Bilingualism in Medieval Europe: Germans and Slavs in Helmold of Bosau'sChronicle

Abstract

Having described the countries of the “numerous peoples of the Slavs,” the late twelfth-century chronicler Helmold of Bosau added, “If you consider Hungary as a part of Slavania, as some would suggest, because it does not differ by customs or by language, the area of the Slavic language extends so far that a proper estimate is quite lacking.” These few words indicate how clearly local the chronicler's horizon was—the farther away from Wagria, the fuzzier his information. At the same time, though, Helmold made plain that the Slavic language was for him an essential element of what Slavania was. As a parish priest at the forefront of missionary and settlement activities, Helmold wrote a chronicle that is a unique source of information for intercultural interactions between Germans and Slavs during the high medieval colonization period.

Verbal and Non-Verbal Communication between Germans and Wends in the Second Half of the Tenth Century

“…It should be emphasized that Helmold did not describe these scenes as it seemed reasonable to him in his own time. 19 His testimonies confirm that the linguistic interactions between the two groups are based on political interests, rather than mere observation of culture. This phenomenon occurred in the tenth century and continued at least until the second half of the twelfth century.…”