Spanish chivalric romances in English translation

Abstract

Anthony Munday translated most of the Spanish chivalric romances that were printed in England between 1588 and 1619, thus becoming an essential figure in this branch of the English book trade. His approach to the target texts and his translation method offer invaluable information about contemporary ideas on translation. This article shows Munday’s views on translating practices through a close study of his English version of Palmendos (1589), the second book in the Palmerin cycle. Ideological, aesthetic and commercial reasons for his own decisions as a translator are here considered as well.