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Marko Marulić Splićanin (; ; 18 August 1450 – 5 January 1524), was a Croatian
poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...
, lawyer,
judge A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...
, and Renaissance humanist. He is the
national poet A national poet or national bard is a poet held by tradition and popular acclaim to represent the identity, beliefs and principles of a particular national culture. The national poet as culture hero is a long-standing symbol, to be distinguished ...
of
Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...
. According to George J. Gutsche, Marulić's
epic poem In poetry, an epic is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants. With regard to ...
'' Judita'' "is the first long poem in Croatian", and "gives Marulić a position in his own literature comparable to
Dante Dante Alighieri (; most likely baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri; – September 14, 1321), widely known mononymously as Dante, was an Italian Italian poetry, poet, writer, and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called ...
in Italian literature." Marulić's
Latin poetry The history of Latin poetry can be understood as the adaptation of Greek models. The verse comedies of Plautus, the earliest surviving examples of Latin literature, are estimated to have been composed around 205–184 BC. History Scholars conv ...
is of such high quality that his contemporaries dubbed him "The Christian
Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; 15 October 70 BC21 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Rome, ancient Roman poet of the Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Augustan period. He composed three of the most fa ...
." He has been called the "crown of the Croatian medieval age", the "father of the Croatian
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...
",Marulianum
''Center for study of Marko Marulić and his literary activity.'' – Retrieved on 28 November 2008.
and "The Father of Croatian literature." Marulić scholar Bratislav Lučin notes that he was well-versed in both the
Christian Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) biblical languages ...
and in the
Fathers of the Church The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, Christian Fathers, or Fathers of the Church were ancient and influential Christian theologians and writers who established the intellectual and doctrinal foundations of Christianity. The historical per ...
. At the same time, Marulić also attentively read the Pre-Christian Greek and Latin
Classics Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...
. He read and interpreted Latin
epigram An epigram is a brief, interesting, memorable, sometimes surprising or satirical statement. The word derives from the Greek (, "inscription", from [], "to write on, to inscribe"). This literary device has been practiced for over two millennia ...
s, wrote glosses on the erotic poetry of Catullus, read Petronius' ''Satyricon'', and admired
Erasmus of Rotterdam Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus ( ; ; 28 October c. 1466 – 12 July 1536), commonly known in English as Erasmus of Rotterdam or simply Erasmus, was a Dutch Christian humanist, Catholic priest and theologian, educationalist, satirist, and p ...
. Marulić also composed humanist elegies, satirical poetry, erotic epigrams inspired by
Ovid Publius Ovidius Naso (; 20 March 43 BC – AD 17/18), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a younger contemporary of Virgil and Horace, with whom he i ...
, and Latin Christian poetry inspired not only by the epics of
Homer Homer (; , ; possibly born ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Despite doubts about his autho ...
and Virgil, but also by Lucan,
Statius Publius Papinius Statius (Greek language, Greek: Πόπλιος Παπίνιος Στάτιος; , ; ) was a Latin poetry, Latin poet of the 1st century CE. His surviving poetry includes an epic in twelve books, the ''Thebaid (Latin poem), Theb ...
, Faltonia Betitia Proba,
Juvencus Gaius Vettius Aquilinus Juvencus (fl. c. 330) was a Roman Empire, Roman Christians, Christian poet from Hispania who wrote in Latin. Life The only source on Juvencus's life is Jerome.Jerome's De Viris Illustribus, De viris, chapter 84; Chron., a ...
,
Venantius Fortunatus Venantius Honorius Clementianus Fortunatus ( 530 600/609 AD; ), known as Saint Venantius Fortunatus (, ), was a Latin poet and hymnographer in the Merovingian Court, and a bishop of the Early Church who has been venerated since the Middle Ages. ...
,
Cyprianus Gallus Cyprianus Gallus or Cyprian the Gaul (fl. c. 397–430) is the conventional name of the poet who wrote a Late Latin epic versification of the historical books of the Old Testament based on the Old Latin translation, although only his version ...
, Coelius Sedulius, and many other both Pagan and Christian writers in the same language. According to Franz Posset, Marulić aspired to the Renaissance humanist ideal of the ''uomo universale'' ("universal man"). To this end, he was interested in painting and drawing, local and national history, languages, and poetry. His overall goal always remained ''renovatio Christiana'' ("The Renewal of Christianity") as represented by the future
Counter-Reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also sometimes called the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to, and as an alternative to or from similar insights as, the Protestant Reformations at the time. It w ...
. Accordingly, like many other Renaissance humanists who shared his views, Marulić denounced
simony Simony () is the act of selling church offices and roles or sacred things. It is named after Simon Magus, who is described in the Acts of the Apostles as having offered two disciples of Jesus payment in exchange for their empowering him to imp ...
and immorality among
Roman Catholic priest The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in common English usage ''priest'' re ...
s and members of the hierarchy in often violent language throughout his writings. Although Marulić and
