Editing Reconsidered: Editors, Users and Curators of Medieval Sources in 21st Century

Critical editions continue to be the primary reference works for scholars of the Middle Ages from various backgrounds. Recent debates in medieval manuscript studies and the growth of the digital community are opening new perspectives for edited and unedited medieval written sources. However, the dialogue between traditional and digital philology has not yet reached its full potential. Editors of medieval sources have been considered as cultural brokers of medieval studies but they are naturally not alone in the process of knowledge transmission. Their work is greatly influenced by curators of manuscript collections, while the recipients of the editions, especially the digital ones, also shape the knowledge transfer. Medievalists will discuss the challenges faced not only by editors, but also by recipients of critical editions in the 21st century. Some of these challenges are emerging with new digital technologies, others, such as the problem of authorship, have always been linked to scholarly editing.