Periodic Reporting for period 2 - PeopleAndWriting (The Secret Life of Writing: People, Script and Ideas in the Iberian Peninsula (c. 900-1200))
Okres sprawozdawczy: 2021-08-01 do 2023-01-31
PeopleAndWriting investigates the connection between people of rural communities and the written word in the medieval Iberian Peninsula as a key instrument in forging long-lasting personal identities while shaping the interactions within and among social groups. We aim to look at the lives and work of ordinary laypeople and construct their social profile in relation to written communication, analysing how the introduction of writing and writing-based social practices changed society. To this end, PeopleAndWriting proposes the application of a novel approach to study an overlooked corpus of written material: the extant tenth- to twelfth-century manuscript sources from the north-western Iberian Peninsula.
PeopleAndWriting’s corpus comprises more than 7,500 manuscript testimonies; charters, diplomatic codices, and codex fragments. It represents the written production of a culturally homogeneous area corresponding to the early medieval Kingdom of Galicia, a land in theory integrated within the northern peninsular kingdoms but in practice independent, with its singular social groups detached from the central government. Subjecting this corpus to interdisciplinary study, PeopleAndWriting proposes to apply a specifically designed methodology to conduct ground-breaking research on the documentary practices performed in rural contexts of medieval Iberia, comparing them with other European nuclei and studying their characteristics and evolution from the tenth to the twelfth centuries.
We aim to identify and reconstruct rural communities, their family ties, and connections, focusing on the relationship between people and writing from the point of view of the individuals, who recognised and used writing as an integral part of their world, rather than on central institutions, which relied on it for preserving their power. The project explores how professionals of writing, individuals who had recourse to books to fulfil their spiritual needs, and lay people, understood writing not only as a means of communication but as a symbol of authority and of cultural and personal identity. In contrast to current scholarship on medieval Iberian written sources, limited to analysing isolated groups of sources from a mainly palaeographic or historical point of view, the project aims to look further to understand how the practice of writing was acquired, developed, applied, and incorporated into people’s lives and how access to it, or the lack thereof, shaped society at large.
PeopleAndWriting’s corpus comprises more than 7,500 manuscript testimonies; charters, diplomatic codices, and codex fragments. It represents the written production of a culturally homogeneous area corresponding to the early medieval Kingdom of Galicia, a land in theory integrated within the northern peninsular kingdoms but in practice independent, with its singular social groups detached from the central government. Subjecting this corpus to interdisciplinary study, PeopleAndWriting proposes to apply a specifically designed methodology to conduct ground-breaking research on the documentary practices performed in rural contexts of medieval Iberia, comparing them with other European nuclei and studying their characteristics and evolution from the tenth to the twelfth centuries.
We aim to identify and reconstruct rural communities, their family ties, and connections, focusing on the relationship between people and writing from the point of view of the individuals, who recognised and used writing as an integral part of their world, rather than on central institutions, which relied on it for preserving their power. The project explores how professionals of writing, individuals who had recourse to books to fulfil their spiritual needs, and lay people, understood writing not only as a means of communication but as a symbol of authority and of cultural and personal identity. In contrast to current scholarship on medieval Iberian written sources, limited to analysing isolated groups of sources from a mainly palaeographic or historical point of view, the project aims to look further to understand how the practice of writing was acquired, developed, applied, and incorporated into people’s lives and how access to it, or the lack thereof, shaped society at large.
During the period covered by this report, the work performed has been linked to that first stage as follows:
We have compiled all manuscript evidence of interest for the project through bibliographic and historical research and active research work in the main Portuguese and Spanish archives. The project has produced the following major results: (1) A full catalogue of all medieval sources preserved for the area of Galicia, which will be made public soon in the project’s website (peopleandwriting.usal.es). (2) A detailed list of all private-lay documents preserved for the area of Entre-Minho-e-Douro (northern Portugal), which will also be made available through the project’s website.
The project moved forward focusing on the graphic analysis of the sources. Digital surrogates of the selected sources were added to the online platform for graphic analysis visigothicpal.com and we proceeded to their meticulous description. For that purpose, the project has produced the following major result: a new methodology needed to be established since the conventional one was not detailed enough to cover the peculiarities observed (to be published in OA soon, disseminated through paper presentations).
We continued with the textual and diplomatic analysis of the sources. The project has produced the following major result: a new methodology to diplomatically analyse written sources building from recent advances in the field (to be published in OA soon, disseminated through paper presentations).
The results achieved so far in carrying on these analyses (connection between writing and people, rural areas, local environment) will be studied in the second stage of the project.
