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In the Middle Ages, raising falcons was considered a noble and prestigious hobby, regarded as both a science and a show of virtues and overall elegance. It was very costly and required patience and knowledge. In a certain way, raising falcons and hunting with them also was a sport. It obviously was a thing of the noble class, with Emperor Friedrich II. of the House of Staufen (1194-1250) even writing entire books about it! But, as I am sure you've all figured out, this piece of poetry goes beyond the mere raising of a bird: The falcon is a quite popular metaphor for both the loved one and freedom in German Minnesang poetry dealing with the highest and noblest forms of love, and this is no different here. However, the exact meaning remains unclear: The most probable option is that the text is about a woman singing about a lost male lover, but it might also be the other way around. Some say it deals with a father whose daughter leaves her old home. In any case, this piece is a classic of German medieval poetry. The author was a man called “Der von Kürenberg“ or “Der Kürenberger“. This isn't an actual name, as it simply means “The one from Kürenberg“, with Kürenberg meaning “the/a mill hill“ (Middle High German “kürn“, related to “Korn“ for grain. The verb “kürnen“ also means “to grind corn“. In Modern German: “Mühle“ for “mill“ and “mahlen“ for the act of grinding). We don't know much about him, but he lived around 1150 in the German Danube region, gaining considerable fame that lasted centuries. He most likely was a nobleman, but not of the highest order, as this societal level is where the vast majority of “professional“ Minnesang poets came from. There are many places where he might have come from, the area surrounding the “Kürnberg Forest“ near Linz and Kirnberg an der Mank near Melk in Austria being the arguably most probable options. He is considered to be the first artist of the “Golden Age“ of German medieval poetry, this era lasted over 100 years. Disclaimer: All videos are apolitical and this channel is against any form of extremism or hatespeech! ●▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬✠❈ SUPPORT ❈✠▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬● ❖ Patreon: ●▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬♬❈ LYRICS ❈♬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬● Ich zoch mir einen valken mere danne ein jar. do ich in gezamete als ich in wolte han und ich im sin gevidere mit golde wol bewant, er huop sich uf vil hohe und floug in anderiu lant. Sit sach ich den valken schone fliegen: er fuorte an sinem fuoze sidine riemen, und was im sin gevidere alrot guldin. got sende si zesamene die gerne geliep wellen sin!