Martin Luther Martin Luther ( ; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, Theology, theologian, author, hymnwriter, professor, and former Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. Luther was the seminal figure of the Reformation, Pr ...
lived at the same time and were published by two of the same
Basel Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...
printers, their collected writings make no mention of each other. In the absence of evidence to the contrary, it must be assumed that both theologians were simply unaware of the other's existence. At the same time, both men shared a common belief in ''Evangelica Veritas'' ("Gospel Truth") and "theology for piety". They both built their differing theology upon the similar training they received in
scholasticism Scholasticism was a medieval European philosophical movement or methodology that was the predominant education in Europe from about 1100 to 1700. It is known for employing logically precise analyses and reconciling classical philosophy and Ca ...
, Renaissance humanism, and '' Devotio Moderna''. Like fellow Renaissance humanists
Johann Reuchlin Johann Reuchlin (; 29 January 1455 – 30 June 1522), sometimes called Johannes, was a German Catholic humanist and a scholar of Greek and Hebrew, whose work also took him to modern-day Austria, Switzerland, Italy, and France. Most of Reuchlin's c ...
,
Erasmus of Rotterdam Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus ( ; ; 28 October c. 1466 – 12 July 1536), commonly known in English as Erasmus of Rotterdam or simply Erasmus, was a Dutch Christian humanist, Catholic priest and theologian, educationalist, satirist, and p ...
,
Thomas More Sir Thomas More (7 February 1478 – 6 July 1535), venerated in the Catholic Church as Saint Thomas More, was an English lawyer, judge, social philosopher, author, statesman, theologian, and noted Renaissance humanist. He also served Henry VII ...
, John Fisher,
Juan Luis Vives Juan Luis Vives y March (; ; ; ; 6 March 6 May 1540) was a Spaniards, Spanish (Valencian people, Valencian) scholar and Renaissance humanist who spent most of his adult life in the southern Habsburg Netherlands. His beliefs on the soul, insigh ...
, and Paolo Riccio, however, Marko Marulić remained committed to an internal renewal of
Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
and loyal to the
Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...
, while Martin Luther and his adherents did not. Marulić's work was admired both by many of the greatest and most influential Catholic saints of the Counter-Reformation and also, since much of Marulić could be read without violating '' sola scriptura'', by generations of believers in
Protestantism Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
. His writings in
Renaissance Latin Renaissance Latin is a name given to the distinctive form of Literary Latin style developed during the European Renaissance of the fourteenth to fifteenth centuries, particularly by the Renaissance humanism movement. This style of Latin is reg ...
, once adored and envied across Europe, shared the destiny that befell most Renaissance Humanist literature and faded into obscurity. According to Lučin, however, the passage of time has slowly revealed the important web of influence that the poet and writer wove all over Europe and far beyond its borders. Marulić's writings were admired by churchmen such as Saints
Francis Xavier Francis Xavier, Jesuits, SJ (born Francisco de Jasso y Azpilicueta; ; ; ; ; ; 7 April 15063 December 1552), venerated as Saint Francis Xavier, was a Kingdom of Navarre, Navarrese cleric and missionary. He co-founded the Society of Jesus ...
,
Francis de Sales Francis de Sales, Congregation of the Oratory, C.O., Order of Minims, O.M. (; ; 21 August 156728 December 1622) was a Savoyard state, Savoyard Catholic prelate who served as Bishop of Geneva and is a saint of the Catholic Church. He became n ...
,
Peter Canisius Peter Canisius (; 8 May 1521 – 21 December 1597) was a Dutch Jesuit priest known for his strong support for the Catholic faith during the Protestant Reformation in Germany, Austria, Bohemia, Moravia, Switzerland and the British Isles. The ...
, and
Charles Borromeo Charles Borromeo (; ; 2 October 1538 – 3 November 1584) was an Catholic Church in Italy, Italian Catholic prelate who served as Archdiocese of Milan, Archbishop of Milan from 1564 to 1584. He was made a Cardinal (Catholicism), cardinal in 156 ...
, by monarchs and statesmen such as
King Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disagreement w ...
, Thomas More, and
Emperor Charles V Charles V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain (as Charles I) from 1516 to 1556, and Lord of the Netherlands as titular Duke of Burgundy (as Charles II) fr ...
, emulated by poets like Jan Dantyszek, Conrad Peutinger, and
Francisco de Quevedo Francisco Gómez de Quevedo y Santibáñez Villegas, Order of Santiago, Knight of the Order of Santiago (; 14 September 1580 – 8 September 1645) was a Spanish nobleman, politician and writer of the Baroque era. Along with his lifelong rival, ...
, and translated into
vernacular Vernacular is the ordinary, informal, spoken language, spoken form of language, particularly when perceptual dialectology, perceived as having lower social status or less Prestige (sociolinguistics), prestige than standard language, which is mor ...
verse by still other poets; including Fray Luis de León, St Philipp Howard, Rhina Espaillat, and Edward Mulholland. Furthermore, manuscripts of Marulić works previously thought lost, such as his Christian epic poem the '' Davidiad'' in 1952, his Latin-Croatian
literary translation Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''trans ...
of Thomas à Kempis' '' The Imitation of Christ'' in 1989, and the Glasgow Codex in 1995, continue to resurface and to belatedly see publication for the first time. One of Marulić's books published in the 1510s is also the first time a literary work used the term "
psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...
". More recently,
Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...
quoted from a Marulić poem during his 1998 apostolic visit to Solin, Croatia.


