Cançoneret de Ripoll facts for kids
The Cançoneret de Ripoll (pronounced like "can-soo-nuh-RED duh ree-POLL") is a special old book. It's a collection of poems and songs, also known as a chansonnier. This book was written in the middle of the 1300s, after the year 1346. It's important because it shows how poetry changed in Catalonia.
This old book is now kept safe as manuscript 129 at the Arxiu de la Corona d'Aragó in Barcelona. It's a mix of poems in two old languages: Catalan and Occitan.
Contents
Where Did This Book Come From?
People have wondered for a long time where the Cançoneret de Ripoll was first made.
Some think it came from the Ripoll monastery. This is because many of the poems have Latin titles, and many of the poets mentioned were priests or monks. The book was first found in the monastery's library.
Others believe it came from a noble family or a royal court. This idea comes from mentions of important people like Peter, Count of Ribagorza, and places in Roussillon and the Kingdom of Majorca. It also has some poems that are a bit like those written by traveling student poets called Goliards.
What's Inside the Cançoneret?
The Cançoneret de Ripoll contains a copy of the Regles de trobar (Rules of Poetry) by Jaufre de Foixa. It also has an untitled part that continues these rules, explaining different types of poems and how they should be structured.
To help explain the rules, the book includes 18 complete poems and one small piece of a poem. All the poets mentioned are from Catalonia, but only five or six of them are actually named.
Poetic Styles
The Cançoneret de Ripoll talks about many different kinds of poems and songs. These styles were similar to those found in other famous poetry rulebooks of the time. Here are some of the styles it describes:
- Cançó: A love song.
- Tençó: A debate or argument between two poets.
- Sirventès: A poem that criticizes someone or something, or talks about politics.
- Cobles d'acuyndamens: Special short poems where poets broke promises of loyalty or love. This type is unique to this book!
- Cobles de qüestions: Short poems that ask questions. This type is also unique to this book!
- Vers: A poem that was entirely about moral or good behavior.
- Dança: A dance song.
- Desdança: A type of dance song.
- Viadera: A traveler's song. The book says this was "the most humble type of song."
Who Wrote the Poems?
The book mentions some famous old poets called troubadours, like Guillem de Cabestany and Arnaut Daniel.
It also includes poems by Catalan poets such as Dalmau de Castellnou and Pere Alamany. There's even a poem mentioned by Pere de Vilademany.
Many of the poems in the Cançoneret were written by people whose names we don't know. They are just called things like "an anonymous poet," "a friar," "two friars," "a nun," "brother Hugh, prior," "Francesc," or "an archpriest."
See also
In Spanish: Cancionero de Ripoll para niños
