Historia de la donzella Teodor

The first English edition and critical study of an anonymous thirteenth-century text about the disputations of a learned young woman with a series of wise men.

This is the first English edition and critical study of the Historia de la Donzella Teodor, an anonymous thirteenth-century text about the disputations of a learned young woman with a series of wise men. The text recounts the story of a young slave who is offered to the king in the hopes of saving her master from financial ruin. Intrigued by claims of her superior intelligence, the Caliph orders his court scholars to quiz the girl, Teodor, who, in each of the examinations, demonstrates unparalleled skills and triumphs over the scholars.

Based on the five extant manuscripts of the thirteenth-century Teodor, the present edition will be of immediate interest to scholars and students of medieval Spanish literature and a valuable resource for those interested in Hispano-Arabic literary and cultural contact, and-due to the complete semi-paleographic transcriptions of all the witnesses-to historical linguists. Since the critical material is in English, it will reach an audience beyond the Iberian peninsula, and further comparative research in medieval literary studies.