Uc de Saint Circ

Uc's portrait in a manuscript of vidas, some of which he wrote

Uc de Saint Circ (San Sir) or Hugues (Hugh) de Saint Circq (fl. 1217–1253[1]) was a troubadour from Quercy. Uc is perhaps most significant to modern historians as the probable author of several vidas and razos of other troubadours, though only one of Bernart de Ventadorn exists under his name.[1][2] Forty-four of his songs, including fifteen cansos and only three canso melodies, have survived, along with a didactic manual entitled Ensenhamen d'onor.[1][3] According to William E. Burgwinkle, as "poet, biographer, literary historian, and mythographer, Uc must be accorded his rightful place as the 'inventor' (trobador) of 'troubadour poetry' and the idealogical trappings with which it came to be associated."[4]

Uc is probably to be identified with the Uc Faidit (meaning "exiled" or "dispossessed") who authored the Donatz proensals, one of the earliest Occitan grammars. This identity fits with Uc's status as the "inventor" of troubadour poetry as a distinct type and his life in Italy (possibly due to exile during the Albigensian Crusade).

  1. ^ a b c Aubrey, The Music of the Troubadours, 22–23.
  2. ^ Gaunt and Kay, 290.
  3. ^ Egan, 111.
  4. ^ Burgwinkle, "For Love or Money", 348–349.