Frau Minne
Encyclopedia
Frau Minne is a personification
of courtly love
in Middle High German literature.
She is frequently addressed directly in Minnesang
poetry, usually by the pining lover complaining about his state, but she appears also in the longer Minnerede poems, and in prose works.
A rare allegorical painting of ca. 1400, showing Frau Minne presiding over suffering lovers having their hearts torn from their breasts, was discovered in a guild house in Zurich
in 2009.
Allegory
Allegory is a demonstrative form of representation explaining meaning other than the words that are spoken. Allegory communicates its message by means of symbolic figures, actions or symbolic representation...
of courtly love
Courtly love
Courtly love was a medieval European conception of nobly and chivalrously expressing love and admiration. Generally, courtly love was secret and between members of the nobility. It was also generally not practiced between husband and wife....
in Middle High German literature.
She is frequently addressed directly in Minnesang
Minnesang
Minnesang was the tradition of lyric and song writing in Germany which flourished in the 12th century and continued into the 14th century. People who wrote and performed Minnesang are known as Minnesingers . The name derives from the word minne, Middle High German for love which was their main...
poetry, usually by the pining lover complaining about his state, but she appears also in the longer Minnerede poems, and in prose works.
A rare allegorical painting of ca. 1400, showing Frau Minne presiding over suffering lovers having their hearts torn from their breasts, was discovered in a guild house in Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
in 2009.
Literature
- Dorothea Wiercinski, Minne, Niederdeutsche Studien, 1964.
- Konrad Falke, Frau Minne: ein mittelalterlicher Weltspiegel. 1905.