The Invention of Middle English

In accounts of the emergence of medieval studies in the post-medieval period, the growth of the discipline of Middle English has so far not been fully charted. This study provides the principal source materials for the study of the formation of Middle English, most of which are rare and difficult to obtain. It enables the detailed study of the key documents in the growth of Middle English - gathered together for the first time. It will also enable the setting of courses in this field. Each extract is preceded by a full histroical and critical introduction and bibliography; any passages in late Latin and German are translated.