Keywords

Spanish; Portuguese; Comparative Literature; Medieval Iberia; Medieval Spain; Golden Age; Golden Age Spanish & Portuguese

Abstract

This study examines the literary and linguistic relationships between Spain and Portugal during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries through literary works and their translations. A period characterized by the Iberian Union, vernacularization, and the consolidation of early modern literary systems. It explores the interaction of Spanish and Portuguese texts within a shared yet asymmetrical cultural space shaped by translation, genre adaptation, and hierarchies of linguistic prestige. The research employs comparative textual analysis grounded in historical sociolinguistics, philology, and translation studies. Key works analyzed include Alfonso X’s historiography, Francisco Rodrigues Lobo’s Corte na aldeia and its Spanish translation, and Luís de Camões’s Os Lusíadas, to trace patterns of convergence, divergence, and selective reception across Iberian literary traditions. The findings indicate that Iberian literary history should not be viewed as isolated national traditions but as a dynamic system of negotiation structured by unequal circulation and institutional power. Translation functions not merely as linguistic transfer but as a mechanism redistributing prestige and shaping cultural identity. By situating Portuguese and Spanish texts within a unified comparative framework, this study advances a more integrated understanding of early modern Iberian literature and underscores the importance of examining literary systems through contact, hierarchy, and exchange. This approach provides a model for rethinking comparative Romance literary history and for linking literary analysis with historical linguistic and cultural exchange in the Iberian Peninsula.

Thesis Completion Year

2026

Thesis Completion Semester

Fall

Thesis Chair

Garcia, Martha

College

College of Arts and Humanities

Department

Modern Languages

Thesis Discipline

Spanish and Portuguese Language and Literature

Language

Spanish, Portuguese, English

Access Status

Open Access

Length of Campus Access

None

Campus Location

Orlando (Main) Campus

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Rights Statement

In Copyright