Anna von Munzingen was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

prior Prior (or prioress) is an ecclesiastical title for a superior in some religious orders. The word is derived from the Latin for "earlier" or "first". Its earlier generic usage referred to any monastic superior. In abbeys, a prior would be l ...

ess of the 14th century, who descended from a well known noble family at

Freiburg Freiburg im Breisgau (; abbreviated as Freiburg i. Br. or Freiburg i. B.; Low Alemannic: ''Friburg im Brisgau''), commonly referred to as Freiburg, is an independent city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With a population of about 230,000 (as o ...

. In 1318 she wrote a "

chronicle A chronicle ( la, chronica, from Greek ''chroniká'', from , ''chrónos'' – "time") is a historical account of events arranged in chronological order, as in a timeline. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and lo ...

" of the mystical experiences of her

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 599. The term is o ...

s in the work Adelhausen Schwesternbuch (Sister-book of the Adelhausen Covent). The text was originally composed in Latin, but only a

Middle High German Middle High German (MHG; german: Mittelhochdeutsch (Mhd.)) is the term for the form of German spoken in the High Middle Ages. It is conventionally dated between 1050 and 1350, developing from Old High German and into Early New High German. High ...

translation survives. The chronicle comprises a collection of thirty-seven biographies of the sisters, focussing on visions, theophanies and mystical experiences. Anna focussed entirely on the experiences of the women within the convent, emphasizing a sense of independence from the friars, whom many of the sisters resented. The work belongs to a genre known as

sister-books Sister-books (german: Schwesternbuch) is the term for a group of texts in the medieval literature. These works were written by Dominican nuns in the first half of the fourteenth century in South Germany and Switzerland. They relate the mystical e ...

, which was also known from other German convents of the period, including Christine Ebner and Katherina von Gebersweiler. Because nuns were not given the same privileges as friars to participate in sermon activities, this genre became ideal for women like Anna to express themselves in writing.

References

14th-century German women writers Women mystics 14th-century German nuns {{RC-bio-stub