Publications

The editing and critical analysis of medieval Galician-Portuguese poetry has been undermined by contradictory approaches and methods for over a century. Normas de edición is an attempt to quieten the editorial ‘noise’ of competing techniques and strategies (particularly in relation to accentual variation) which can act as a barrier to readability and communication.

The object of these guidelines is to provide a single set of editing criteria and techniques for standard annotated editions of Galician-Portuguese medieval poetry, based on a careful review of all of the methodologies and strategies available. The guidelines are underpinned by a series of basic editing principles: accentual variation between secular and religious manuscripts; critical comparison and evaluation of different schools of editing in the past; and the relationship between language status and uniformity of accentuation. Representational accuracy and capacity have, in turn, been determined in relation to the limits of standardisation, levelling and simplification of accents (i.e. the avoidance of phonological consequences).

The guidelines were developed and debated during a series of working sessions held as part of the 1st Textual Criticism Symposium (Island of San Simón, 22-23 June 2006), and agreed by the following group of experts from the Universities of A Coruña, Santiago de Compostela and Vigo: Carlos Paulo Martínez Pereiro, Elvira Fidalgo, Henrique Monteagudo Romero, José Antonio Souto Cabo, José Luís Rodríguez, José Martinho Montero Santalha, Laura Tato Fontaíña, Manuel Ferreiro, Mariña Arbor Aldea, Mercedes Brea, Pilar Lorenzo and Xosé Bieito Arias Freixedo.