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Artist
Der von Kürenberg
12th centurygermanminnesingerMinnesanger
about
Der von Kürenberg or Der Kürenberger (fl. mid-12th century) was a Middle High German poet and one of the earliest Minnesänger. Fifteen strophes of his songs are preserved in the Codex Manesse and the Budapest Fragment. Since his given name remains unknown ("Der" is not a name but a demonstrative pronoun), it is impossible to identify him in historical records. His social status also remains uncertain and the place name Kürenberg (literally "Mill Hill") is not uncommon. Although he is placed among the barons ("Freiherren") in the hierarchical ordering of the Manesse Codex, the only known house of this status and name is documented in the Breisgau in the 11th Century. He more probably belongs to families of his name with vassal status ("Dienstmann"), attested in the area along the Danube around Melk and Linz in the mid-12th Century. A Danubian origin is also supported by his use of a strophic form identical to that later used in the Nibelungenlied, the "Nibelungenstrophe". His work is dated on literary-historical grounds to the earliest phase of Minnesang, around 1150–1160. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.