Singing Together Alone: Dynamics between Individual and Community in Vernacular Devout Song Collections

Scholars of late medieval religious practice have focused on the expression of personal devotion and on the use of individualized devotional texts and books. Particularly manuscript collections of Middle Dutch religious song are thought to have been used in personalized devotional practices of individuals, even though previous research generally did not include codicological analysis. Using both codicological research and textual analysis of twelve Middle Dutch religious song manuscripts and their contents (ca. 1470–1550), this article demonstrates that these sources contain indications for both individual use and for use in group activities.