is a 350-line religious Middle English poem written in alliterative verse. Whilst it is usually dated to the late fourteenth century on the basis of both external and stylistic evidence, it is preserved in a single manuscript (British Library MS Harley 2250) which dates from the last quarter of the fifteenth century. Harley 2250 is a compilation of mostly religious texts, including excerpts from the

, the

, the

and Mirk’s

, copied in a Northwest Midlands dialect that these poems share with the poems of British Library MS. Cotton Nero a.x which include

and

. Saint Erkenwald, who is first mentioned in the Venerable Bede’s

, was…

2570 words

Citation: Wolf, Johannes. "Saint Erkenwald". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 31 January 2018 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=38768, accessed 21 November 2024.]