Biography

Marulić was born on 18 August 1450 into the
Croatian nobility Croatian nobility (; ) was a privileged social class in Croatia during the Ancient history, Antiquity and Middle Ages, Medieval periods of the country's history. Noble families in the Kingdom of Croatia (disambiguation), Kingdom of Croatia inclu ...
in
Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enter ...
,
Dalmatia Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notably the Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Croatia (925 ...
. He was the first of seven children. The palazzo in which he was born still stands on Papalić Street in Split. His father, Nikola Marulić, was descended from the Pečenić family (''Pecinić'', ''Picinić'', Pezzini in
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
). Marulić came from a
15th century The 15th century was the century which spans the Julian calendar dates from 1 January 1401 (represented by the Roman numerals MCDI) to 31 December 1500 (MD). In Europe, the 15th century includes parts of the Late Middle Ages, the Early Re ...
branch of the family whose founder was named Petar, and who only began calling themselves Marulić, ''Marulus'' or ''De Marulis'', in the 15th century. His mother, Dobrica de Albertis, was a member of the
Italian nobility The Italian nobility ( Italian: ''Nobiltà italiana'') comprised individuals and their families of the Italian Peninsula, and the islands linked with it, recognized by the sovereigns of the Italian city-states since the Middle Ages, and by the k ...
. Marko Marulić identified himself primarily as a citizen of Split and, secondly, as a Dalmatian. On the title pages of his books, he consistently signed as a native of Split. Very little is known about his life, and the few facts that remain are often unreliable. It is certain that he attended a school in Split run by the Italian Renaissance humanist scholar Tideo Acciarini (1430–1490). Marulić's education is known also to have included instruction in the
Greek language Greek (, ; , ) is an Indo-European languages, Indo-European language, constituting an independent Hellenic languages, Hellenic branch within the Indo-European language family. It is native to Greece, Cyprus, Italy (in Calabria and Salento), south ...
by Hieronymus Genesius Picentinus. Although his library later contained many textbooks on the language, Marulić read and spoke it imperfectly and only rarely used Greek words. After completing school, Marulić is believed to have studied law at Padua University, after which he spent much of his life in his home town. His star-crossed love affair with a Split noblewoman ended when her father, the commander of the city's Venetian military garrison, allegedly buried her alive. A grieving Marulić lived for about two years as a
postulant A postulant (from , "to ask") was originally one who makes a request or demand; hence, a candidate. The use of the term is now generally restricted to those asking for admission into a Christian monastery or a religious order for the period precedi ...
at a
monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...
on the island of
Šolta Šolta (; ; ) is an island in Croatia. It is situated in the Adriatic Sea in the central Dalmatian archipelago. Geography Šolta is located west of the island of Brač, south of Split (city), Split (separated by Split Channel) and east of the D ...
, in the
Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Se ...
. Returning to Split, Marulić practiced law, serving as a
judge A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...
, examiner of notarial entries and executor of wills. Owing to his work, he became the most distinguished member of Split's humanist circle. Marulić's ''Evangelistarium'' ("Evangelistary"), a moral and theological compendium of Old and New Testament texts, was first published in 1487. The book was later republished by Italian Jewish publisher Gershom Soncino at
Pisa Pisa ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Tuscany, Central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for the Leaning Tow ...
and a copy of that edition was purchased by the German humanist scholar and Hebraist
Johann Reuchlin Johann Reuchlin (; 29 January 1455 – 30 June 1522), sometimes called Johannes, was a German Catholic humanist and a scholar of Greek and Hebrew, whose work also took him to modern-day Austria, Switzerland, Italy, and France. Most of Reuchlin's c ...
in 1492. In 1519, another edition of the "Evangelistary" was published by Sebastian Münster. Between 1496 and 1499, Marulić worked on a compendium of
Christian morality Christian ethics, also known as moral theology, is a multi-faceted ethical system. It is a Virtue ethics, virtue ethic, which focuses on building moral character, and a Deontological ethics, deontological ethic which emphasizes duty according ...
, entitled ''De institutione bene vivendi per exempla sanctorum'' ("Instruction on How to Lead a Virtuous Life Based on the Examples of Saints"). According to Latinist and
Classicist Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...
Edward Mulholland, Marulić's primary model for ''De institutione'' was the ''Memorable Deeds and Sayings'' of
Valerius Maximus Valerius Maximus () was a 1st-century Latin writer and author of a collection of historical anecdotes: ' ("Nine books of memorable deeds and sayings", also known as ''De factis dictisque memorabilibus'' or ''Facta et dicta memorabilia''). He worke ...
. Maximus had intended in the writing of his book, "to spare those who want to learn the lessons of history the trouble of prolonged researches" and accordingly organized the nine books of his volume, "to illustrate a particular virtue or vice", and it became a widely used textbook in Medieval and Renaissance Europe, both of
rhetoric Rhetoric is the art of persuasion. It is one of the three ancient arts of discourse ( trivium) along with grammar and logic/ dialectic. As an academic discipline within the humanities, rhetoric aims to study the techniques that speakers or w ...
and as, "a gallery of practical moral instruction." In addition to Old and New Testament examples, Marulić also drew upon the writings of
St Jerome Jerome (; ; ; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was an early Christian priest, confessor, theologian, translator, and historian; he is commonly known as Saint Jerome. He is best known for his translation of the Bible i ...
,
Gregory the Great Pope Gregory I (; ; – 12 March 604), commonly known as Saint Gregory the Great (; ), was the 64th Bishop of Rome from 3 September 590 until his death on 12 March 604. He is known for instituting the first recorded large-scale mission from Rom ...
,
Eusebius of Caesarea Eusebius of Caesarea (30 May AD 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilius, was a historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christian polemicist from the Roman province of Syria Palaestina. In about AD 314 he became the bishop of Caesarea Maritima. ...
,
John Cassian John Cassian, also known as John the Ascetic and John Cassian the Roman (, ''Ioannes Cassianus'', or ''Ioannes Massiliensis''; Greek: Ίωάννης Κασσιανός ό Ερημίτης; – ), was a Christian monk and theologian celebrated ...
, the lives of the saints, and other Ecclesiastical writers. Marulić's ''De institutione'' was first published in Latin at
Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...
in 1507 and became well known in the Germanosphere when Adam Petri reprinted it at Basel in 1513. The compendium was widely and repeatedly reprinted and translated into many
vernacular Vernacular is the ordinary, informal, spoken language, spoken form of language, particularly when perceptual dialectology, perceived as having lower social status or less Prestige (sociolinguistics), prestige than standard language, which is mor ...
languages, which established Marulić's fame throughout Europe. Occasionally Marulić visited Venice (to trade) and
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
(to celebrate the year 1500). According to his friend and early biographer Franjo Božičević, "for nearly forty years he sweated, shut up with the
Muses In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, the Muses (, ) were the Artistic inspiration, inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in the poetry, lyric p ...
, in divine volumes, nocturnal study, vigils,
fasting Fasting is the act of refraining from eating, and sometimes drinking. However, from a purely physiological context, "fasting" may refer to the metabolic status of a person who has not eaten overnight (before "breakfast"), or to the metabolic sta ...
, a hair shirt, prayers and rough floggings, not without harsh penance day and night." He was a great admirer of the late medieval religious movement known as '' Devotio Moderna''. By 1509, Marulić had finished translating Thomas à Kempis' '' The Imitation of Christ'', a highly important literary and devotional work of the movement, from Medieval Latin into Croatian. His translation, however, remained unpublished until 1989. His friend and fellow humanist Dmine Papalić found an old volume of
local history Local history is the study of history in a geographically local context, often concentrating on a relatively small local community. It incorporates cultural history, cultural and social history, social aspects of history. Local history is not mer ...
composed in the
Illyrian language The Illyrian language () was an Indo-European languages, Indo-European language or group of languages spoken by the Illyrians in Southeast Europe during antiquity. The language is unattested with the exception of personal names and placenames. ...
and in the
Early Cyrillic alphabet The Early Cyrillic alphabet, also called classical Cyrillic or paleo-Cyrillic, is an alphabetic writing system that was developed in Medieval Bulgaria in the Preslav Literary School during the late 9th century. It is used to write the Chur ...
