Occitan literature started in the 11th century in several centres. It gradually spread from there, first over the greater portion (though not the whole) of southern France, into what is now the north of Italy and into Spain (

Occitan poetry first appeared in the 11th century. The oldest surviving text is the Provençal burden (Fr. refrain) attached to a 10th-century Latin poem. The text has not yet been satisfactorily interpreted. The quality of the earliest remaining works suggest earlier work was

Originally the poems of the troubadours were intended to be sung. The poet usually composed the music as well as the words; and in several cases he owed his fame more to his musical than

Dramatic literature in Occitan consists of mysteries and miracle plays seldom exceeding two or three thousand lines, which never developed into the enormous dramas of northern

Starting in the early 12th century, the best-known body of Occitan literature originated with the group of poets who would later become known as troubadours, from the verb "trobar", meaning "to invent". The troubadours used a standardized form of Old

Compositions intended for instruction, correction and edification were very numerous in the south of France as well as elsewhere, and, in spite

In the two centuries that followed the medieval there was a succession of works, chiefly of a didactic and edifying character, which scarcely belong to