Romance literatures

[Alex Delarge]

"Ser poeta" by Florbela Espanca

Ser poeta é ser mais alto, é ser maior
Do que os homens! Morder como quem beija!
É ser mendigo e dar como quem seja
Rei do Reino de Aquém e de Além Dor!

É ter de mil desejos o esplendor
E não saber sequer que se deseja!
É ter cá dentro um astro que flameja,
É ter garras e asas de condor!

É ter fome, é ter sede de Infinito!
Por elmo, as manhãs de oiro e de cetim...
É condensar o mundo num só grito!

E é amar-te, assim, perdidamente...
É seres alma, e sangue, e vida em mim
E dizê-lo cantando a toda a gente!

[Comte Arnau]

First Romance literary texts:

[Comte Arnau]

"Literary fathers" of the main Romance languages:


FRENCH
Chrétien de Troyes (1130s-1180s)






ITALIAN
Giovanni Francesco di Bernardone (Saint Francis of Assisi) (1180s-1220s)






GALICIAN-PORTUGUESE
Paio Soares (1200s-1250s)






SPANISH
Gonzalo de Bercelo (1190s-1260s)






CATALAN
Ramon Llull (1230s-1310s)







Note: To those who know this, I'd like to know who is regarded as the first literary writer in Romanian.

[Alex Delarge]

Are the above known in their countries? Paio Soares isn't here. He isn't a reference at schools at least.

[Comte Arnau]

Are the above known in their countries? Paio Soares isn't here. He isn't a reference at schools at least.

In some cases, yes. Berceo is known in Spanish literature as the first known poet. Previous writers are still regarded by most scholars as anonymous. Llull is known in the Catalan domain as the father of the language, first to write philosophy, science and literature in a Catalan that is definitely not Occitan anymore. Troyes is known as the Old French writer who introduced those topics of Lancelot, the Grail, etc, into common knowledge. Saint Francis of Assisi is probably more known for other things, though. The name of the Portuguese is that of the author of the earliest main poem in Portuguese, although as you say, it's just usually seen as part of the Galician-Portuguese troubadour ensemble.

Notice that I was mentioning the first literary writers in the language, not the first great ones, although in the case of Catalan it coincides. So different from the title of "fathers" often given to Dante in Italian, Cervantes in Spanish or Camões in Portuguese.