Vernacular Culture and Greek Texts in the Renaissance: from Florence to Europe (VerGreeR)

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After the Middle Ages, the Western rediscovery of Greek texts began in Florence in the late fourteenth century. Over the next two centuries the reception and translation of the entire Greek intellectual tradition shaped modern European thought in all field of knowledge. This project will conduct the first comprehensive investigation into vernacular translations of Greek texts produced in Florence during the second half of the fifteenth century. At that time, the famous Neoplatonic philosopher Marsilio Ficino (1433-1499) provided intellectual leadership in the city, and played an essential role in the dissemination of Greek texts to a vernacular readership. The project's initial focus on this specific context will develop into an interdisciplinary, transnational history of the vernacular reception of Greek texts in Renaissance Europe: Florentine translations will be compared with subsequent fifteenth and sixteenth-century versions of the same works into other European vernacular languages. Through the direct analysis of a wide range of primary sources (manuscripts, early prints, archival materials), the project will address the following questions: who were the commissioners,authors, scribes, and readers of these vernacularizations? What kind of linguistic strategies and translation methods were adopted? Research frameworks and methods forged by various disciplines (e.g. textual studies, the history of the book, translation studies) will be integrated to help formulate an appropriate analytical response. The project aims to provide a deep understanding of the processes lying beneath a socio-literary phenomenon of primary importance for the development of a common culture in Europe. The project will therefore contribute to current debates in academic, educational, and institutional contexts about how European cultural roots and common values were built upon different influences absorbed over time, and how they can still help develop a European sense of belonging.