Ford Lectures 2025: “Lette Frenchmen in their Frenche endyten”(Thomas Usk, c.1384-87): French in the Multilingual Fourteenth Century

20th February 2025, 5:00 pm

Speaker: Professor Jocelyn Wogan-Browne (Fordham University)
Location: South School, Examination Schools

This lecture has to perform a double act, resisting the nationalizing teleology attached to the late fourteenth century that makes French always already about to die, while acknowledging the vigorous growth of English as a written language of culture (though not an official language of the crown) in the later part of the century.  Accordingly, it anchors the continuing but shifting multilingualism of the fourteenth century by looking forward from the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries before turning to some domains of literature, record, and administration to address changes and continuities in the latter half of the century. As some eloquent modern scholarship has shown, the fluctuations of war and truce between English and French contemporaries entangled them more intensely in their shared French vernacular.  English’s expanding domains and the great English-language late medieval literary experimentation and consolidation are neither the outcome of conflict nor evidence of serial monolingualism.

French in Medieval Britain: Cultural Politics and Social History, c. 1100-c. 1500

Professor Jocelyn Wogan-Browne (Fordham University)

French played a major, though not the only role, in the pervasive multilingualism of British history and culture.  As Britain’s only medieval ‘global’ vernacular, it was also important to a wide range of people for their participation in external theatres of empire, trade, culture, conflict, and crusade.  Displacing the long shadow of nineteenth-century nationalizing conceptions of language and their entrenchment in modern university disciplinary divisions, emerging histories of French in England and increasingly of French in Ireland, Wales, and Scotland offer new ways of understanding language and identity.  These lectures trace francophone medieval Britain in a chronological sequence across its four main centuries, interpolating two thematic lectures on areas especially needing integration into our histories, medieval women and French in Britain, and French Bible translation in medieval England. 

Ford Lectures 2025: ‘That each may in his own tongue … know his God’ (Grosseteste, in French, 1230s): Bible Translation in Medieval England

13th February 2025, 5:00 pm

Speaker: Professor Jocelyn Wogan-Browne (Fordham University)
Location: South School, Examination Schools

The history of the Bible in medieval England becomes a different story once the plethora of French-language scriptural translations enters the picture.  Early twelfth-century psalters and their commentary, vigorous reworkings and commentary for individual books of the bible, and whole bibles and theological encyclopaedias in French in the later Middle Ages are an important part of the history of doctrine and devotion and lay-ecclesiastical relations.  Their existence complicates historical narratives about English-language translation in England, especially in relation to the so-called ‘Wyclifite’ Bible, that have been in place since the sixteenth century.    

French in Medieval Britain: Cultural Politics and Social History, c. 1100-c. 1500

Professor Jocelyn Wogan-Browne (Fordham University)

French played a major, though not the only role, in the pervasive multilingualism of British history and culture.  As Britain’s only medieval ‘global’ vernacular, it was also important to a wide range of people for their participation in external theatres of empire, trade, culture, conflict, and crusade.  Displacing the long shadow of nineteenth-century nationalizing conceptions of language and their entrenchment in modern university disciplinary divisions, emerging histories of French in England and increasingly of French in Ireland, Wales, and Scotland offer new ways of understanding language and identity.  These lectures trace francophone medieval Britain in a chronological sequence across its four main centuries, interpolating two thematic lectures on areas especially needing integration into our histories, medieval women and French in Britain, and French Bible translation in medieval England. 

Professor Christopher Hood (1947-2025)

With great sorrow the College announces the death on 3 January of Christopher Hood CBE FBA, at the age of 77.

Christopher came from the LSE to Oxford in 2001 as Gladstone Professor of Government and a Fellow of All Souls.  Since retirement in 2014 he was an Emeritus Fellow of the College.  Christopher’s research concerned public administration and regulation, and his most recent book, on the history of public expenditure control in the UK, was published in 2023.

Our sympathies go to Christopher’s family.