. At his friend's urging, Marulić both paraphrased and translated the volume into Latin as ''Regum Dalmatiae et Croatiae gesta'' ("The Deeds of the Kings of Dalmatia and Croatia"), as he completed ''Quinquaginta parabole'' ("Fifty Parables"), which is, according to Edward Mulholland, "Modeled after the
parable A parable is a succinct, didactic story, in prose or verse, that illustrates one or more instructive lessons or principles. It differs from a fable in that fables employ animals, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature as characters, whe ...
s of the
New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...
, they consist in moral lessons in elegant Latin prose drawn from simple stories". Both books were first published in 1510. He finished writing ''The Life of St. Jerome'' in 1513. The following year, he completed ''Carmen de doctrina Domini nostri Iesu Christi pendentis in cruce'' ("Poem about the Teaching of Our Lord Jesus Christ Hanging on the Cross"), which has usually been published as part of ''De institutione bene vivendi'' and which remains his most famous work of Christian poetry in Latin. In 1517, Marulić finished his epic poem the '' Davidiad'', which was considered lost for more than 400 years, only rediscovered in 1952, and published for the first time in 1954. Similarly to both Catholic and Protestant humanists of the same era, Marulić used ''The Davidiad'' to preach a multilayered interpretation of the Old Testament, as pre-figuring the foundation of
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...
through the later events described in the
New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...
. For example, Marulić compared
David David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Dam ...
to
Jesus Christ Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...
, King
Saul Saul (; , ; , ; ) was a monarch of ancient Israel and Judah and, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament, the first king of the United Monarchy, a polity of uncertain historicity. His reign, traditionally placed in the late eleventh c ...
to
Caiaphas Joseph ben Caiaphas (; c. 14 BC – c. 46 AD) was the High Priest of Israel during the first century. In the New Testament, the Gospels of Gospel of Matthew, Matthew, Gospel of Luke, Luke and Gospel of John, John indicate he was an organizer of ...
, the
Pharisees The Pharisees (; ) were a Jews, Jewish social movement and school of thought in the Levant during the time of Second Temple Judaism. Following the Siege of Jerusalem (AD 70), destruction of the Second Temple in 70 AD, Pharisaic beliefs became ...
, and the
Sanhedrin The Sanhedrin (Hebrew and Middle Aramaic , a loanword from , 'assembly,' 'sitting together,' hence ' assembly' or 'council') was a Jewish legislative and judicial assembly of either 23 or 70 elders, existing at both a local and central level i ...
, while comparing
Goliath Goliath ( ) was a Philistines, Philistine giant in the Book of Samuel. Descriptions of Goliath's giant, immense stature vary among biblical sources, with texts describing him as either or tall. According to the text, Goliath issued a challen ...
to the Devil. Marulić also used his description of David and his warriors eating the Bread of the Presence while fleeing from King Saul an opportunity to praise the Catholic doctrine of the
Real Presence The real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, sometimes shortened Real Presence'','' is the Christian doctrine that Jesus Christ is present in the Eucharist, not merely symbolically or metaphorically, but in a true, real and substantial way. Th ...
in the
Blessed Sacrament The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an ordinance in others. Christians believe that the rite was instituted by J ...
. Furthermore, Marulić's study of the
Hebrew language Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and remained in regular use as a first language unti ...
was just as often on display in the ''Davidiad''; as, despite the difficulties he routinely faced in fitting Hebrew words into the rhythm of Latin dactylic
hexameter Hexameter is a metrical line of verses consisting of six feet (a "foot" here is the pulse, or major accent, of words in an English line of poetry; in Greek as well as in Latin a "foot" is not an accent, but describes various combinations of s ...
, he regularly made humorous comments about how very well the
etymology Etymology ( ) is the study of the origin and evolution of words—including their constituent units of sound and meaning—across time. In the 21st century a subfield within linguistics, etymology has become a more rigorously scientific study. ...
of Hebrew personal names fit the character or appearance of their bearers. According to Edward Mulholland, "Most early modern poets chose as their heroes either ancient historical characters -
Petrarch Francis Petrarch (; 20 July 1304 – 19 July 1374; ; modern ), born Francesco di Petracco, was a scholar from Arezzo and poet of the early Italian Renaissance, as well as one of the earliest Renaissance humanism, humanists. Petrarch's redis ...
's ''
Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...
'' (written 1339-43, first published in
Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...
in 1501) on the
Second Punic War The Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC) was the second of Punic Wars, three wars fought between Ancient Carthage, Carthage and Roman Republic, Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For ...
showing the lead - or medieval figures such as
Charlemagne Charlemagne ( ; 2 April 748 – 28 January 814) was List of Frankish kings, King of the Franks from 768, List of kings of the Lombards, King of the Lombards from 774, and Holy Roman Emperor, Emperor of what is now known as the Carolingian ...
in Ugolino Verino's ''Carlias'' (1480), or, most frequently, contemporary rulers. Marulić was the very first author to write a Neo-Latin Biblical poem, and he would remain unique in having found his inspiration in the
Old Testament The Old Testament (OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible, or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew and occasionally Aramaic writings by the Isr ...
. Though certainly a Dalmatian patriot, Marulić did not choose to write a
national epic A national epic is an epic poem or a literary work of epic scope which seeks to or is believed to capture and express the essence or spirit of a particular nation—not necessarily a nation state, but at least an ethnic or linguistic group wi ...
. He is retelling the Biblical story first and foremost, but from the fullness of his multifaceted persona as, in Baumann's words, 'a Croat, a humanist, a conservative Catholic, an intellectual and a patrician of Split." Marulić wrote ''De humilitate et gloria Christi'' ("On the Humility and Glory of Christ") and ''An Account of Illustrious Men of the Old Testament'' the following year. His final works were ''De ultimo Christi judicio'' ("On the Last Judgment of Christ") and '' Judita'', Marulić's Christian work of epic poetry retelling the ''
Book of Judith The Book of Judith is a deuterocanonical book included in the Septuagint and the Catholic Church, Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Christianity, Christian Old Testament of the Bible but Development of the Hebrew Bible canon, excluded from the ...
'' in the Croatian language, which he produced between 1520 and 1522. The latter, which also drew very heavily upon the
Italian poetry Italian poetry is a category of Italian literature. Italian poetry has its origins in the thirteenth century and has heavily influenced the poetic traditions of many European languages, including that of English. Features * Italian prosody is ...
of
Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri (; most likely baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri; – September 14, 1321), widely known mononymously as Dante, was an Italian Italian poetry, poet, writer, and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called ...
and
Petrarch Francis Petrarch (; 20 July 1304 – 19 July 1374; ; modern ), born Francesco di Petracco, was a scholar from Arezzo and poet of the early Italian Renaissance, as well as one of the earliest Renaissance humanism, humanists. Petrarch's redis ...
, earned Marulić the title "Father of
Croatian literature Croatian literature refers to literary works attributed to the medieval and modern culture of the Croats, Croatia, and Croatian language, Croatian. Besides the modern language whose shape and orthography were standardized in the late 19th centu ...
." Upon completing the poem on 22 April, which is still celebrated in Croatia as National Book Day ( hr), Marulić wrote to a friend, "See it and you will say that the Slavonic language also has its Dante." Marko Marulić died in Split on 5 January 1524 and was buried in the Church of St. Francis in the historic city center. Marulić's ''Liber de laudibus Herculis'' ("A Book in Praise of Hercules"), in which he, "lets the followers of
Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...
, the titan of the pagans, compete with the titan of the Christians, that is, Jesus Christ, who, of course, is ultimately the victor", was posthumously published in 1524. It is also known under the title ''Dialogus de Hercule a Christicolis superato'' ("The Dialogue about Hercules, Who was Surpassed by Those Who Worship Christ"). According to Edward Mulholland, "In it he makes the argument that one who has conquered beasts and monsters, as Hercules did, is not as strong as one who has mastered himself, which is the ideal of every Christian. But Marulić also shares his thoughts on the use of mythology and epic. The dialogue is between a theologian and a poet. The question underlying the dialogue seems to be which way is the most secure to arrive at the truth... For Marulić, as Elisabeth von Erdmann points out, pagan myth and poetry gained a certain legitimacy when employed in the service of theology."


