Medieval Nordic Literature in Latin (MNLL)
The MNLL encyclopedia (wiki)
Welcome to Medieval Nordic Literature in Latin (MNLL) - an encyclopedia (wiki) which encompasses a range of Latin texts. These texts were written by authors who came from - or were connected to - the Nordic region during the Middle Ages.
From saints’ lives to chronicles and scholarly documents, medieval texts with Nordic origins reveal a vibrant intellectual culture beyond the Old Norse sagas. They reflect the Nordic region's integration into European intellectual and cultural life, with Latin serving as the language of scholarship and administration.
Browse entries by authors, anonymous works, saints, and genres to discover a lesser-known side of medieval Nordic history.
About MNLL
Purpose
The purpose of this wiki-website is to provide in-depth introductions to all known literary works written in Latin in the Nordic countries before the Reformation (ca 1530).
We hope to document the breadth and importance of writings in Latin which have too often been treated as footnotes to the vernacular literatures.
Read more about Medieval Nordic Literature in Latin (MNLL)
Types of entries
There are four types of entries: (1) named authors, (2) titles of anonymous works (3) saints, including legends, sermons, liturgical texts belonging to each Nordic saint (found under sanctus / sancta), (4) a few collective articles on genres such as Annales and Catalogi.
A few entries of important authors are still missing, most notably Sancta Birgitta, Wilhelm of Æbelholt, Brynolf Algotsson, and Magister Matthias.
Founders and editors
This site was founded by Stephan Borgehammar, Karsten Friis-Jensen (†), Lars Boje Mortensen and Åslaug Ommundsen.
It is currently edited by Stephan Borgehammar, Lars Boje Mortensen, Åslaug Ommundsen and Steffen Hope.
The site was established in 2012, and in 2025, the articles are being edited and updated in accordance with current research. Updates are carried out as part of the CODICUM project.
Citation instructions
Articles should be referred to as [Author] [Entry] 2012 in Medieval Nordic Literature in Latin (eds Borgehammar, Friis-Jensen, Mortensen, Ommundsen) (Most articles were finished before 2008, but some are updated further).
