Trees in the Religions of Early Medieval England

Erscheinungsjahr 2015
ISBN: 978-1-84383-989-7
Verlag: Boydell & Brewer

Buch, Englisch, Band 26, 206 Seiten, Print PDF, Format (B × H): 166 mm x 242 mm, Gewicht: 461 g

Reihe: Anglo-Saxon Studies

Drawing on sources from archaeology and written texts, the author brings out the full significance of trees in both pagan and Christian Anglo-Saxon religion.

Author won the Faculty Research Award from the Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Canterbury Christ Church University.

Trees were of fundamental importance in Anglo-Saxon material culture - but they were also a powerful presence in Anglo-Saxon religion before and after the introduction of Christianity. This book shows that they remained prominentin early English Christianity, and indeed that they may have played a crucial role in mediating the transition between ancient beliefs and the new faith. It argues that certain characteristics of sacred trees in England can be determined from insular contexts alone, independent of comparative evidence from culturally related peoples. This nevertheless suggests the existence of traditions comparable to those found in Scandinavia and Germany. Tree symbolismhelped early English Christians to understand how the beliefs of their ancestors about trees, posts, and pillars paralleled the appearance of similar objects in the Old Testament. In this way, the religious symbols of their forebears were aligned with precursors to the cross in Scripture. Literary evidence from England and Scandinavia similarly indicates a shared tradition of associations between the bodies of humans, trees, and other plant-life. Though potentially ancient, these ideas flourished amongst the abundance of vegetative symbolism found in the Christian tradition.

Michael Bintley is Senior Lecturer in Medieval Literature at Canterbury Christ Church University.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Bintley, Michael

Weitere Mitwirkende

Bintley, Michael

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Weltgeschichte & Geschichte einzelner Länder und Gebietsräume Geschichte einzelner Länder Europäische Länder
• Geisteswissenschaften Religionswissenschaft Sonstige Religionen Sonstige Religionen: Kult, Riten, Feiertage, Zeremonien, Gebete
• Geisteswissenschaften Religionswissenschaft Religionswissenschaft Allgemein Religionsgeschichte Alteuropäische Religionen: Kelten, Germanen, Slawen, Balten
• Sozialwissenschaften Ethnologie | Volkskunde Volkskunde Volkskunde: Sitten, Traditionen, Mythen, Legenden
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtliche Themen Mentalitäts- und Sozialgeschichte
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Weltgeschichte & Geschichte einzelner Länder und Gebietsräume Europäische Geschichte

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Introduction - Michael D.J. Bintley
Holy Trees and Inculturation in the Conversion Period - Michael D.J. Bintley
Anglo-Saxon Holy Trees and their Northern European Counterparts - Michael D.J. Bintley
Rewriting the Holy Rood in Anglo-Saxon Spiritual History - Michael D.J. Bintley
The Human Forest: People and Trees in Early Medieval England and Scandinavia - Michael D.J. Bintley
Conclusions - Michael D.J. Bintley
Bibliography - Michael D.J. Bintley

Über Autor(innen)

Bintley, Michael
MICHAEL BINTLEY is Associate Professor in Medieval English Literature at the University of Southampton. He is author of Trees in the Religions of Early Medieval England (2015), and Settlements and Strongholds in Early Medieval England: Texts, Landscapes, and Material Culture (2020), and co-author of Landscapes and Environments of the Middle Ages (2023).

Bintley, Michael
MICHAEL BINTLEY is Associate Professor in Medieval English Literature at the University of Southampton. He is author of Trees in the Religions of Early Medieval England (2015), and Settlements and Strongholds in Early Medieval England: Texts, Landscapes, and Material Culture (2020), and co-author of Landscapes and Environments of the Middle Ages (2023).