Legacy

During the 16th and 17th century, Marulić's three most popular and most widely read works were ''De institutione bene vivendi per exempla sanctorum'' ("Instruction on How to Lead a Virtuous Life Based on the Examples of Saints"), ''Evangelistarium'' ("Evangelistary"), and ''Quinquaginta parabole'' ("Fifty Parables"). By 1680, these three books had been republished more than eighty times not only in the original Latin, but also in many European vernacular languages, including
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese,
Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...
, Flemish, and even Icelandic. For this reason, Marulić is considered one of the most dynamic and influential theological and devotional writers of the Renaissance.
The British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom. Based in London, it is one of the largest libraries in the world, with an estimated collection of between 170 and 200 million items from multiple countries. As a legal deposit li ...
still has
King Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disagreement w ...
's Latin-language copy of Marulić's ''Evangelistiarium'', a book that was read in English and recommended to the King by Sir
Thomas More Sir Thomas More (7 February 1478 – 6 July 1535), venerated in the Catholic Church as Saint Thomas More, was an English lawyer, judge, social philosopher, author, statesman, theologian, and noted Renaissance humanist. He also served Henry VII ...
. Extensive margin notes in the King's own hand prove that Marulić's book was a major source for the '' Defence of the Seven Sacraments'', Henry's polemic against
Lutheranism Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...
. ''De institutione bene vivendi per exempla sanctorum'' ("Instruction on How to Lead a Virtuous Life Based on the Examples of Saints"), a voluminous book of
Christian morality Christian ethics, also known as moral theology, is a multi-faceted ethical system. It is a Virtue ethics, virtue ethic, which focuses on building moral character, and a Deontological ethics, deontological ethic which emphasizes duty according ...
based on examples from the Bible and concluding with the Latin poem ''Carmen de doctrina Domini nostri Iesu Christi pendentis in cruce'' ("Poem about the Teaching of Our Lord Jesus Christ Hanging on the Cross"), was first published in 1506 in Venice. The final poem, which remains Marulić's most famous work of Latin
Christian poetry Christian poetry is any poetry that contains Christian teachings, themes, or references. The influence of Christianity on poetry has been great in any area that Christianity has taken hold. Christian poems often directly reference the Bible, whil ...
, was published separately in a standalone volume at
Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital (political), capital and largest city of the Central Germany (cultural area), Central German state of Thuringia, with a population of around 216,000. It lies in the wide valley of the Gera (river), River Gera, in the so ...
by the German Renaissance humanist and
Cistercian The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...
abbot Henricus Urbanus in 1514. ''De Institutione'' was seen by Roman Catholic priests during the
Counter-Reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also sometimes called the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to, and as an alternative to or from similar insights as, the Protestant Reformations at the time. It w ...
as a rich source of stories for use during their preaching and was "considered the work most useful for Catholics in the defense of their ancestral Faith." ''De Institutione'' is further known to have had an enormous influence upon St Francis Xavier; it was the only book, aside from the
Roman Breviary The Roman Breviary (Ecclesiastical Latin, Latin: ''Breviarium Romanum'') is a breviary of the Roman Rite in the Catholic Church. A liturgical book, it contains public or canonical Catholic prayer, prayers, hymns, the Psalms, readings, and notat ...
, that he carried with him and constantly re-read during his missionary work in
Portuguese India The State of India, also known as the Portuguese State of India or Portuguese India, was a state of the Portuguese Empire founded seven years after the discovery of the sea route to the Indian subcontinent by Vasco da Gama, a subject of the ...
. St. Francis Xavier's copy of the book was returned to Spain after his death and was long treasured in
Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
as a second class
relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains or personal effects of a saint or other person preserved for the purpose of veneration as a tangible memorial. Reli ...
by the
Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...
. Writing in 1961, Marulić scholar Ante Kadić announced that recent inquiries about the volume had come up empty and that he believed the Saint's copy must have been destroyed during the May 1931 arson attack by Spanish Republicans against the Jesuit monastery in Madrid. Further research, however, will be needed to determine whether excerpts from ''De institutione'' were translated into Japanese by Paul Yôhô-ken (1510–1599) and his son and published at
Nagasaki , officially , is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. Founded by the Portuguese, the port of Portuguese_Nagasaki, Nagasaki became the sole Nanban trade, port used for tr ...
by the Jesuits as ''Sanctos no go-sagyô no uchi nukigakkan dai-ichi'' ("Extracts from the Acts of the Saints") in 1591. Due to Marulić having taken a stance in the fourth chapter of the ''Instituto'' in favour of the then controversial ethical doctrine of
mental reservation Mental reservation (or mental equivocation) is an ethical theory and a doctrine in moral theology which recognizes the "lie of necessity", and holds that when there is a conflict between justice and veracity (ethics), telling the truth, it is jus ...
, namely, "that lying may sometimes be licit, although always undesirable", the same volume was temporarily placed upon the
Index of Forbidden Books The (English: ''Index of Forbidden Books'') was a changing list of publications deemed heretical or contrary to morality by the Sacred Congregation of the Index (a former dicastery of the Roman Curia); Catholics were forbidden to print o ...
and copies were burned at
Siena Siena ( , ; traditionally spelled Sienna in English; ) is a city in Tuscany, in central Italy, and the capital of the province of Siena. It is the twelfth most populated city in the region by number of inhabitants, with a population of 52,991 ...
in 1564. While imprisoned for recusancy in the
Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic citadel and castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamle ...
