William D. Paden is professor emeritus of French at Northwestern University, fellow of the Medieval Academy of America, and chevalier in the Ordre des Palmes Academiques. He is the author of An Introduction to Old Occitan (1998) and Love and Marriage in the Time of the Troubadours (forthcoming).
Occitan lyric poetry for language learners A Troubadour Reader, a supplement to William D. Paden's Introduction to Old Occitan, provides a diverse selection of thirty medieval lyric poems in Occitan for language learners. Featuring poems by women, poems composed especially early or especially late in the language's literary use, and poems that feature Occitan in contact with other languages, the book highlights the range and wealth of medieval Occitan lyric poetry. Each poem is presented with a brief introduction, glosses on the text, and notes after each stanza. The volume also includes a section on basic Occitan grammar, a list of manuscripts, bibliographical references, and an index.