Digital Text

An Encyclopedist Of The Dark Ages: Isidore Of Seville

By Ernest Brehaut

Studies in History, Economics and Public Law, Columbia University, New York, 1912
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About this Text

Isidore of Seville (latter half of the sixth century to circa 636 CE) was a Hispanic-Roman churchman and writer in the city of Seville. He became bishop of Seville around 600 CE, succeeding his brother Leander in that post. He is best known for for two of his works: De natura rerum and the Etymologiae. The Etymologies was the book that was most used by the compilers of later bestiaries; most of the twelfth century and later manuscripts quote from Chapter 12 (De animalibus) of that work. Isidore was a compiler of existing knowledge rather than an original thinker, but his writing was influential for centuries after his death. Brehaut's An Encyclopedist Of The Dark Ages: Isidore Of Seville gives an overview of Isidore's life, culture and works, and provides a translation of extracts from the Etymologies.

Ernest Brehaut (1873-1953), at the time this book was written, was a professor at Columbia University.

Copyright

The print edition of this text was published in New York in 1913; the digital edition was created from the original in 2004 by David Badke. The original print edition by Ernest Brehaut (1873-1953) is believed to be in the public domain in Canada and the United States of America; it may or may not be in the public domain in other countries.

This work is made available under a
Creative Commons Licence