Azalais or Azalaïs d'Altier was an early-13th-century

trobairitz The ''trobairitz'' () were Occitan female troubadours of the 12th and 13th centuries, active from around 1170 to approximately 1260. ''Trobairitz'' is both singular and plural. The word ''trobairitz'' is first attested in the 13th-century ro ...

. She was from

Altier Altier (; oc, Altièr) is a commune in the Lozère department in southern France. Population See also *Communes of the Lozère department The following is a list of the 152 communes of the Lozère department Department may refer to: * ...

in the

Gévaudan Gévaudan (; oc, Gavaudan, Gevaudan) is a historical area of France in Lozère ''département''. It took its name from the Gabali, a Gallic tribe subordinate to the Arverni. History After the conquest of Gaul, the Romans preserved the c ...

. She has sometimes been confused with

Almucs de Castelnau Almucs de Castelnau or Castelnou (c. 1140 – pre-1184) was a trobairitz (a female troubadour) from a town near Avignon in Provence. Her name is also spelled ''Almuc'', ''Amucs'', ''Almois'', ''Almurs'', or ''Almirs''. Almucs' only surviving work ...

. Azalais wrote "Tanz salutz e tantas amors", the only ''

salut d'amor A ''salut d'amor'' (, ; "love letter", lit. "greeting of love") or (''e'')''pistola'' ("epistle") was an Occitan lyric poem of the troubadours, written as a letter from one lover to another in the tradition of courtly love. Some songs preserved i ...

'' by a woman. It comprises 101 verses of rhyming couplets. Its purpose was to reconcile two lovers, and it was addressed to a woman, possibly

Clara d'Anduza Clara d'Anduza was a trobairitz from the first third of the 13th century, probably born to the ruling family of Anduze. Her only surviving work is a '' canso'' beginning ''En greu esmay et en greu pessamen''. She was mentioned in a long ''razo'' to ...

. Its similarity in tone to Clara's ''

canso The Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation (CANSO) is a representative body of companies that provide air traffic control. It represents the interests of Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs). CANSO members are responsible for supporting ov ...

'' "En greu esmay et en greu pessamen" gives the impression that it may have been written in response. Azalais was well known in

troubadour A troubadour (, ; oc, trobador ) was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages (1100–1350). Since the word ''troubadour'' is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a ''trobairi ...

circles, for Uc de Saint-Circ addressed his "Anc mais non vi temps ni sazo" to her in its '' tornada''. Nonetheless, the great troubadour ignored her when composing the '' vidas''. Azalais herself was a woman of learning, and she must have been familiar with the

Matter of Rome According to the medieval poet Jean Bodel, the Matter of Rome is the literary cycle of Greek and Roman mythology, together with episodes from the history of classical antiquity, focusing on military heroes like Alexander the Great and Julius Cae ...

through the ''

Roman de Troie (''The Romance of Troy'') by Benoît de Sainte-Maure, probably written between 1155 and 1160,Roberto Antonelli "The Birth of Criseyde - An Exemplary Triangle: 'Classical' Troilus and the Question of Love at the Anglo-Norman Court" in Boitani, P. ...

'' of

Benoît de Sainte-Maure Benoît de Sainte-Maure (; died 1173) was a 12th-century French poet, most probably from Sainte-Maure-de-Touraine near Tours, France. The Plantagenets' administrative center was located in Chinon, west of Tours. ''Le Roman de Troie'' His 40,000 ...

, which she references in her ''salut'': There is today a street named "Rue Azalais d'Altier" in Montpellier.

Notes

Sources

* Bruckner, Matilda Tomaryn. "The Trobairitz" in: ''A Handbook of the Troubadours'', edd. F. R. P. Akehurst and Judith M. Davis. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1995. . * Bruckner, Matilda Tomaryn; Shepard, Laurie; and White, Sarah. ''Songs of the Women Troubadours''. New York: Garland Publishing, 1995. . * Klinck, Anne Lingard; Rasmussen, Ann Marie. ''Medieval Woman's Song: Cross-Cultural Approaches''. Pittsburg: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2002. . {{DEFAULTSORT:dAltier, Azalais Trobairitz 13th-century French troubadours People from Lozère