Till Eulenspiegel
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Till Eulenspiegel (Low German Dyl Ulenspegel) is a character of medieval Low German literature. Born in Kneitlingen near Braunschweig (Brunswick) around 1300, he travelled through what is today's Northern Germany, Netherlands, and Belgium, and performed various practical jokes, according to tradition. Eulenspiegel is said to have died in Mölln around 1350. He is often represented as a trickster folk hero who made fun of authority.
The best known version of the Eulenspiegel story is An entertaining book about Till Eulenspiegel from the land of Brunswick, published anonymously around 1510 and often attributed to Hermann Bote.
Some more recent works that are based on Till Eulenspiegel:
- The legend of Thyl Ulenspiegel and Lamme Goedzak, an 1867 novel by Charles De Coster;
- Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche, a late-19th century tone poem by Richard Strauss;
- a 1916 ballet by the Ballets Russes, see Vaslav Nijinsky.
Medieval Middle Eastern literature has a character that is similar to Eulenspiegel, Nasreddin.
External links
- German translation of the 1510 book (http://gutenberg.spiegel.de/bote/eulenspg/eulenspg.htm)
- Till Eulenspiegel Museum (http://www.eulenspiegel-museum.de/english/english.htm)