Ramón Menéndez Pidal

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Ramón Menéndez Pidal  (March 13, 1869 - November 14, 1968) was a Spanish philologist and historian. He worked extensively on the history of the Spanish language and folklore.

He is called "the most profound and well informed scholar of the Spanish epic tradition" by Guillermo Díaz Plaja in his History of Spanish Literature, Pidal was the first scholar elected to the presidency of the esteemed Royal Spanish Academy who was not a member of the nobility or a politician. He was twice president of the body (1929–39 and 1948–68). His first appointment came after his well-known historical grammar of the Spanish language, Manual de gramatica histórica española (1904; "Manual of Historical Spanish Grammar") and his most important work, an exhaustive study of Spain's twelfth-century epic poem, the Cantar de Mio Cid (1908–11; "The Song of My Cid") He was also made a member of the Royal Academy of History, Madrid, and the Hispanic Society of America, among other learned bodies at home and abroad. His work on the Cantar spawned a renewed interest in Spain's rich medieval heritage which literary historians had previously neglected. He also wrote about the stylistics of Theresa of Ávila, Lope de Vega, and others, as well as etymology and place-names. Throughout his works Menéndez Pidal stressed the roots of Spanish culture, including those Basque, Gothic, and Arabic. Origenes del español (1926; "Origins of Spanish") was proceeded by La España del Cid, 2 vol. (1929; The Cid and His Spain). His grand Historia de España ("History of Spain"), which he began to edit in the 1930s, was incomplete at his death. Its introduction, however, Los españoles en la historia y en la literatura (1947; The Spaniards in Their History: An Analysis of Spain's National Characteristics), is one of his most accessible works for the general reader. He was also editor from 1906 to 1909 of the philological section of Cultura Española, and a founding editor in 1914 of the Revista de filología española.

Contents 1 Bibliography 1.1 Writings by the author 1.1.1 Writings in English translation 1.1.2 In Spanish 1.2 Further readings about the author 1.2.1 Obituary 2 Reference

Menéndez Pidal left a legacy for scholars who would make substantial contributions to Spanish literary studies, including essayist Alfonso Reyes, historian Américo Castro, and critic Dámaso Alonso. Menéndez Pidal's scholarly approach to ancient texts opened new avenues of research to Castilian philologists and provided fresh insights into the methodology of historical study.

Mr. Pidal was born in La Coruña. He studied at the University of Madrid under Marcelino Menéndez y Pelayo, and at Toulouse, obtaining his Ph.D. in 1893. He held the chair of Romanic philology at Madrid from 1899–1939 at the University of Madrid and married Maria Goyri in 1900. He lectured in Spain, South America, and the United States. At Johns Hopkins he delivered the Turnbull lectures in 1909, published the next year as L'Epopée castillane à travers la littérature espagnole. He served as a minister in Spanish cabinet in 1912 and 1918 and was a visiting professor at the University of Buenos Aires in 1914, as well as Columbia University from 1937–38. His Hispanic Society lectures there (1909) appeared as El romancero español. His interest in education led to his being made a member of the board created in 1907 for the advancement of university work in Spain and Counselor of Public instruction for the Kingdom. His varied public service included a journey to Quito and Lima in 1904-05 as Royal commissioner to investigate the claims in the Peru-Ecuador boundary dispute. Pidal died in Madrid.

Pidal later became so enamored of the Cid legend that he named his children after characters from the story, naming his son Rodrigo after the Cid (whose real name was Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar) and his daughter Jimena after the Cid's wife. "His whole life [was] devoted to the Spanish Middle Ages," Walter Starkie commented in his biographical essay on the historian published as a preface to The Spaniards in Their History, "but so profound [was] his knowledge of the obscure workings of the human race in those centuries that he [became] universal, and his researches [were] no less significant to the Hispanists of England, France, Holland or Italy than they [were] to those of North and South America. For this reason his prestige . . . united the scholars of both hemispheres."

