ynys y Kedyrn
Author
Pennant (Huw) [Syr]
Pennant (Huw) ... Syr
(fl. 15th century (second half)–1514)
Welsh poet; scribe of Peniarth MS 182.
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Colophon: Ac velly y tervyna Ystoria Gweryddon yr Almaen hyd y medrodd Syr Huw Pennant i thynnu o Llading yNghymraeg val y gallai rai kerddgar i dyall o’i hiaith e hun.
Manuscripts
Aberystwyth, National Library of Wales, Peniarth MS 182 = Llyfr Syr Huw Pennant [c.1514]
pp. 261–299
The text is followed by a list of foundations in Cologne.
Language
  • Middle Welsh
Form
prose (primary)

Classification

Subjects

Martyrdom and persecutions of Christians in the Roman Empire
Martyrdom and persecutions of Christians in the Roman Empire
id. 61146
St Ursula and the virgin martyrs of CologneMartyrdom and persecutions of Christians in the Roman Empire
St Ursula and the virgin martyrs of Cologne
id. 49692
Ursula
Ursula
(supp. fl. 3rd/4th century)
Supposed Roman British saint and martyr, daughter of a British king.
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Sources

Primary sources Text editions and/or modern translations – in whole or in part – along with publications containing additions and corrections, if known. Diplomatic editions, facsimiles and digital image reproductions of the manuscripts are not always listed here but may be found in entries for the relevant manuscripts. For historical purposes, early editions, transcriptions and translations are not excluded, even if their reliability does not meet modern standards.

[ed.] Cartwright, Jane, Hystoria gweryddon yr Almaen: the Middle Welsh Life of St Ursula and the 11,000 virgins, MHRA Library of Medieval Welsh Literature, London: Modern Humanities Research Association, 2020.  
abstract:
Medieval Welsh literature is rich in hagiographical lore and numerous Welsh versions of the Lives of saints are extant, recording the legends of both native and universal saints. Although the cult of St Ursula and the 11,000 virgins is well known internationally, this is the first time that a scholarly edition of her Welsh legend has been published in its entirety. Hystoria Gweryddon yr Almaen was adapted into Welsh by Sir Huw Pennant and it survives in a unique manuscript - Aberystwyth, National Library of Wales, Peniarth MS 182 (c. 1509–1514). The edition is accompanied by a full glossary, as well as detailed textual and linguistic notes, and information on the development and transmission of the legend. The peculiarities of the Welsh text will be considered in the introduction as well as the similarities it shares with other versions. The volume also considers the wider cultural context of the legend and discuss the Welsh cult of St Ursula and her companions. Welsh tradition claims that Ursula was Welsh and she became associated with the church at Llangwyryfon in Ceredigion and other minor Welsh chapels.
[ed.] Parry-Williams, T. H. (ed.), Rhyddiaith Gymraeg, gyfrol I: detholion o lawysgrifau, 1488-1609, Cardiff: University of Wales Press, 1954.
18–22 Partial edition by J. Gwenogvryn Evans.

Secondary sources (select)

Cartwright, Jane, “The Middle Welsh Life of St Ursula and the 11,000 virgins”, in: Jane Cartwright (ed.), The cult of St Ursula and the 11,000 virgins, Cardiff: University of Wales Press, 2016. 163–186.
web page identifiers
Contributors
Dennis Groenewegen
Page created
October 2020, last updated: September 2023
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