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CTV News
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Medieval scribe's slip-up triggered centuries of confusion over a long-lost saga. Researchers finally decoded the error
The Song of Wade epic was once so popular that a preacher referenced it in his 13th-century sermon (pictured). (Courtesy of the Master and Fellows of Peterhouse/University of Cambridge via CNN Newsource) Lesser known than some other beloved tales of larger-than-life heroes such as Gilgamesh, Beowulf and King Arthur, the Song of Wade is a case study in what happens when stories aren't written down. The epic was once widely known throughout medieval and Renaissance England — so popular that it was mentioned twice by Chaucer — but today it is mostly forgotten. Only a few phrases survive, and new research is showing how, when so little of a story is preserved, changes in a word or two can alter the entire tale. The Song of Wade originated in the 12th century, and its hero battled monsters — or so scholars once thought. The only known text was found nearly 130 years ago in a 13th- century Latin sermon, which quoted a bit of the saga in Middle English. In the excerpt, the word 'ylues' was originally translated as 'elves,' suggesting that Wade's long-lost saga was teeming with supernatural creatures. Researchers at the University of Cambridge in the U.K. have challenged that interpretation. They proposed that the word's meaning was mangled by a scribe's transcription error, which changed a 'w' to a 'y.' 'Elves' is actually 'wolves,' and the term was allegorical, referring to dangerous men, according to the analysis. Another word in the excerpt, translated as 'sprites,' should instead be 'sea snakes,' moving the story even farther away from the realm of the supernatural, the researchers reported July 15 in The Review of English Studies. This new reading revises not only the phrases quoted in the sermon, but also the entire Song of Wade, centering the hero amid worldly dangers rather than mythical beasts. It overturns the picture of Wade as a literary twin to Beowulf, legendary slayer of the warrior-eating monster Grendel, said study coauthor Dr. Seb Falk, a researcher of science history and a fellow at Cambridge's Girton College. 'He was more like a hero of chivalric romance (a literary genre celebrating knights, codes of honor and romantic love) like Sir Launcelot or Sir Gawain,' Falk told CNN in an email. For hundreds of years, historians and literary experts have argued over why Chaucer would have mentioned the Song of Wade in his chivalric works. Recasting Wade as a courtly hero rather than a monster slayer makes Wade's appearance in Chaucer's writing a better fit and could help to uncover previously hidden meanings in those literary references, the authors wrote. A medieval meme The new study is the first to analyze the Song of Wade excerpt alongside the entirety of the Latin sermon that quotes it, said study coauthor Dr. James Wade, an associate professor of English Literature at Girton College. (The surname 'Wade' was relatively common in medieval England, and while Wade the researcher could not confirm a family connection to the storied hero, a link 'isn't impossible,' he told CNN in an email.) In fact, it was the context of the sermon that led the researchers to the discovery that the fragment in English had been misinterpreted, Wade said. The sermon was about humility, and it warned that some people 'are wolves, such as powerful tyrants' who take 'by any means.' There are other allusions to unfavorable animal traits in humans. As originally translated, the Song of Wade excerpt read: 'Some are elves and some are adders; some are sprites that dwell by waters: there is no man, but Hildebrand (Wade's father) only.' For centuries, scholars have struggled to make sense of why references to 'elves' and 'sprites' were included in a sermon about humility. According to the new translation, the excerpt reads: 'Some are wolves and some are adders; some are sea-snakes that dwell by the water. There is no man at all but Hildebrand.' Reinterpreted this way, the quoted phrases align more closely with the overall message of the sermon and redefine the genre of the story. 'We realised that taking the fragment together with its context would allow us not only to completely reinterpret the Wade legend, but also to reshape our understanding of how stories were told and retold in different cultural contexts, including religious contexts,' Wade said. Dr. James Wade (left) and Dr. Seb Falk Study coauthors Dr. James Wade (left) and Dr. Seb Falk study the sermon mentioning the Song of Wade. (Courtesy of the Master and Fellows of Peterhouse/University of Cambridge via CNN Newsource) The long-standing difficulties in interpreting the excerpt are a reminder that paleography — the study of handwritten documents — 'is not always an exact or precise science,' said Dr. Stephanie Trigg, Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor of English Literature at the University of Melbourne in Australia, 'especially in the transmission of English and other vernacular texts without the standardised spelling and abbreviations of Latin.' Focusing on the sermon is also important because this type of allusion to a popular epic was highly unusual, Trigg, who was not involved in the research, told CNN in an email. 'The authors are right to draw attention to the way the sermon seems to be quoting medieval popular culture: this is not all that common,' Trigg said. 'It helps disturb some traditional views about medieval piety.' When the preacher used the Song of Wade in his sermon, it was clear that he expected his audience to accept the reference 'as a recognisable element of popular culture: a meme,' Falk said. 'By studying this sermon in depth we get a wonderful insight into the resonances that such popular literature had across culture.' Romantic and Fantastic This new perspective on Wade's saga doesn't mean that it was based exclusively in realism. While there are no other known excerpts of the Song of Wade, references to Wade in texts spanning centuries offer details fantastic enough to delight fans of J.R.R. Tolkien's epic 'Lord of the Rings.' 'In one romance text, it's said that (Wade) slays a dragon,' Falk said. 'There is local folklore in Yorkshire, recorded by John Leland in the 1530s, that he was of gigantic stature.' Other texts stated that Wade's father was a giant and that his mother was a mermaid, he added. In fact, chivalric romance from this period frequently incorporated elements of fantasy, Trigg said. In the chivalric literary tradition, 'romances often draw on mythological creatures and the supernatural,' and the distinction between chivalric romances and mythology 'is not always rigorously made in medieval literature,' she added. Still, aligning the Song of Wade more closely with medieval romances clears up long-standing confusion over allusions to Wade by Geoffrey Chaucer, during scenes of courtly intrigue in 'Merchant's Tale' and 'Troilus and Criseyde.' 'Chaucer referring to a Beowulf-like 'dark-age' warrior in these moments is weird and confusing,' Falk said. 'The idea that Chaucer is referring to a hero of medieval romance makes a lot more sense.' While the Song of Wade has faded into obscurity, its appearance in the medieval sermon and in Chaucer's work hints that for centuries the legend was a staple of popular culture in medieval England, even though there was no definitive text preserving the entire tale. As its popularity waned, much of it vanished for good. 'By the eighteenth century there were no known surviving texts and nobody seemed to know the story,' Wade said. 'Part of the enduring allure is the idea of something that was once part of common knowledge suddenly becoming 'lost.'' By Mindy Weisberger.
