National epic: Difference between revisions

A national epic is an epic poem or similar work which seeks or is believed to capture and express the essence or spirit of a particular nation; not necessarily a nation-state, but at least an ethnic or linguistic group with aspirations to independence or autonomy. National epics frequently recount the origin of a nation, a part of its history, or a crucial event in the development of national identity such as other national symbols. In a broader sense, a national epic may simply be an epic in the national language which the people or government of that nation are particularly proud of.

Some consider the national epic to be a product of Romantic nationalism. Where no obvious national epic existed, the "Romantic spirit" was motivated to fill it. An early example of poetry that was invented to fill a perceived gap in "national" myth is Ossian, the narrator and supposed author of a cycle of poems by James Macpherson, which Macpherson claimed to have translated from ancient sources in the Scots Gaelic. However, many national epics (including Macpherson's Ossian) antedate 19th-century romanticism.

Examples of epics that have been enlisted as "national" include

Poetic epics

• Albania - Lahuta e Malcís (The Highland Lute) by Gjergj Fishta
• Ancient Rome - Aeneid
• Argentina - Martín Fierro by José Hernández
• Armenia - Sasna Dzrer,"Madmen of Sassoun", also translated "Daredevils of Sassoun."(also known as "Sasountsi Tavit" after its main character, David of Sassoun,
• Catalonia - Canigó by Jacint Verdaguer
• Chile - La Araucana/The Araucaniad by Alonso de Ercilla
• Croatia - Smrt Smail-age Čengića by Ivan Mažuranić
• England - Beowulf
• Estonia - Kalevipoeg
• Finland - Kalevala
  • Despite the similar names and close linguistic and cultural ties between Finland and Estonia, Kalevala and Kalevipoeg are two completely separate works.
• France - La Chanson de Roland (The Song of Roland) about Roland/Orlando.
• Germany - Nibelungenlied
• Greece, Ancient (Hellas and Mediterranean Greek colonies) - Iliad and Odyssey
• Greece (Byzantine Empire) - Digenis Acritas
• Hungary - Peril of Sziget (Szigeti Veszedelem)
• Ireland - Táin Bó Cúailnge
• Latvia - Lāčplēsis
• Luxembourg - Rénert the Fox
• Occitania - Chanson de la Croisade Albigeoise ("Song of the Albigensian Crusade")
• Portugal - Os Lusíadas ("The Lusiads")
• Poland - Pan Tadeusz by Adam Mickiewicz
• Sorbs - Nawozenja
• Spain - Cantar de Mio Cid (about the early Reconquista)
• Wales - Mabinogion
• Cambodia - Reamker
• Indian subcontinent -
  • Mahabharata
  • Ramayana
  • The Five Great Epics of Tamil Literature
• Indonesia -
  • Kakawin Rāmâyaṇa
  • Ramakavaca
• Kipchaks (e.g. in Tatarstan) - Chora Batir
• Kirghiz - Epic of Manas
• Laos - Phra Lak Phra Lam
• Malaysia -
  • Hikayat Hang Tuah
  • Sejarah Melayu
  • Hikayat Seri Rama
• Mongols (Kalmyks and Oirats) - Jangar
• Myanmar - Yama Zatdaw
• Iran and Persian speakers in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, and other countries - Shahnameh
• Philippines -
  • Maradia Lawana
  • Florante at Laura
  • Ibong Adarna
  • Biag ni Lam-ang
• Tibetans - Epic of King Gesar
• Thailand - Ramakien
• Vietnam -
  • Au Lac myths
  • The Tale of Kieu

Prose Epics

Some prose works, while not strictly epic poetry, have an important place in the national consciousness of their nations. These include the following:

• Britain -
  • Historia Regum Britanniae
• China -
  • Romance of the Three Kingdoms (novel)
  • Journey to the West (novel)
  • Water Margin (novel)
  • Dream of the red chamber (novel)
• Ethiopia - Kebra Nagast
• Flanders (Flemish-speaking part of Belgium) - De Leeuw van Vlaanderen ("The Lion of Flanders")
• France : Les Misérables (A novel spanning a crucial era of French History)
• Iran - Shahnameh (a big book with a complete history of Iran)
• Ireland - Táin Bó Cúailnge (Prose narration with poetic interludes)
• Israel - The Torah
• Japan -
  • Kojiki
  • Nihongi (prose with songs)
  • The Tale of Genji (genji monogatari)
• Korea - Samguk Yusa (prose with songs)
• Mali - Epic of Sundiata
• Mayans - Popol Vuh
• Mongolia -
  • Borte Chino
  • The Secret History of the Mongols (Genghis Khan's biography)
• Portugal - Peregrinação (or Peregrinaçam)
• Russia -
  • Tale of Igor's Campaign
  • Zadonshchina
  • The Brothers Karamazov
• Spain - Don Quixote
• Tatar - "Chora Batir" [1]
• Turkic peoples -
  • Alpamysh (all Central Asia)
  • Book of Dede Korkut (Oghuz nations: Azerbaijan, Turkey, Turkmenistan)
  • Ergenekon (Turkey)
• United States of America - Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (not really an epic, see Great American Novel)
• Wales - Mabinogion

See also

• Epic poetry
• List of world folk-epics
• National myth
• Founding myth
• Civil religion
• List of national poets

External Source

• Full text epics in the original languages