The Emergence of a Discipline: The Scandinavians and Anglo-Saxon Literary Studies

FAIN: FA-52664-06

Robert E. Bjork
Arizona State University (Tempe, AZ 85281-3670)

Anglo-Saxon literary studies began in Scandinavian over 200 years ago, and the contributions to the field in Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Icelandic, Finnish, and Scandinavian Neo-Latin now number nearly 300 books, articles, and translations. Most of these contributions, however, are virtually unknown to modern Anglo-Saxonists because of the barriers those languages (including, sadly, Latin) pose. My book will give scholars access to the entire corpus of these important primary sources. I will analyze their background and content, translate a selection of these texts into English, and append a complete bibliography of these and related materials.

Associated Products

Klaeber's Beowulf and the Fight at Finnsburg (Book)
Title: Klaeber's Beowulf and the Fight at Finnsburg
Editor: R. D. Fulk
Editor: John D. Niles
Editor: Robert E. Bjork
Abstract: The 4th, completely revised edition of Fr. Klaeber's Beowulf and the Fight at Finnsburg, the 1st edition of which appeared in 1922. The 3rd edition appeared in 1950 and has been the standard edition of the poem ever since.
Year: 2008
Primary URL: http://http://www.worldcat.org/title/klaebers-beowulf-and-the-fight-at-finnsburg/oclc/184738270&referer=brief_results
Publisher: University of Toronto Press
Type: Scholarly Edition
ISBN: 9780802095671

Prizes

Best Edition in Any Medium
Date: 8/1/2009
Organization: International Society of Anglo-Saxonists
Abstract: Best edition published in 2008 or 2009 in any medium of an Anglo-Saxon Latin or vernacular text.

The Oxford Dictionary of the Middle Ages (Book)
Title: The Oxford Dictionary of the Middle Ages
Editor: Robert E. Bjork
Abstract: A resource of first resort for all key aspects of European history, society, religion, and culture, c. 500 to c. 1500.
Year: 2010
Primary URL: http://www.worldcat.org/title/oxford-dictionary-of-the-middle-ages/oclc/475455573&referer=brief_results
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Type: Other
ISBN: 9780198662624

Old English Studies and its Scandinavian Practitioners Nationalism, Aesthetics, and Spirituality in the Nordic Countries, 1733-2023 (Book)
Title: Old English Studies and its Scandinavian Practitioners Nationalism, Aesthetics, and Spirituality in the Nordic Countries, 1733-2023
Author: Robert Bjork
Abstract: The discipline of Old English Studies began in Scandinavia, not England, pioneered by the work of the great Danish scholar, N.F.S. Grundtvig (1783-1872) and continues to flourish in the languages of the region (including Finland). This book offers a history of Scandinavian scholarship, in Neo-Latin, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Icelandic, as well as Finnish and Sámi, from 1733 to the present day. It surveys the major events and texts in the discipline, and evaluates translations of Beowulf and other Old English prose and verse texts. It argues that nationalism, aesthetics, and spirituality are the chief motivators for Old English studies in the Nordic countries; although Romantic nationalism was a first mover for Old English studies, the qualities Scandinavians now seek in Old English literature-that we all seek-are transnational, existential, spiritual, and human. The study concludes with complete bibliographies of contributions in the Scandinavian languages to Old English studies and of translations of Old English literature into the Scandinavian languages.
Year: 2024
Primary URL: https://openaccess.boydellandbrewercms.com/publications/-281096/old-english-studies-and-its-scandinavian-practitioners
Publisher: Boydell & Brewer
Type: Single author monograph
ISBN: 9781843847274
Copy sent to NEH?: Yes

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