CTV News
15 hours ago
- CTV News
Neighbourhood Block Parties offer the Sounds of London in Summer
The parties brought live music, free food and face painting to bring the community together. The soothing Sounds of Summer were all over the Forest City on Saturday with multiple neighbourhoods holding their annual Block Parties. On Sackville Street, the Crouch Neighbourhood Resource Centre (CNRC) was holding its fifth annual event. 'We have been living for the past 50 years or more and this is a day once a year that we just want to bring people out to celebrate who they are and celebrate the camaraderie of this community,' said Angie Woodcock, director of CNRC. 071925 St. James Street in London, Ont. was packed on Saturday July 19, 2025 for the 4th annual Carling Neighbourhood Association Block Party .(Brent Lale/CTV News London) 'This is a really resilient community and there's been struggles, there's been hardships and a lot of poverty. Today is just bringing community together.' There was live music all afternoon, as well as chalk drawings, balloon animals and food. MPP Teresa Armstrong provided cake and ice cream. 'In a community that sometimes beca use of transportation barriers, financial barriers, those are the extras that people can't bring home anymore because of the cost of food,' said Woodcock. 071925 Free ice cream provided by MPP Teresa Armstrong was a hit at the Crouch Block Party on Sackville Street on Saturday, July 19, 2025. (Brent Lale/CTV News London) 'We've got donations from local partners who have provided snacks. Part of everything we do, there's always food involved.' The live music and dancing can make a big difference, even for one day. 'It's bringing a little bit of joy and laughter and making it accessible, because it's not always accessible.' A few kilometres southwest of Sackville Street, St. James Street was shut down between Adelaide and Elliott for the 4th annual Carling Block Party. 'We run a small neighborhood association in the Carling neighbourhood,' said Cherie Emms, president of the Carling Neighbourhood Association (CNA). 'We try to provide free, low-cost events and we use the funds from those events to host this free party. We kind of bounce it around the neighborhood.' 071925 Live music played at the Crouch Block Party on Sackville Street and had people dancing on Saturday, July 19, 2025. (Brent Lale/CTV News London) The day included a Touch-a-Truck style event with both London Fire and London Police involved. There was a small car show, cirque show, games for kids and free food. It was all about community engagement. 'You need to know who your neighbours are,' said Emms. 'You need to love the community, support the community, build the community. That's what we're about.'
CTV News
17 hours ago
- CTV News
‘120 entries'; Pride London Parade's grand finale of week-long Pride London Festival
The Pride London Festival in Victoria Park runs all day Saturday and Sunday. (Brent Lale/CTV News London) It's billed as 'London's most colourful day of the year.' The Pride London Parade begins Sunday at noon. 'We have 120 entries and we're anticipating between 6,000 to 8,000 people participating,' said Robyn Hodgson, president of Pride London Festival. 'It is the second largest pride parade in Ontario.' Sponsored by Canada Life, the parade will return to staging in the Western Fair District parking lot after being forced onto Queen's Ave due to construction the past couple of years. 071925 Drag performers Bow Dangles and Mz. Affra-Tighty read stories in Victoria Park on Saturday July 19, 2025. (Brent Lale/CTV News London) 'We're able to go from the fairgrounds, as we always have,' said Hodgson. 'We'll deviate onto Queen's Avenue and then come all the way over to Waterloo in front of City Hall on Dufferin and then arrive at the park and everybody can join back in our festivities.' Downtown London already has many streets closed due to construction, and Sunday afternoon there will be more closures for the annual Pride London Parade. The City of London says there will be temporary rolling road closures from 12p.m. to 4 p.m. Richmond Street from Central Avenue to Oxford Street will be closed 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. They are asking people to plan ahead. The Grand Marshal of the parade is Sista Patricia Derouin. The 72 year old is described as a 'fierce and beloved elder' who is know in the community as one of the Drag Story Time Guardians. 071925 Sista Patricia Derouin (right) will be the Grand Marshal of the 2025 Pride London parade. (Brent Lale/CTV News London) After the parade, the Festival will continue until the final act at 7 p.m. Sunday night. Saturday featured entertainment in the park, including Drag Storytime, Drag shows, a performance by the Original Kids Theatre, yoga and music. 'It's all about inclusivity,' said Hodgson. 'We are trying to be open, inclusive to all genders, all races, all sexualities. It is just about showing our appreciation for all members of our community.'
