Emo of Friesland (c. 1175–1237) was a Frisian scholar and abbot who probably came from the region of
Groningen
Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of t ...
, and the earliest foreign student studying at
Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
whose name has survived. He wrote a
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
chronicle, later expanded by his successors Menco and Foltert into the ''Chronicon abbatum in Werum'' (chronicle of the abbots of Wittewierum).
Emo was of high birth. He began his studies at Oxford in 1190. He also studied at the
University of Paris
, image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Coat of Arms
, latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis
, motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin)
, mottoeng = Here and a ...
and at
Orléans
Orléans (;"Orleans" (US) and Westeremden and parish priest in
Huizinge
Huizinge () is a village with a population of 100 in the municipality of Eemsdelta in the province of Groningen (province), Groningen in the northeast of the Netherlands.
On 16 August 2012, the heaviest induced seismicity, induced List of earthqu ...
. Around 1209, he took the vows of a
monk
A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...
in order to assist his uncle, Emo of Romerswerf, in founding a monastery in
Holwierde
Holwierde (; Gronings: ''Holwier'') is a village in the municipality of Eemsdelta in the province of Groningen in the Netherlands. It lies about 26 km northeast of the city of Groningen.
History
The village was first mentioned in 1247 as " ...
near Groningen. Under Emo's direction as first abbot, the monastery of (Wittewierum, Bloemhof) joined the
Premonstratensian
The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), is a religious order of canons regular of the Catholic Church ...
s and became a daughter house of
Prémontré Abbey
Prémontré Abbey was the mother house of the Premonstratensian Order and was located at Prémontré about twelve miles west of Laon, ''département'' of Aisne, France.
History
It was founded by Saint Norbert of Xanten in 1120 on waste land that ...
in 1217.
Emo's section of the ''Chronicon'' covers the years 1203–1237. Besides information about the abbey he helped found, it also covers the secular history of Frisia and Groningen and even the
Crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...
to the Holy Land. According to his own writing he copied a naval itinerary of the Frisian's fleet's journey from the delta of the
River Lauwers
The Lauwers () is a river in the Netherlands. It forms part of the border between the provinces of Friesland and Groningen (province), Groningen. From the 730s to Widukind's defeat in 785, it was part of the border of the Frankish Empire.
The ...
to
Acre
The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial
Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism.
Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to:
Places
United States
* Imperial, California
* Imperial, Missouri
* Imp ...
(1217–1218). This text is known as the
De itinere Frisonum
''De itinere Frisonum'' ('Of the Frisian itinerary') is an eyewitness account written in Latin of the Frisian crusaders' journey from Friesland to Acre during the Fifth Crusade (1217–1218). The narrative was composed by an anonymous participant ...
and it provides a lot of details about the naval voyage and the crusading motivations of the Frisian participants. According to the continuation by Menco, Emo also wrote the works ''De anima'' (on the soul), ''Arbor vitiorum et virtutum'' ( tree of vices and virtues), ''De differentia criminum'' (on different crimes) and ''De differentia virtutum politicarum et theologicarum'' (on the difference between political and theological virtues). All of these works are thought lost.Jacob Cornelis van Slee "Emo von Wittewierum" in ''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie'' 6 (1877), pp. 91–92.