under
Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...
, St. Philip Howard, who was later canonized in 1970 by
Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI (born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding John XXII ...
as one of the
Forty Martyrs of England and Wales The Forty Martyrs of England and Wales or Cuthbert Mayne and Thirty-Nine Companion Martyrs are a group of Catholic Church, Catholic, lay and religious, men and women, executed between 1535 and 1679 for treason and related offences under variou ...
, wrote a translation into
Elizabethan English Early Modern English (sometimes abbreviated EModEFor example, or EMnE) or Early New English (ENE) is the stage of the English language from the beginning of the Tudor period to the English Interregnum (England), Interregnum and Stuart Restor ...
verse of Marulić's poem ''Carmen de doctrina Domini nostri Iesu Christi pendentis in cruce'' ("A Dialogue Betwixt a Christian and Christ Hanging on the Crosse"). Howard also produced an English translation of John Justus of Landsberg's ''Alloquia Jesu Christi ad animam fidelem'' ("An Epistle in the Person of Jesus Christ to the Faithful Soule") during his imprisonment in the Tower, which was posthumously published at
Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...
, in the
Spanish Netherlands The Spanish Netherlands (; ; ; ) (historically in Spanish: , the name "Flanders" was used as a '' pars pro toto'') was the Habsburg Netherlands ruled by the Spanish branch of the Habsburgs from 1556 to 1714. They were a collection of States of t ...
(1595). St. Philip Howard's translation of Marulić's poem was published instead of a
preface __NOTOC__ A preface () or proem () is an introduction to a book or other literature, literary work written by the work's author. An introductory essay written by a different person is a ''foreword'' and precedes an author's preface. The preface o ...
to the Antwerp edition and again, with updated
English orthography English orthography comprises the set of rules used when writing the English language, allowing readers and writers to associate written graphemes with the sounds of spoken English, as well as other features of the language. English's orthograp ...
, as part of the March/April 2022 issue of the literary magazine, '' St. Austin Review''. During the parallel literary and cultural flowering known as the
Spanish Golden Age The Spanish Golden Age (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Siglo de Oro'', , "Golden Century"; 1492 – 1681) was a period of literature and the The arts, arts in Spain that coincided with the political rise of the Spanish Empire under the Catholic M ...
, same dialogue poem by Marulić was similarly translated into an immortal work of
Castilian Spanish In English, Castilian Spanish can mean the variety of Peninsular Spanish spoken in northern and central Spain, the standard form of Spanish, or Spanish from Spain in general. In Spanish, the term (Castilian) can either refer to the Spanish langu ...
verse by the Augustinian
friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders in the Catholic Church. There are also friars outside of the Catholic Church, such as within the Anglican Communion. The term, first used in the 12th or 13th century, distinguishes the mendi ...
Luis de León. On October 4, 1998,
Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...
quoted from Marulić's ''Carmen de doctrina Domini nostri Iesu Christi pendentis in cruce'' ("Poem about the Teaching of Our Lord Jesus Christ Hanging on the Cross") during an apostolic visit to Solin, Croatia, "One of your poets has written, ''Felix qui semper vitae bene computat usum'' ('Happy is he who always puts his life to good use.') It is vital to choose true values, not those which pass, to choose genuine truth, not half-truths and pseudo-truths. Do not trust those who promise you easy solutions. Nothing great can be built without sacrifice." In 2024, Edward Mulholland, a Latinist and
Classicist Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...
from the faculty of Benedictine College in
Atchison, Kansas Atchison is a city in, and the county seat of, Atchison County, Kansas, United States, along the Missouri River. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 10,885. The city is named in honor of US Senator ...
, published the first complete English translation of the ''Davidiad'' in un-rhymed
iambic pentameter Iambic pentameter ( ) is a type of metric line used in traditional English poetry and verse drama. The term describes the rhythm, or meter, established by the words in each line. Meter is measured in small groups of syllables called feet. "Iambi ...
. The work, which also includes an English translation of the ''Tropologica Expositio'', was released as an entry in LYSA Publishers's "LYNX"
book series A book series is a sequence of books having certain characteristics in common that are formally identified together as a group. Book series can be organized in different ways, such as written by the same author, or marketed as a group by their publ ...
dedicated to neo-Latin texts. In his introduction Mulholland explained, "The translation of a Vergilian epic owes much to translators of Vergil." Mulholland according expressed gratitude to the previous translators of the ''
Aeneid The ''Aeneid'' ( ; or ) is a Latin Epic poetry, epic poem that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Troy, Trojan who fled the Trojan War#Sack of Troy, fall of Troy and travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the Ancient Rome ...
'', especially Gavin Douglas,
John Dryden John Dryden (; – ) was an English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who in 1668 was appointed England's first Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, Poet Laureate. He is seen as dominating the literary life of Restoration (En ...
, Robert Fagles, and Robert Fitzgerald. Mulholland also explained that he had chosen to follow the existing convention that, "English
epic poetry In poetry, an epic is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants. With regard t ...
... uses
alliteration Alliteration is the repetition of syllable-initial consonant sounds between nearby words, or of syllable-initial vowels if the syllables in question do not start with a consonant. It is often used as a literary device. A common example is " Pe ...
more often than Latin does." For this reason, Mulholland decided to publish his translation side by side with the Latin original, so that those able to read both languages could compare them to one another. In 2023, Mulholland's translation of Book XIV had been named an honorable mention during the British Centre for Literary Translation's John Dryden Translation Competition.


