This special issue is the first of two volumes providing a sample of the many lectures delivered at the Summer School in Breton Language and Culture (Quimper, University of Western Brittany) since its foundation in 2015. This first volume has been conceived to offer international readers a general introduction to the Breton history, literature, and culture.
The first part of the volume contains articles by Patrick Galliou who retraces the settlement of the Armorican peninsula, from the earliest Paleolithic hunter-gatherers to the period of Roman occupation, by Patrick Kernevez who examines how the Breton power struggles and alliances led to the emergence of a semi-autonomous system of governance, and by Yves Coativy who outlines the complex history of Brittany from the 13th to the 21st century.
The second part focuses on the matière de Bretagne, with contributions by Ronan Calvez on 16th and 17th century Breton literature of Brittany, by Fanch Postic who explores the topic of oral literature and the central role it played in Breton culture, by Nelly Blanchard who focuses on de la Villemarqué’s Barzaz-Breiz (1839–1845–1867), and by Mannaig Thomas who overviews the Breton-language literary production over the course of the century up to 2020.