[edit] Bibliography

[edit] Writings by the author

[edit] Writings in English translation

• (Editor) Poema del Cid, annotated edition, [Madrid], 1900, abridged edition published with modern Spanish prose version by Alfonso Reyes as Poema del Cid, 1938, reprinted, 1967, abridged Spanish edition with translation by W. S. Merwin published as Poema del Cid/Poem of the Cid (bilingual edition), Las Americas (New York, NY), 1960.

• La España del Cid, two volumes, Plutarca (Madrid), 1929, revised edition, Espasa-Calpe, 1956, translation by Harold Sunderland of original Spanish edition published in one volume as The Cid and His Spain, J. Murray, 1934, reprinted, F. Cass, 1971.

• (Editor and author of preface) Historia de España, seven volumes, [Madrid], 1947, translation by Walter Starkie of preface published as The Spaniards in Their History: An Analysis of Spain's National Characteristics, Norton, 1950.

[edit] In Spanish

• (Editor) La leyenda de los Infantes de Lara, [Madrid], 1896, 2nd edition, [Madrid], 1934, revised edition, Espasa-Calpe, 1971.

• (Editor) Crónicas generales de España: Catalogo de la Real Biblioteca, Sucesores de Rivadeneyra (Madrid), 1898, 3rd edition corrected and enlarged, [Madrid], 1918.

• Notas para el Romancero del Conde Fernán González, [Madrid], 1899.

• (Editor) Antología de prosistas castellanos, [Madrid], 1899, 2nd edition, Clasica Español (Madrid), 1917, 5th edition published as Antología de prosistas españoles, Hernando (Madrid), 1928, reprinted, Espasa-Calpe, 1964.

• (Editor) "El condenado por desconfiado," por Tirso de Molina, [Madrid], 1902.

• La leyenda del Abad Don Juan de Montemayor, [Dresden], 1903.

• Manual elemental de gramática histórica española, [Madrid], 1904, 3rd edition, V. Suarez, 1914, published as Manual de gramática histórica española, 1918, reprinted, Espasa-Calpe, 1977.

• (Editor) Alfonso X, Primera crónica general de España que mando componer Alfonso el Sabio y se continuaba bajo Sancho IV en 1289, [Madrid], 1906, 2nd edition, 1916, reprinted, Gredos, 1977.

• (Editor) Cantar del Mio Cid: Texto, gramática y vocabulario, three volumes, [Madrid], 1908-11, 3rd edition with corrections, Espasa-Calpe (Madrid), 1954-56.

• El romancero español: Conferencias dadas en la Columbia University de New York los días 5 y 7 de abril de 1909, bajo los auspicios de the Hispanic Society of America, Hispanic Society of America (New York, NY), 1910.

• (Editor and author of introduction and notes) Poema del Mio Cid, La Lectura (Madrid), 1913.

• (Editor with wife, Maria Goyri) La serrana de la vera, de Luis Vélez de Guevera, [Madrid], 1916.

• Documentos lingüísticos de España, Volume I: Renio de Castilla, Centro de Estudios Históricos, 1919, reprinted, Revista de Filología Española, 1966.

• Estudios literarios, Ateneo (Madrid), 1920, reprinted, Espasa-Calpe, 1968.

• Un aspecto en la elaboración del "Quijote, " Ateneo, 1920.

• (Contributor) Cursos de metodología y alta cultura: Curso de lingüística, [Barcelona], 1921.

• El Cid y la historia, Jiménez y Molina (Madrid), 1921.

• Poesía popular y poesía tradicional en la literatura española, Oxford University Press, 1922.

• El rey Rodrigo en la literatura, Bulletin of the Royal Spanish Academy, 1924.

• Poesía juglaresca y juglares: Aspectos de la historia literaria y cultural de España, Revista de Archivos (Madrid), 1924, 4th edition, corrected and enlarged, Instituto de Estudios Políticos (Madrid), 1957.

