GHIL Lecture

Henrike Lähnemann

1525 and All That

How Nuns’ Letters and Reformation Pamphlets Shaped German History

18 November 2025

(0:50 h)

The lecture will discuss how Latin and German texts written 500 years ago influenced the linguistic and historical development of early modern and modern Germany, looking at examples from nuns’ letters, Reformation pamphlets, and songs. This is part of a project to write a cultural history of Germany by developing a historical narrative which combines linguistic changes with political, social, and cultural topics, arguing that early 16th-century texts and agendas still have an impact today.

Henrike Lähnemann is Professor of Medieval German Literature and Linguistics at the University of Oxford. Her research interests are female religious communities in Northern Germany in the late Middle Ages, visual culture, and sociolinguistics in a historical perspective.

Don't miss the accompanying interview: GHIL Fellow for Medieval History Thomas Kaal and host Kim König talk with Henrike Lähnemann, Professor of Medieval German Literature and Linguistics at the University of Oxford, about her recent GHIL lecture. They explore how Latin and German texts from around 500 years ago shaped the development of the German language and its cultural history, with examples ranging from nuns’ letters to Reformation pamphlets and songs, a brief musical interlude included.