6th January 2025

Ford Lectures 2025: Expansions: ‘Everyone knows that French is better understood and more widely used than Latin’: Matthew Paris (in French, 1253x59)

6th February 2025, 5:00 pm

Speaker: Professor Jocelyn Wogan-Browne (Fordham University)
Location: South School, Examination Schools

Recent scholarly work on the linguistic history of French in England, on French’s changing socio-cultural domains and increased participation in the administration of Britain, and on its widened ‘global’ reach in the late twelfth and thirteenth centuries have combined to overturn older histories of Britain’s medieval French as rapidly ossifying into an artificial and moribund language. Under the Angevins and Plantagenets, French remained a language of conquest and trade within Britain and beyond it, offering meritocratic opportunities to a wider spectrum of social groups, many not initially elite. The Frenches to which francophone people from Britain now had access include the French of Outremer (the Latin kingdom of Jerusalem, where French was a lingua franca for Europeans and Arabic speakers) and the Italo-French in which Marco Polo recorded his Eurasian experiences.  One result of such expanded contact and awareness was a greatly increased French-language corpus of Latin-mediated natural science and encyclopaedic knowledge.   

French in Medieval Britain: Cultural Politics and Social History, c. 1100-c. 1500

French played a major, though not the only role, in the pervasive multilingualism of British history and culture.  As Britain’s only medieval ‘global’ vernacular, it was also important to a wide range of people for their participation in external theatres of empire, trade, culture, conflict, and crusade.  Displacing the long shadow of nineteenth-century nationalizing conceptions of language and their entrenchment in modern university disciplinary divisions, emerging histories of French in England and increasingly of French in Ireland, Wales, and Scotland offer new ways of understanding language and identity.  These lectures trace francophone medieval Britain in a chronological sequence across its four main centuries, interpolating two thematic lectures on areas especially needing integration into our histories, medieval women and French in Britain, and French Bible translation in medieval England. 

Ford Lectures 2025: Langue des reines: The Importance of Women to French and French to Women

30th January 2025, 5:00 pm

Speaker: Professor Jocelyn Wogan-Browne (Fordham University)
Location: South School, Examination Schools

The francophone education and patronage of British and European queens was significant throughout the Middle Ages and beyond, and French was an important language both for them and for women from a wider range of class groups. This lecture looks at women’s  French-language writing and cultural patronage in the British medieval centuries and at some of the domains of discourse and activity where French increased medieval women’s access.   The literacies of women open new questions around personal and societal language acquisition and use.  

 

French in Medieval Britain: Cultural Politics and Social History, c. 1100-c. 1500

French played a major, though not the only role, in the pervasive multilingualism of British history and culture.  As Britain’s only medieval ‘global’ vernacular, it was also important to a wide range of people for their participation in external theatres of empire, trade, culture, conflict, and crusade.  Displacing the long shadow of nineteenth-century nationalizing conceptions of language and their entrenchment in modern university disciplinary divisions, emerging histories of French in England and increasingly of French in Ireland, Wales, and Scotland offer new ways of understanding language and identity.  These lectures trace francophone medieval Britain in a chronological sequence across its four main centuries, interpolating two thematic lectures on areas especially needing integration into our histories, medieval women and French in Britain, and French Bible translation in medieval England. 

Ford Lectures 2025: “Alle mine thegenas … frencisce & englisce”: The Languages of 1066 – And All That

23rd January 2025, 5:00 pm

Speaker: Professor Jocelyn Wogan-Browne (Fordham University)
Location: South School, Examination Schools

 

After looking briefly at the things William, Duke of Normandy did not do about French, English and other languages in Britain in his conquest, this lecture examines what happened on the ground linguistically.  It argues for looser relations between language and identity than have often been presupposed in modern scholarship, and looks at some developments in the medieval writing of history and conquest in the eleventh to twelfth centuries. In considering how both written French and (more temporarily) empire became consolidated under the Angevins, it is important to develop analyses of cross-channel political and literary cultures that understands them as at once shared and open to local inflection.

 

French in Medieval Britain: Cultural Politics and Social History, c. 1100-c. 1500

French played a major, though not the only role, in the pervasive multilingualism of British history and culture. As Britain’s only medieval ‘global’ vernacular, it was also important to a wide range of people for their participation in external theatres of empire, trade, culture, conflict, and crusade. Displacing the long shadow of nineteenth-century nationalizing conceptions of language and their entrenchment in modern university disciplinary divisions, emerging histories of French in England and increasingly of French in Ireland, Wales, and Scotland offer new ways of understanding language and identity. These lectures trace francophone medieval Britain in a chronological sequence across its four main centuries, interpolating two thematic lectures on areas especially needing integration into our histories, medieval women and French in Britain, and French Bible translation in medieval England. 