During this period, the following dissemination activities (research) have been carried out: project website, two databases, twelve posts on project websites (social media dissemination), four research expeditions, one award, one paper in a peer review publication, four communication campaigns (radio and video), one webinar, one open talk, one book chapter, one monographic volume, one organization of a workshop about calligraphy, one PhD seminar, thirteen participations in conferences and workshops (posters as oral contributions) with their corresponding publication in the proceedings
We have compiled all manuscript evidence of interest for the project through bibliographic and historical research and active research work in the main Portuguese and Spanish archives. The project has produced the following major results: (1) A full catalogue of all medieval sources preserved for the area of Galicia, which will be made public soon in the project’s website (peopleandwriting.usal.es). (2) A detailed list of all private-lay documents preserved for the area of Entre-Minho-e-Douro (northern Portugal), which will also be made available through the project’s website.
The project moved forward focusing on the graphic analysis of the sources. Digital surrogates of the selected sources were added to the online platform for graphic analysis visigothicpal.com and we proceeded to their meticulous description. For that purpose, the project has produced the following major result: a new methodology needed to be established since the conventional one was not detailed enough to cover the peculiarities observed (to be published in OA soon, disseminated through paper presentations).
We continued with the textual and diplomatic analysis of the sources. The project has produced the following major result: a new methodology to diplomatically analyse written sources building from recent advances in the field (to be published in OA soon, disseminated through paper presentations).
The results achieved so far in carrying on these analyses (connection between writing and people, rural areas, local environment) will be studied in the second stage of the project.
During this period, the following dissemination activities (research) have been carried out: project website, two databases, twelve posts on project websites (social media dissemination), four research expeditions, one award, one paper in a peer review publication, four communication campaigns (radio and video), one webinar, one open talk, one book chapter, one monographic volume, one organization of a workshop about calligraphy, one PhD seminar, thirteen participations in conferences and workshops (posters as oral contributions) with their corresponding publication in the proceedings
The first stage of the project aims to make accessible a corpus of manuscript sources that has hitherto been inaccessible and hence neglected in Medieval Studies: it provides the first online database for textual and graphic research of Iberian manuscript material, including digital surrogates of the documents when possible. It aims for a far-reaching impact and wide-ranging applicability in many areas of medieval research, particularly in the fields of Manuscript Studies and social, economic, and political History, by contextualising the graphic and historical information provided in textual sources. Since the documents are to be edited and translated, the database aims to open the collection to everyone interested in our common past, encouraging further use in Cultural Heritage activities.
The second stage of the project aims at studying the results of the textual and graphic research conducted in the previous stage by focusing on the scribes, the signers, and the readers of documents.
By focusing on the scribes, we aim to deliver new insights regarding the connections between users of writing, scribes, and scripts. Also, to offer a better understanding of how scribes learnt to write in different graphic styles and applied their skills in a specific manuscript or a particular cultural/political context. These results intend to have a strong impact on various disciplines: e.g. on Manuscript Studies by revealing patterns of written production, allowing the contextualisation of sources that do not provide this information.
By focusing on those who signed documents, the project will offer a comprehensive study of the connection between individuals who were not writing professionals and the physical act of writing, at the same time exploring rural communities, who integrated them and how they related to each other. This research is expected to significantly expand our understanding of social relations and the building of a literate community during the Middle Ages, allowing a more profound comprehension of social groups and how they interacted with each other.
Finally, by focusing on the readers, the project aims to further determining the literacy level of medieval north-west Iberian society and its cultural links with other peninsular and European centres, aiming at providing greater understanding of the acts of writing and reading, enhancing the contextualisation of the project.
The second stage of the project aims at studying the results of the textual and graphic research conducted in the previous stage by focusing on the scribes, the signers, and the readers of documents.
By focusing on the scribes, we aim to deliver new insights regarding the connections between users of writing, scribes, and scripts. Also, to offer a better understanding of how scribes learnt to write in different graphic styles and applied their skills in a specific manuscript or a particular cultural/political context. These results intend to have a strong impact on various disciplines: e.g. on Manuscript Studies by revealing patterns of written production, allowing the contextualisation of sources that do not provide this information.
By focusing on those who signed documents, the project will offer a comprehensive study of the connection between individuals who were not writing professionals and the physical act of writing, at the same time exploring rural communities, who integrated them and how they related to each other. This research is expected to significantly expand our understanding of social relations and the building of a literate community during the Middle Ages, allowing a more profound comprehension of social groups and how they interacted with each other.
Finally, by focusing on the readers, the project aims to further determining the literacy level of medieval north-west Iberian society and its cultural links with other peninsular and European centres, aiming at providing greater understanding of the acts of writing and reading, enhancing the contextualisation of the project.