• (Editor) Rodrigo: El ultimo godo, Volume I: La edad media, La Lectura, 1925, reprinted, Espasa-Calpe, 1958.

• Orígenes del español: Estudio lingüístico de la península ibérica hasta el siglo XI (also see below), Hernando, 1926, 4th edition, corrected and greatly enlarged, Espasa-Calpe, 1956.

• El idioma español en sus primeros tiempos (previously published as part of Orígenes del español: Estudio lingüístico de la peninsula ibérica hasta el siglo XI), Voluntad (Madrid), 1927, reprinted, Espasa-Calpe, 1968.

• (Editor) Flor nueva de romances viejos que recogió de la tradición antigua y moderna R. Menéndez Pidal, Revista de Archivos, Bibliotecas y Museos, 1928, expanded edition, 1943, reprinted, Espasa-Calpe, 1968, original edition published as Flor nueva de romances viejos, Espasa-Calpe (Buenos Aires), 1939, reprinted, 1967.

• El romancero: Teorías e investigaciones, Paez (Madrid), 1928.

• Historia y epopeya (also see below), Hernando, 1934.

• (Editor) Epopeya y romancero: Pliegos impresos hasta julio de 1936 bajo los auspicios de la Hispanic Society of America (also see below), Hernando, 1936.

• Los romances de América y otros estudios, Espasa-Calpe (Buenos Aires), 1939, reprinted, Espasa-Calpe (Madrid), 1958.

• De Cervantes y Lope de Vega, Espasa-Calpe, 1940, reprinted, 1973.

• Idea imperial de Carlos V, La condesa traidora, El romanz del infant Garcia, Adefonsus, imperator toletanus (includes three essays previously published in Historia y epopeya), Espasa-Calpe (Buenos Aires), 1941, reprinted, Espasa-Calpe (Madrid), 1963.

• Poesía árabe y poesía europea, con otros estudios de literatura medieval, Espasa-Calpe (Buenos Aires), 1941, reprinted, Espasa-Calpe (Madrid), 1963.

• La lengua de Cristóbal Colón, El estilo de Santa Teresa, y otros estudios sobre el siglo XVI, Espasa-Calpe, 1942.

• Mio Cid: El de Valencia, Universidad Literaria de Valencia, Facultad de Filosofia y Letras, 1943.

• Castilla: La tradición, el idioma, Espasa-Calpe (Buenos Aires), 1945.

• La epopeya castellana a través de la literatura española, Espasa-Calpe, 1945, (originally published in French translation by Henry Merimee from the original Spanish manuscript as L'Epopee castillane à travers la littérature espagnole, with preface by Ernest Merimee, [Paris], 1910), 2nd edition, Espasa-Calpe (Madrid), 1969.

• (Author of introduction) Cancionero de romances impreso en Amberes sin año, facsimile edition, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (Madrid), 1945.

• Como vivió y como vive el romancero, E. López Mezquida (Valencia), 1947.

• (Author of introduction) Guillermo Díaz Plaja, editor, Historia general de las literaturas hispánicas, five volumes, Barna (Barcelona), 1949-58.

• El imperio hispánico y los cinco reinos: Dos épocas en la estructura política de España, Instituto de Estudios Políticos (Madrid), 1950.

• De primitiva lírica española y antigua épica, Espasa-Calpe (Buenos Aires), 1951, reprinted, Espasa-Calpe (Madrid), 1977.

• Los españoles en la historia y en la literatura: Dos ensayos (also see below), Espasa-Calpe (Buenos Aires), 1951.

• Los origenes de las literaturas romanicas a la luz de un descubrimiento reciente, Publicaciones de la Universidad Internacional Menéndez Pelayo (Santander), 1951.

• (Editor) Reliquias de la poesía épica española (also see below), Espasa-Calpe (Madrid), 1951.

• Miscelánea histórica-literaria, Espasa-Calpe (Buenos Aires), 1952.

