German from Reichenau , German Relaxed ( German: Hermann von Reichenau , lat. Hermannus Contractus ; July 18, 1013 , Saulgau, Swabia - September 24, 1054 , Reichenau Monastery ) - German Benedictine monk, historian, astronomer, poet and musician. Locally venerated saint (beatified in 1863) of the Catholic Church. His memory is celebrated on September 24.
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| Occupation | historian, astronomer, poet, musician |
Biography
Hermann was born into the family of Count Wolfrad von Althausen ; since childhood was paralyzed. He was brought up under the supervision of Berno from Reichenau at the famous Benedictine monastery of Reichenau , located on an island in the middle of Lake Constance . He received a good education, in 1043 he took vows in the Order of the Benedictines. Despite the physical ailment, he devoted much time to scientific research in various fields of knowledge, as well as art. Thanks to his talents and encyclopedic knowledge, Herman soon gained great fame and authority. He was called the “most glorious husband”, in 1049, to meet with Herman, Pope Leo IX came to Reichenau. Herman died in 1054 in Reichenau, buried in the family crypt in the town of Althausen .
Herman's historical works are devoted to a compilation of the events of the first millennium AD from the birth of Christ to his modern era based on various sources; for the first time he compiled a chronological list of the most important events of the millennium, previously mentioned in various chronicles.
The astronomical works of Herman (revealing Arab influences) - “On the lunar month” and “On eclipses” were performed for a contemporary level of knowledge at a high scientific level. His book De Mensura Astrolabii, dedicated to astrolabe , a device new to Western Europe in the 11th century , was widely popular until the beginning of the 12th century [4] . Several of his works are also devoted to geometric and arithmetic problems.
Of the few poetic works of Herman that have come down to us, there is a large (1172 verses) didactic poem "On the eight major sins" (De octo vitiis principalibus), addressed to the nuns, an exalted epitaph written in memory of the deceased mother in 1052 ("Mater egenorum, spes auxiliumque suorum ") and the poem" Martyrology ".
German musician
In his treatise Musica, Herman developed the doctrine of musical intervals and frets . He proposed his system of alphabetic musical notation , combining the letters of the Greek and Latin alphabets (the so-called "interval notation" of Herman). In addition, Herman wrote two poems “Ter tria iunctorum” and “Ter terni sunt modi” with the corresponding educational melodies, for the mnemonic assimilation of all intervals used in singing. Judging by how often these verses are found in medieval manuscripts (in author's treatises and in numerous anonymous compilations), they became universal in teaching singers the elementary foundations of music.
The authorship of Herman was established in relation to two sequences with the incipites Grates, honos, hierarchia and Gloriosa et beatissima; the sequence “Ave, praeclara maris stella”, perhaps, does not belong to him. Famous chants - the virgin antiphons "Alma Redemptoris mater" and "Salve Regina" , which the Catholic tradition attributed to Herman, are now considered anonymous.
Praise
Herman from Reichenau was beatified in 1863 . He is revered as a locally revered saint in some German dioceses , as well as in the Order of the Benedictines. Memorial Day in the Catholic Church - September 24.
Compositions
- Chronicon // Quellen des 9. und 10. Jahrhunderts zur Geschichte der Hamburgischen Kirche und des Reiches, hrsg. v. R. Buchner u. W. Trillmich. Darmstadt 1961 (= Freiherr vom Stein-Gedächtnisausgabe 11).
- Musica Hermanni Contracti, ed. L. Ellinwood. Rochester, NY, 1936 (lat. Original and English translation); 2nd revised ed. by John L. Snyder. Rochester, 2015. ISBN 978-1-58046-390-4 (the title of the reprint is “The Musica of Hermannus Contractus”).
- Opusculum Herimanni (De octo vitiis principalibus). Eingeleitet, herausgegeben und übersetzt von Bernhard Hollick // Reichenauer Texte und Bilder, Bd. 14. Heidelberg 2008.
- Migne (ed.), Patrologia Latina, vol. 143 (the old but complete works of Herman prepared by Minem in the MPL).
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 3 German National Library , Berlin State Library , Bavarian State Library , etc. Record # 118549693 // General regulatory control (GND) - 2012—2016.
- ↑ 1 2 Archive for the history of mathematics MacTyutor
- ↑ LIBRIS - 2012.
- ↑ Eastwood BS Astronomy in Christian Latin Europe c. 500 - c. 1150. Journal for the History of Astronomy, vol. 28, No. 3, p. 253. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F002182869702800303
Literature
- Oesch H. Berno und Hermann von Reichenau als Musiktheoretiker. Bern, 1961.
- Borst A. Wie kam die arabische Sternkunde ins Kloster Reichenau? Konstanz: Univ.-Verl. Konstanz, 1988.
- Borst A. Mönche am Bodensee: 610-1525. Berlin: Ullstein, 1998.
- Berschin W., Hellmann M. Hermann der Lahme. Gelehrter und Dichter (1013-1054). Heidelberg, 2005.
Links
- A site about German, with useful links and electronic publications of some of his texts (Latin, German)
- An article in the Catholic Encyclopedia
- Hermann (Hermannus) the Lame Article in Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography
- Hermann of Reichenau MacTutorial History of Mathematics archive article