Federico Novello
Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities HAdW Department HAdW | Heidelberg University
Seminarstraße 3 | Room 212
69117 Heidelberg
Curriculum Vitae
03/2026-
Postdoctoral researcher (full-time) atNetworks of Knowledge in Medieval Romania (ALMA), Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities.
November 2022–December 2025
Joint PhD in Romance Philology and French Literature from the University of Siena and the University of Zurich. Dissertation Title: The Gallo-Roman Versions of the *VisioPauli*: A Study of the Tradition and Textual Critical Analysis of the Corpus.
Examination Committee: Prof. Dr. Roberto Tagliani (advisor), Prof. Dr. Richard Trachsler (advisor), Prof. Dr. Marion Uhlig (Chair), Prof. Dr. Johannes Bartuschat (Chair), Prof. Dr. Martina Di Febo, Prof. Dr. Yan Greub, Prof. Dr. Patrizia Serra. Defense: March 26, 2026.
Grades: Eccellente con lode (University of Siena), Summa cum laude (University of Zurich).
Jan 2023–Apr 2023
Internship at TLIO with the Opera del Vocabolario Italiano/National Research Council.
March 2022–June 2022
Erasmus Traineeship at LEI Digitale in collaboration with the University of Mannheim.
September 2020–July 2022
Master’s Degree in Modern Literature, University of Milan. Thesis Title: The Lexicon of Obscenity in the Tradition of the Fabliaux, advisor: Prof. Roberto Tagliani, 110/110 with honors.
September 2017–October 2020
Bachelor’s Degree in Literature, University of Milan. Thesis Title: The Life of Saint Anastasia in an Anonymous Mantuan Legend (Biblioteca Teresiana, ms. 191): A Critical Edition, supervisor: Prof. Roberto Tagliani, 110/110 with honors.
International Renardian Society Award for ongoing research on animals in medieval literature (2024).
Swissuniversities grant funding for the joint supervision agreement between the University of Zurich and the University of Siena (2025).
Member of SIFR – Italian Society of Romance Philology (2024–).
Member of the Italian Branch of SIA – International Arthurian Society (2025–)
Publications
- F. Novello, “Rewriting the Afterlife: The Descentof Saint Paul into Hell in the Paris, BnF, fr. 9220 Manuscript” in *La filologia romanza tra manoscritti e testi. Atti del XIV Convegno triennale della Società Italiana di Filologia Romanza* (Milan) Paris, BnF, fr. 9220 in Romance Philology between Manuscripts and Texts. Proceedingsof the XIV Triennial Conference of the Italian Society of Romance Philology (Milan, October 1–4, 2024), edited by M. Milazzo and R. Tagliani, Milan, Ledizioni, 2026, in press.
- F. Novello, “The Trial of the Wolf, the Trial of Man: Justice in *Le Valetaux douze femes*,” in *Law and Literature. An Interdisciplinary Exploration of Medieval Texts, edited by I. Alessi and G. Scala, Turnhout, Brepols, 2026, pp. 119–145: https://doi.org/10.1484/M.ISMLS-EB.5.151896.
- F. Novello, “An Occitan Translation of the *Bestiaired’Amours*. Context and Sources,” *Reinardus*, 36 (2024), pp. 167–189:https://doi.org/10.1075/rein.00085.nov.
- G. Giordano and F. Novello, “Narratological Analysis,” in “De uno zovene che zè in soa ventura”: A Verse Novella from the Ambrosian Codex N 95 sup. With contributions from participants in the summer school “Romance Philology and Text Edition,” Klagenfurt, September 18–23, 2022, edited by L. Struckl and R. Wilhelm, Heidelberg, Winter, 2025, pp. 111–116.
- Twenty-two entries published online in TLIO: beuta n., bevuto adj., bistoso adj., rimondanza n., rimondare v., rimondatore n., rimondatura n., rimondo adj., rotaia n., rotamento n., rotante adj., rotato adj., rotazione n., rotating adj., to rotate v., rotation n., to roll v., rolled adj., small roll n., big roll adv., to turn v., wheel n.
- F. Novello, “Geufroi: Interpolator and Witness. On the New Edition of Geufroi de Paris’s*Bible des .vij. estaz du monde*,” *Revue Critique de Philologie Romane*, 24 (2024), pp. 13–43.
- F. Novello, review of: N. Premi, *Le rime di/del Saladino*, *Vox Romanica*, 81 (2022), pp. 1–30, *Rassegna della Letteratura Italiana*, 127/2, 2023, pp. 268–270.
- January 13, 2026, Milan – Medieval Romance Miscellanies as Instructional Devices: Census Insights and Research Projects (January 12–13, 2026): (with R. Tagliani) “LookingBeyond: Dublin, Trinity College Library, 951 as an Apocalyptic Miscellany” [IT]
- November 6, 2025, Naples – Representing the Afterlife in the Latin Middle Ages and the Novel (November 5–7, 2025), “Sources of an Unusual Occitan Vernacular Version of the *Visio Pauli* (Toulouse, BM 894)” [IT]
- October 24, 2025, Toulouse – Epic Literature in the Occitan Language: Assessment and Prospects (October 24–25, 2025): “Intertwined Forms and Memories: Toward a New Study of the Canso d’Antiocha”[FR]
- October 29, 2024 Siena – The Lives of Texts: Between Translation and Editing. A seminar organized by PhD students in Romance Philology (October 29, 2024): “On the Quatrain Version of the French *Visio Pauli* in Alexandrines” [IT]
- October 2, 2024, Milan – 14th Conference of the Italian Society of Romance Philology: Romance Philology: Manuscripts and Texts (October 1–4, 2024): “The Descent of Saint Paul into Hell in Ms. Paris, BnF, fr. 9220”[IT]
- September 26, 2024, Trento – 25th Congress of the Société Internationale Rénardienne: Animals, Heroes of Medieval Literature (September 25–28, 2024): “The Bestiary in the Songbook: Observations on an Occitan Translation of the *Bestiaire d’Amours*”. [IT]
- July 17, 2024 Aix-en-Provence – 27th Congress of the International Arthurian Society(July 12–18, 2024): “Archeology of the Douloureuse Garde”. [FR]
- February 16, 2024, Geneva – Symposium on Law and Literature: A Comparative Perspective on Medieval Texts (February 16, 2024): “Trial of the Wolf, Trial of the Man: Justice in *Le valet aux douze fames*”[IT]
- September 21, 2023, Bari – SIFR Bari 2023 Conference for Non-Tenured Faculty: Methods and Networks for Romance Philology (September 20–22, 2023): “The tradition of Cele, which was established and then dismantled.”
Research interests, skills, and languages
My research has primarily focused on the study and edition of medieval vernacular textual traditions, with the aim of understanding the dynamics of transmission and the adaptation of translations in the Middle Ages, particularly in works such as the *Visio Pauli* and the *Bestiaire d’Amours* by Richard de Fournival.
More recently, my work has focused on Gallo-Romance medical and legal texts, with a view to contributing to digital editions and lexical studies within the ALMA project. I have also, to a lesser extent, engaged with fabliaux, Occitan epic traditions, and Arthurian literature.
Modern Languages
Italian – Native speaker; English – Professional proficiency; French – Professional proficiency; Spanish – Professional proficiency; German – Limited working proficiency
Understanding Old Languages
Latin, Old Italian, Old French, Old Occitan, Old Castilian