Visiting Fellows 2025-2026

The College is pleased to announce that the following have accepted offers of Visiting Fellowships for the 2025 – 2026 academic year:

Professor Elise Bant: Law, The University of Western Australia (Michaelmas Term)

Mr Christopher de Bellaigue: History, Author and Journalist (Trinity Term)

Professor Pablo Gilabert: Philosophy, Concordia University (Michaelmas Term)

Ms Avril Haines: Politics and International Relations, Former US Director of National Intelligence and Independent Researcher (Michaelmas, Hilary and Trinity Terms) 

Dr Joseph Hone: Language and Literature, Newcastle University (Michaelmas Term)

Professor Tatjana Hörnle: Law, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Crime, Security and Law (Michaelmas Term)

Professor Maria Lasonen-Aarnio: Philosophy, University of Helsinki (Michaelmas, Hilary and Trinity Terms)

Professor Dennis Lehmkuhl: History, University of Bonn (Michaelmas, Hilary and Trinity Terms)

Professor Michael Lucey: Language and Literature, UC Berkeley (Hilary and Trinity Terms)

Dr Kerry McCarthy: Musicology, Independent Scholar (Hilary Term)

Professor Jennifer McElwain: Physical Science, Trinity College Dublin (Michaelmas Term)

Professor Alex Murray: Language and Literature, Queen's University Belfast (Michaelmas Term)

Professor Dame Anne Marie Rafferty: History, King's College London (Trinity Term)

Dr Amber Riaz: Philosophy, Lahore University of Management Sciences (Michaelmas, Hilary and Trinity Terms)

A/Prof Celeste Rodriguez Louro: Linguistics, The University of Western Australia (Hilary Term)

Dr Alan Ross: Classical Studies, The Ohio State University (Trinity Term)

Professor Dinesha Samararatne: Law, University of Colombo (Trinity Term)

Professor Gwen Seabourne: Law, University of Bristol (Hilary Term)

Dr Michal Smetana: Politics and International Relations, Charles University (Trinity Term)

Professor Anna Sun: Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, Duke University (Trinity Term)

Dr Graham Turnock: International Relations (Hilary Term)

Professor Charles Vial: Mathematics, Bielefield University (Michaelmas Term)

Dr Daniel Yon: Psychology, Birkbeck, University of London (Hilary Term)

4th December 2024
Head and shoulders shot of Shastikk Kumuran

Shastikk Kumaran

Examination Fellow since 2024
Head and shoulders shot of Justas Petrauskas

Justas Petrauskas

Examination Fellow since 2024

I am broadly interested in the politics of difference, engaging with it from both political philosophy/theory and comparative politics perspectives. Currently, I am pursuing an MPhil in Politics (Comparative Government), with my thesis focusing on the long-term effects of institutional solutions designed to manage ethnic differences in divided societies, particularly on ethnic salience and the quality of democracy. I also maintain an active interest in the politics of the European Union, especially institutional reform, enlargement and rule of law issues.

Professor of Poetry Lecture: Upping the ante

29th November 2024, 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm

Upping the ante: how word choice, quotation and allusion in poems raise the stakes (Professor of Poetry lecture, Nov 2024)

29 November at 5.30pm, Examinations Schools, 75 - 81 High St, Oxford

 

A. E. Stallings' next Professor of Poetry lecture will be on: 'Upping the ante: how word choice, quotation and allusion in poems raise the stakes'. The talk will take place at Examination Schools in Oxford on 29 November at 5.30pm.

 

All welcome; no booking required. Seats will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.

 

A.E. Stallings is an American poet who studied Classics at the University of Georgia and Oxford. She has published four collections of poetry, Archaic Smile, Hapax, and Olives, and most recently, Like, a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. She has published three verse translations, Lucretius's The Nature of Things (in rhyming fourteeners!), Hesiod's Works and Days, and an illustrated The Battle Between the Frogs and the Mice. A selected poems, This Afterlife, is just out from FSG in the US and Carcanet in the UK.

 

https://www.english.ox.ac.uk/event/how-word-choice-quotation-and-allusion-in-poems-raise-the-stakes

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