Constructing Nations, Reconstructing Myth

This collection of essays examines the ‘Grimmian Revolution’, the paradigm shift in the humanities that came with the publication of Jacob Grimm’s Deutsche Grammatik. In doing so, it honours T. A. Shippey, who has been a leading figure in reconsidering the contributions of the Old Philology and its impact on the humanities, particularly the rediscovery of the ancient languages and literatures of Northern Europe; the role this has played in the creation of national and regional identities; the attempts to extend the methods of comparative philology to comparative mythology; and the collection of folktales, folk-ballads, and the development of folkloristics. The sixteen essays in this collection focus on the impact made by nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century philology in the fields of medieval studies and language studies, and in the construction of Northern European national identities, mythologies, and folklore.