Romulus is the author, now considered a legendary figure, of versions of ''
Aesop's Fables
Aesop's Fables, or the Aesopica, is a collection of fables credited to Aesop, a slave and storyteller believed to have lived in ancient Greece between 620 and 564 BCE. Of diverse origins, the stories associated with his name have descended to ...
'' in Latin. These were passed down in Western Europe, and became important school texts, for early education. Romulus is supposed to have lived in the 5th century.
The Romulus of medieval tradition therefore represents a number of traditional attributions of Latin manuscripts of
beast fable
An animal tale or beast fable generally consists of a short story or poem in which animals talk. They may exhibit other anthropomorphic qualities as well, such as living in a human-like society. It is a traditional form of allegorical writing.
An ...
s. These are based on prose adaptations of
Phaedrus (1st century AD). The ''Romulus'' texts make up the bulk of the medieval 'Aesop'.
Scholars identify several strands of manuscripts:
* The ''Romulus Ordinarius'' (''Romulus Vulgaris''), 83 tales known in a 9th-century text;
* The ''Romulus of Vienna'';
* The ''Romulus of Nilant'', 45 fables, published in 1709 by
Johan Frederik Nilant Johan
* Johan (given name)
* ''Johan'' (film), a 1921 Swedish film directed by Mauritz Stiller
* Johan (band), a Dutch pop-group
** ''Johan'' (album), a 1996 album by the group
* Johan Peninsula, Ellesmere Island, Nunavut, Canada
* Jo-Han, a manu ...
(Jean-Frédéric Nilant).
These prose works gave rise to versifications: the ''Novus Aesopus'' of
Alexander Neckam
Alexander Neckam (8 September 115731 March 1217) was an English magnetician, poet, theologian, and writer. He was an abbot of Cirencester Abbey from 1213 until his death.
Early life
Born on 8 September 1157 in St Albans, Alexander shared his b ...
, the verse ''Romulus'' often attributed to
Gualterus Anglicus
Gualterus Anglicus (Medieval Latin for Walter the Englishman) was an Anglo-Norman poet and scribe who produced a seminal version of ''Aesop's Fables'' (in distichs) around the year 1175.
Identification of the author
This author was earlier calle ...
(''Romulus of Nevelet''). Further adaptation and expansion from those works built up the medieval Aesop tradition.
The ''Esope'' of
Adémar de Chabannes
Adémar de Chabannes (988/989 – 1034; also Adhémar de Chabannes) was a French/Frankish monk, active as a composer, scribe, historian, poet, grammarian and literary forger. He was associated with the Abbey of Saint Martial, Limoges, where he ...
(67 fables) is now considered to derive from the ''Romulus Ordinarius''.
[
The ''Romulus Roberti'' (22 fables) is taken from the Anglo-Latin ''Romulus'', with the four first tales from ]Marie de France
Marie de France ( fl. 1160 to 1215) was a poet, possibly born in what is now France, who lived in England during the late 12th century. She lived and wrote at an unknown court, but she and her work were almost certainly known at the royal court ...
.Romulus Roberti , Arlima - Archives de littérature du Moyen Âge
/ref>
Notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Romulus (Fabulist)
Fabulists