Old High German Literature
This course examines the emergence of writing in historical German, various cultures of monastic textual and literary production, and the religious and political circumstances that shaped Old High German literature.
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Course begins January 16, 2027
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Live sessions with the instructor each week from 12:00 - 2:00pm Eastern U.S. time
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All sessions are recorded and available to view for up to 2 weeks after the last live session
Session 1
Old High German Literature in Context
The introductory session situates the surviving corpus of Old High German texts in their historical, intellectual, literary, and religious contexts. It will introduce the central questions that will inform our study over the course.
Session 2
Old Germanic Charms
Charms are short, spoken, ritualised prayers or incantations intended to ward off evil, protect against harm, and heal the sick. These texts appear across the early medieval Germanic languages. The second session considers their purpose and use, and the boundaries between ritual, folk religion, and Christianity in Old High German, Old Saxon, and Old English examples of the genre.
Session 3
Biblical Translation in Old High German
The Germanic languages boast some of the earliest European translations and adaptations of the Bible outside of Latin and Greek, including the work of Otfrid of Weissenburg, the Old Saxon Heliand, and the Gothic Bible. In this session we will survey cultures of biblical translation in Old High German, Old Saxon, and related Germanic vernaculars.
Session 4
Creation and Apocalypse: Muspili and Related Works
Eschatology deals with the beginning and end of time, the last things – death, judgment, heaven, and hell – and the fate of the soul after death. In this session we will look at Old High German and related texts that contend with these subjects.
Session 5
Poems against the Vikings
This session looks closely at the Old High German Ludwigslied and the Old English Battle of Maldon, as well as the Old English Battle of Brunanburh, in order to understand how similar literary cultures responded to and represented the threat of Viking attack. We will consider how these works depict the Viking enemy, as well as their treatment of the themes of faith, heroism, resistance, and warfare.
Session 6
Saints, Kings, and Other Voices in Old High German Literature
In the final session we look at some of the other major works of Old High German literature including Georgslied (a poem about Saint George) and De Heinrico (about royal affairs), alongside a selection of shorter texts and fragments.
Meet Your Instructor
John J. Gallagher
Dr. John Gallagher researches and teaches Old English and related North Sea literatures and languages, including Old Saxon, Old High German, Old Norse-Icelandic, and Latin. John has taught various courses on Old English and medieval literature for the University of St. Andrews, University College Dublin, the Orthodox Academy of Crete, and Medievalists.net.
More information about this course
No previous knowledge of Old High German is required. All material will be read in translation. Additional resources and materials will be made available online, but it will be necessary to purchase the course anthology in advance:
Old High German Poetry: An Anthology, ed. and trans. Brian Murdoch (London: Uppsala Books, 2025). It is recommended that you purchase the anthology before the beginning of the course. You can buy it here.
The course is open to all, from complete novices who are curious about what exists in Old High German to more seasoned students and scholars who work in this area. It is also open to anyone who might have taken my previous courses on Old English and will take a similar approach.
The course will be accessible, informal, and emphasize discussion. This format requires that you come to each class having read the allocated texts and are prepared to discuss them.