The Middle Dutch Reynaert tradition consists of two texts: Van den Vos Reynaerde and Reynaerts Historie. The first text is an adaptation of Branch I of the Roman de Renart and was probably written around the middle of the thirteenth century. The second text is an adaptation and continuation of Van den Vos Reynaerde. It dates from the end of the fourteenth or the first half of the fifteenth century. The printed Reynaert tradition in Dutch starts in the second half of the fifteenth century. It is solely based on Reynaerts Historie. This printed tradition is fairly stable until the beginning of the nineteenth century. Then Van den Vos Reynaerde is rediscovered and takes its place next to (and later above) Reynaerts Historie, and new developments in scholarship and cultural ideas lead to a variety of Reynaert versions. In this chapter the printed Reynaert tradition in the Low Countries is studied from its beginnings until the moment it stops being a unity. - [Author]

Language: English

ISBN: 1-57181-737-9