Writing

The central figure of the humanist circle in Split, Marulić was inspired by the
Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...
, ancient writers and Christian hagiographies. The main topics of his writings were Christian theological by nature. He wrote many poems, discussions on theology and Christian ethics, stories and epic poetry. He wrote in three languages:
Renaissance Latin Renaissance Latin is a name given to the distinctive form of Literary Latin style developed during the European Renaissance of the fourteenth to fifteenth centuries, particularly by the Renaissance humanism movement. This style of Latin is reg ...
(more than 80% of his surviving opus), Croatian and
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
(three letters and two
sonnet A sonnet is a fixed poetic form with a structure traditionally consisting of fourteen lines adhering to a set Rhyme scheme, rhyming scheme. The term derives from the Italian word ''sonetto'' (, from the Latin word ''sonus'', ). Originating in ...
s are preserved).


Croatian works

In his Croatian-language works, Marulić achieved a permanent status and position that has remained uncontested. His central Croatian oeuvre, the epic
poem Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...
'' Judita'' (') written in 1501 and published in Venice in 1521, is based on the Biblical tale from a Deuterocanonical ''
Book of Judith The Book of Judith is a deuterocanonical book included in the Septuagint and the Catholic Church, Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Christianity, Christian Old Testament of the Bible but Development of the Hebrew Bible canon, excluded from the ...
'', written in Čakavian dialect, his mother tongue, and described by him as ''u versi haruacchi slozhena'' ("arranged in Croatian stanzas"). His other works in Croatian are: * ''Suzana'' ("Susanna") – a Biblical poem in 780 verses, based on the account from the ''
Book of Daniel The Book of Daniel is a 2nd-century BC biblical apocalypse with a 6th-century BC setting. It is ostensibly a narrative detailing the experiences and Prophecy, prophetic visions of Daniel, a Jewish Babylonian captivity, exile in Babylon ...
'' of the Babylonian Jewish woman of the same name who was falsely accused of
adultery Adultery is extramarital sex that is considered objectionable on social, religious, moral, or legal grounds. Although the sexual activities that constitute adultery vary, as well as the social, religious, and legal consequences, the concept ...
and how her innocence was proven and she was saved from death by stoning by the timely intervention and interrogation of her accusers by the Prophet Daniel. * ''Poklad i korizma'' (Carnival and Lent), ''Spovid koludric od sedam smrtnih grihov'' ("A Nun's Confession of the
Seven Deadly Sins The seven deadly sins (also known as the capital vices or cardinal sins) function as a grouping of major vices within the teachings of Christianity. In the standard list, the seven deadly sins according to the Catholic Church are pride, greed ...
"), ''Anka satir'' (Anka: A Satire) – secular poetry, and poetry dedicated to his sister ''Bira'' * ''Tužen'je grada Hjerosolima'' (Jerusalem's Lament) – anti-Turkish laments * ''Molitva suprotiva Turkom'' ("A Prayer Against the Turks") – poem in 172 doubly rhymed dodecasyllablic stanzas of anti-Turkish theme, written between 1493 and 1500. The poem contains the hidden
acrostic An acrostic is a poem or other word composition in which the ''first'' letter (or syllable, or word) of each new line (or paragraph, or other recurring feature in the text) spells out a word, message or the alphabet. The term comes from the Fre ...
''Solus deus potes nos liberare de tribulatione inimicorum nostrorum Turcorum sua potentia infinita,'' "Only God with his infinite might can save us from the misery of our enemies, the Turks", discovered by Luko Paljetak. It is believed to show the influence of Juraj Šižgorić's ''Elegija o pustošenju Šibenskog polja'' and the medieval song ''Spasi, Marije, tvojih vjernih'' from Tkonski miscellany. Marulić's poem in turn has influenced Zoranić's '' Planine'' – the first Croatian novel, in which ''ganka pastira Marula'' alludes to Turks, and also to Petar Lučić and his work ''Molitva Bogu protiv Turkom'', and Primož Trubar's ''Pjesni zuper Turke''. American historian John Van Antwerp Fine, Jr. emphasizes that Marulić belongs to a group of humanists and clerics placed in the "Croat" camp who, at least at the time they wrote their texts, did not seem to have a Croatian ethnic identity. It must be noted however, that a critical review of Fine's work highlighted subjective conclusions. Neven Budak of the
University of Zagreb The University of Zagreb (, ) is a public university, public research university in Zagreb, Croatia. It is the largest Croatian university and one of the oldest continuously operating universities in Europe. The University of Zagreb and the Unive ...
noted "ideological prejudices", "omission of historical facts" and "preconceived conclusions" due to Fine's alleged personal bias regarding the former Yugoslavia and its various ethnic groups.