• Los Reyes Católicos según Maquiavelo y Castiglione, with a biographical sketch by Dámaso Alonso, [Madrid], 1952.

• Romancero hispánico (hispano-portugués, americano y sefardi): Teoría e historia, two volumes, Espasa-Calpe (Madrid), 1952.

• (Contributor) Gonzalo Menéndez Pidal and Elisa Bernis, editors, Antología de cuentos de la literatura universal, Labor, 1953.

• (Contributor) Como vive un romance: Dos ensayos sobre tradicionalidad, Revista de Filología Española (Madrid), 1954.

• España: Eslabón entre la Cristianidad y el Islam, Espasa-Calpe (Madrid), 1956.

• Los godos y la epopeya española, "chansons de geste" y baladas nórdicas, Espasa-Calpe, 1956.

• (Editor with Goyri) Romancero tradicional de las lenguas hisáanicas (español, portugués, catalán, sefardi), Gredos, 1957.

• Mis páginas preferidas: Estudios lingüísticos e históricos, Gredos (Madrid), 1957.

• Mis páginas preferidas: Temas literarios, Gredos, 1957.

• España y su historia, two volumes, Minotauro (Madrid), 1957.

• El padre las Casas y Victoria, con otros temas del siglo XVI y XVII, Espasa-Calpe, 1958.

• Tres poetas primitivos: Elena y Maria, "Roncesvalles, " Historia troyana polimétrica, Espasa-Calpe (Buenos Aires), 1958.

• La épica francesa y el tradicionalismo, University of Barcelona, Facultad de Filosofia y Letras, 1958.

• La Chanson de Roland y el neotradicionalismo (orígenes de la épica románica), Espasa-Calpe (Madrid), 1959.

• (Author of prologue) Pliegos poéticos españoles en la Universidad de Praga, [Madrid], 1960.

• Los españoles en la literatura, Espasa-Calpe (Buenos Aires), 1960.

• (Contributor) Seis temas peruanos, Espasa-Calpe (Madrid), 1960.

• Estudios de lingüística: Las leyes fonéticas, Menéndez, el diccionario ideal y otros, Espasa-Calpe, 1961.

• (Contributor) Francisco Javier Sánchez Canton, La casa de Lope de Vega, Real Academia Española (Madrid), 1962.

• En torno a la lengua vasca, Espasa-Calpe (Buenos Aires), 1962.

• El dialecto leones, Instituto de Estudios Asturianos (Oviedo), 1962.

• Los Reyes Católicos y otros estudios, Espasa-Calpe, 1962.

• El padre las Casas: Su doble personalidad, Espasa-Calpe (Madrid), 1963.

• En torno al poema del Cid, EDHASA (Barcelona), 1963, reprinted, 1983.

• (Editor) Crestomatía del español medieval (manuscript completed and revised by Rafael Lapesa y Maria Soledad de Andres), Gredos, 1965.

• Toponimia prerromanica hispana, Gredos, 1968.

• Textos medievales españoles: Ediciones criticas y estudios, Espasa-Calpe, 1977.

• (Editor) Reliquias de la poesía épica española; acompañadas de Epopeya y romancero (Arabic, Latin, and Spanish text), Gredos, 1980.

• La Lengua Castellana en el Siglo XVII, Espasa Calpe (Madrid, Spain), 1991.

• Le Épica Medieval Española: Desde sus Orígenes Hasta su Disolución en el Romancero, Espasa-Calpe (Madrid, Spain), 1992.

• Islam y Cristiandad: España entre las dos Culturas, Analecta Malacitana (Malaga, Spain), 2001.

Also editor of Floresta de leyendas heroicas españolas. Founder and editor of Revista de Filología Española, beginning 1914.

[edit] Further readings about the author

• Diaz Plaja, Guillermo, A History of Spanish Literature, New York University Press, 1971.

[edit] Obituary

• New York Times, November 16, 1968.

[edit] Reference

• This article incorporates text from an edition of the New International Encyclopedia that is in the public domain.