Norris J. Lacy (born March 8, 1940 in Hopkinsville, Kentucky) is an American scholar focusing on French

medieval literature Medieval literature is a broad subject, encompassing essentially all written works available in Europe and beyond during the Middle Ages (that is, the one thousand years from the fall of the Western Roman Empire ca. AD 500 to the beginning of t ...

. He was the Edwin Erle Sparks Professor Emeritus of French and Medieval Studies at the Pennsylvania State University until his retirement in 2012, a position he had held since 1998. He is a leading expert on the

Arthurian legend The Matter of Britain is the body of medieval literature and legendary material associated with Great Britain and Brittany and the legendary kings and heroes associated with it, particularly King Arthur. It was one of the three great Wester ...

and has written and edited numerous books, papers, and articles on the topic. In 2014 the International Arthurian Society, North American Branch, presented him an award for Lifetime Service to Arthurian Studies. He received his

Ph.D A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

. from

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universi ...

and has held teaching positions at the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. T ...

, the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California S ...

, and

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU or WUSTL) is a private research university with its main campus in St. Louis County, and Clayton, Missouri. Founded in 1853, the university is named after George Washington. Washington University is r ...

. He has served as president of the International Arthurian Society. With

Geoffrey Ashe Geoffrey Thomas Leslie Ashe (29 March 1923 – 30 January 2022) was a British cultural historian and lecturer, known for his focus on King Arthur. Early life Born in London, Ashe was an only child who excelled all his classmates in academics ...

he wrote ''The Arthurian Handbook'', and he edited ''The Arthurian Encyclopedia'' and its successor, ''The New Arthurian Encyclopedia'', a standard reference book for Arthurian works. He also oversaw the first complete English translation of the French

Vulgate The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels u ...

and

Post-Vulgate Cycle The ''Post-Vulgate Cycle'', also known as the Post-Vulgate Arthuriad, the Post-Vulgate ''Roman du Graal'' (''Romance of the Grail'') or the Pseudo-Robert de Boron Cycle, is one of the major Old French prose cycles of Arthurian literature from th ...

s, released as the five (alternatively ten) volume ''Lancelot-Grail: The Old French Arthurian Vulgate and Post-Vulgate in Translation''. He was knighted in France's

Ordre des Palmes Académiques A suite, in Western classical music and jazz, is an ordered set of instrumental or orchestral/ concert band pieces. It originated in the late 14th century as a pairing of dance tunes and grew in scope to comprise up to five dances, sometimes with ...

, first as a Chevalier in 1988, and subsequently elevated to the rank of Officier in 2003.

References

The first full English translations of the Vulgate and Post-Vulgate Cycles were overseen by Norris J. Lacy. Volumes 1–4 contain the Vulgate Cycle proper. *Lacy, Norris J. (Ed.). ''Lancelot–Grail: The Old French Arthurian Vulgate and Post-Vulgate in Translation'', New York: Garland. **Volume 1 of 5 (December 1, 1992). . **Volume 2 of 5 (August 1, 1993). . **Volume 3 of 5 (March 1, 1995). . **Volume 4 of 5 (April 1, 1995). . **Volume 5 of 5 (May 1, 1996). . *Lacy, Norris J. (Ed.) (2000). ''The Lancelot–Grail Reader.'' New York: Garland. .

External links

Norris J. Lacy personal webpage
American medievalists Arthurian scholars Indiana University alumni 1940 births Living people Pennsylvania State University faculty Washington University in St. Louis faculty Holy Grail Officiers of the Ordre des Palmes Académiques {{US-historian-stub