Latin works

Marulić's European fame rested mainly on his works written in
Renaissance Latin Renaissance Latin is a name given to the distinctive form of Literary Latin style developed during the European Renaissance of the fourteenth to fifteenth centuries, particularly by the Renaissance humanism movement. This style of Latin is reg ...
which were repeatedly re-published. His '' Psichiologia de ratione animae humanae'', written between 1510 and 1517, contains the earliest known literary reference to the term
psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...
.Darko Zubrinic, Zagreb (1995
Croatian Humanists, Ecumenists, Latinists, and Encyclopaedists
croatianhistory.net
In 1517, Marulić completed the '' Davidiad'' an epic poem which retold the
Old Testament The Old Testament (OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible, or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew and occasionally Aramaic writings by the Isr ...
story of
King David David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Damas ...
in Virgilian Latin with multiple references to
Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...
and
Roman mythology Roman mythology is the body of myths of ancient Rome as represented in the literature and visual arts of the Romans, and is a form of Roman folklore. "Roman mythology" may also refer to the modern study of these representations, and to th ...
. In addition to the small portions that attempt to recall
Homer Homer (; , ; possibly born ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Despite doubts about his autho ...
, the ''Davidiad'' is heavily modeled upon
Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; 15 October 70 BC21 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Rome, ancient Roman poet of the Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Augustan period. He composed three of the most fa ...
's ''
Aeneid The ''Aeneid'' ( ; or ) is a Latin Epic poetry, epic poem that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Troy, Trojan who fled the Trojan War#Sack of Troy, fall of Troy and travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the Ancient Rome ...
''.Marcovich (1973), p. 371. Indeed, the work was so heavily indebted to the Aeneid that Marulić's contemporaries called him the "Christian Virgil from Split." Serbian-American
philologist Philology () is the study of language in oral and written historical sources. It is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics with strong ties to etymology. Philology is also defined as the study of ...
Miroslav Marcovich Miroslav Marcovich (March 18, 1919 – June 14, 2001) was a Serbian-American philologist and university professor. Early life Marcovich was born in Belgrade, Serbia. He studied at the University of Belgrade Faculty of Philosophy graduating ...
also detects "the influence of
Ovid Publius Ovidius Naso (; 20 March 43 BC – AD 17/18), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a younger contemporary of Virgil and Horace, with whom he i ...
, Lucan, and
Statius Publius Papinius Statius (Greek language, Greek: Πόπλιος Παπίνιος Στάτιος; , ; ) was a Latin poetry, Latin poet of the 1st century CE. His surviving poetry includes an epic in twelve books, the ''Thebaid (Latin poem), Theb ...
" in the work.Marcovich (2006), p. vii. The ''Davidiad'' was considered lost by 1567 and long remained so. After a search lasting nearly two centuries by Croatian literary scholars at libraries and archives throughout Europe, Marulic's original manuscript (Ms. T) resurfaced at the Turin National University Library in 1922. News of its existence and the fact that it had never previously been published was spread throughout Classical academia by Carlo Dionisotti in 1952. The ''
editio princeps In Textual scholarship, textual and classical scholarship, the ''editio princeps'' (plural: ''editiones principes'') of a work is the first printed edition of the work, that previously had existed only in manuscripts. These had to be copied by han ...
'' was published by Josip Badalić of the Yugoslav Academy of Sciences and Arts in
1954 Events January * January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting. * January 7 – Georgetown–IBM experiment: The first public demonstration of a machine translation system is held in New York, at the head ...
, but this work "proved to be a failure," as whole verses were left out and many words were misread by the editor.Marcovich (1973), p. 374.Marcovich (2006), pp. viiiix. Several years later, in
1957 Events January * January 1 – The Saarland joins West Germany. * January 3 – Hamilton Watch Company introduces the first electric watch. * January 5 – South African player Russell Endean becomes the first batsman to be Dismissal (cricke ...
, Miroslav Marcovich overcame many of the difficulties that plagued Badalić's work and produced a more usable critical edition.Bruere (1959), p. 198. Latinist Veljko Gortan eventually corrected around 50 instances of misread words and published his own critical edition in 1974.Marcovich (2006), p. ix. A
literary translation Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''trans ...
of the ''Davidiad'' into Croatian
hexameter Hexameter is a metrical line of verses consisting of six feet (a "foot" here is the pulse, or major accent, of words in an English line of poetry; in Greek as well as in Latin a "foot" is not an accent, but describes various combinations of s ...
s was made by Branimir Glavačić and published alongside the Latin original as part of Veljko Gortan's edition in 1974. Marulić was active in the struggles against the
Ottoman Turks The Ottoman Turks () were a Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group in Anatolia. Originally from Central Asia, they migrated to Anatolia in the 13th century and founded the Ottoman Empire, in which they remained socio-politically dominant for the e ...
who were invading the Croatian lands at that time. To this end, he wrote a Latin ''Epistola'' to
Pope Adrian VI Pope Adrian VI (; ; ; ), born Adriaan Florensz Boeyens (2 March 1459 – 14 September 1523), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 January 1522 until his death on 14 September 1523. The only Dutch people, Du ...
and begged for assistance in the fight against the Ottomans. In his epigram ''In discordiam principium Christianorum'' ("Against Discord between the Princes of the Christians"), Marulić denounced the monarchs of Europe for warring among themselves at a time when the Sultan of the
Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
and the
janissaries A janissary (, , ) was a member of the elite infantry units that formed the Ottoman sultan's household troops. They were the first modern standing army, and perhaps the first infantry force in the world to be equipped with firearms, adopted du ...
were invading
Christendom The terms Christendom or Christian world commonly refer to the global Christian community, Christian states, Christian-majority countries or countries in which Christianity is dominant or prevails.SeMerriam-Webster.com : dictionary, "Christen ...
.


Glasgow codex

A Marulić manuscript found in
Glasgow University Library Glasgow University Library in the main library of the University of Glasgow. At the turn of the 21st century, the main library building itself held 1,347,000 catalogued print books, and 53,300 journals. In total, the university library syst ...
threw new light on his work and persona. It was discovered in 1995 by Darko Novaković, who stated that, in comparison with Marulić's known carmina minora, the poems in the codex introduce three thematic novelties. Unexpectedly vehement, satirical epigrams are featured and the intensity of his satirical impulse is startling, even in such conventional poems as epitaphs. Three poems reveal his love of animals. The greatest revelation are the verses which show Marulić as the author of love poems. This aspect represents the most serious challenge to the traditional picture of the poet: the last epigram in the collection is a true Priapeum marked with lascivious ambiguity.


Visual artist

According to Fisković, Marulić was an accomplished illustrator. In his will he left to his sister a book he illustrated and conceived. The second edition of ''Judita'', prepared by Zadar publisher Jerolim Mirković, dated 30 May 1522, is adorned with nine woodcuts, the last of which is signed "M". It is assumed that the illustrations were created by Marulić himself.


Commemoration

Marulić's portrait was depicted on the
obverse The obverse and reverse are the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags, seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, ''obverse'' ...
of the Croatian 500 kuna banknote, issued in 1993. The Croatian state decoration awarded for special merit in culture, the Order of Danica Hrvatska, is ornamented with the face of Marko Marulić. The Festival of Croatian Drama in Split – 'Festival Marulićevi dani' (Festival of Marulić days) – is named after Marulić and gives annual MARUL awards. The revue ''Marulić'' ( hr) and the journal ''Colloquia Maruliana'' are named after him. Marulianum is a scientific centre of Split Literary Circle dedicated to research on Marulić. By the decree of Sabor in 1996, 22 April is commemorated in Croatia as the Day of the Croatian Book ( hr) in tribute to Marulić and his ''Judita''. Sabor declared 2021 in Croatia as a Year of Marko Marulić and Year of reading in Croatia, marking 500 years since the publication of ''Judita''. The
Croatian government The Government of Croatia (), formally the Government of the Republic of Croatia (), commonly abbreviated to Croatian Government (), is the main executive branch of government in Croatia. It is led by the president of the Government (), infor ...
declared 2024 as the Year of Marko Marulić in memorial of the 500th anniversary of his death.


Notes


References


Further reading

* * * * * * * * *


External links


''Vita Marci Maruli Spalatensis per Franciscum Natalem, conciuem suum, composita''
(Latin text and French translation)
Links to digitized old editions of Marulić's books

Links to works about Marulić in English, German, Italian, and Spanish

Links to translations of Marulić's works in English, French, German, Icelandic, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish

French translations of several works of Marulić


* ttp://dk.nsk.hr/stara_knjiga/NSK_SK_ID03/ Zadar edition of Judita with illustrations by Marko Marulić {{DEFAULTSORT:Marulic, Marko 1450 births 1524 deaths 15th-century Croatian writers 16th-century Italian literature 16th-century Croatian poets 16th-century male writers 16th-century writers in Latin Book burnings Catholic poets Censorship in Italy Croatian Roman Catholic theologians Croatian male poets Croatian people of Italian descent Croatian Renaissance humanists Christian humanists Croatian Catholic poets Croatian Latinists Epic poets Lay theologians Mythopoeic writers Neo-Latin poets Republic of Venice poets Sonneteers Venetian Slavs Venetian period in the history of Croatia Writers from Split, Croatia Croatian satirists Satirical poets