Anthology

{{Short description|Collection of creative works chosen by the compiler}}{{Other uses}}{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2022}}{{Literature}} In [[Publishing|book publishing]], an '''anthology''' is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler. It may be a collection of [[play (theatre)|play]]s, [[poem]]s, [[short story|short stories]], [[song]]s, [[fiction]] or [[non-fiction]] excerpts. There are also thematic and [[genre]]-based anthologies.<ref name=def>Chris Baldrick. [https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780199208272.001.0001/acref-9780199208272-e-62 ''The Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms''], 3rd. ed (2008)</ref> Complete collections of works are also called "[[The Complete Works|complete works]]" or {{lang|la|opera omnia}} in [[Latin]].

== Etymology == The word entered the [[English language]] in the 17th century, from the [[Greek language#Greek loanwords in other languages|Greek]] word, ἀνθολογία (''anthologic'', literally "a collection of blossoms", from {{lang|grc|ἄνθος}}, ''ánthos'', flower), a reference to one of the earliest known anthologies, [[Meleager of Gadara#The Garland of Meleager|the ''Garland'']] ({{lang|grc|Στέφανος}}, ''stéphanos''), the introduction to which compares each of its anthologized poets to a flower. That ''Garland'' by [[Meleager of Gadara|Meléagros of Gadara]] formed the kernel for what has become known as the ''[[Greek Anthology]]. [[Florilegium]],'' a Latin derivative for a collection of [[flower]]s, was used in medieval Europe for an anthology of Latin [[proverb]]s and textual excerpts. Shortly before anthology had entered the language, English had begun using florilegium as a word for such a collection.<ref name=def/>

== History ==

=== Before 20th century ===

==== Europe ====

The ''[[Palatine Anthology]],'' discovered in the ''[[Bibliotheca Palatina]],'' [[Heidelberg]] in 1606, is a collection of Greek poems and epigrams based on the lost 10th-century [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] collection of [[Constantine Kephalas]], which in turn was based on older anthologies. In the [[Middle Ages]], European collections of ''florilegia'' became popular, bringing together extracts from various [[Christianity|Christian]] and [[paganism|pagan]] philosophical texts. These evolved into [[commonplace book]]s and [[Miscellany|miscellanies]], including proverbs, quotes, letters, poems and prayers.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Burke |first=Victoria |date=2013 |title=Recent Studies in Commonplace Books. |journal=English Literary Renaissance |volume=43 |issue=1 |page=154 |doi=10.1111/1475-6757.12005 |s2cid=143219877}}</ref>

[[File:Anthologia Palatina p101.jpg|thumb|A page of the Palatine Anthology (Codex Palatinus 23), 10th century, from the Library of the [[Heidelberg University|University of Heidelberg]]]]

''[[Tottel's Miscellany|Songes and Sonettes]]'', usually called ''Tottel's Miscellany'', was the first printed anthology of English poetry. It was published by [[Richard Tottel]] in 1557 in London and ran to many editions in the 16th century.<ref>'Tottel, Richard', in ''The Dictionary of National Biography''. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900</ref> A widely read series of political anthologies, ''Poems on Affairs of State'', began its publishing run in 1689, finishing in 1707.<ref name=cb>Clare Bucknell. ''The Treasuries: Poetry Anthologies and the Making of British Culture'' (2023)</ref>

In [[Great Britain|Britain]], one of the earliest national poetry anthologies to appear was ''The British Muse'' (1738), compiled by [[William Oldys]]. [[Thomas Percy (bishop of Dromore)|Thomas Percy]]'s influential ''[[Reliques of Ancient English Poetry]]'' (1765), was the first of the great ballad collections, responsible for the ballad revival in English poetry that became a significant part of the Romantic movement. [[William Enfield]]'s ''The Speaker; Or, Miscellaneous Pieces'' was published in 1774 and was a mainstay of 18th Century schoolrooms. Important 19th century anthologies included Palgrave's ''[[Palgrave's Golden Treasury|Golden Treasury]]'' (1861), [[Edward Arber]]'s ''Shakespeare Anthology'' (1899) and the first edition of [[Arthur Quiller-Couch|Arthur Quiller Couch]]'s [[Oxford Book of English Verse]] (1900).<ref name=cb/>

[[Image:Relicsofanciente03perciala 0007.jpg|thumb|right|200px|[[Title page]] of the third edition of ''Reliques of Ancient English Poetry'' (1775).]]

==== Asia ====

In [[East Asia]]n traditions, an anthology was a recognized form of compilation of a given [[poetic form]]. It was assumed that there was a cyclic development: any particular form, say the ''[[Waka (poetry)|tanka]]'' in [[Japan]], would be introduced at one point in history, be explored by masters during a subsequent time, and finally be subject to popularisation (and a certain dilution) when it achieved widespread recognition. In this model, which derives from Chinese tradition, the object of compiling an anthology was to preserve the best of a form, and cull the rest.{{cn|date=January 2026}}

In [[Malaysia]], an anthology (or ''antologi'' in [[Malay language|Malay]]) is a collection of ''syair'', ''sajak'' (or modern prose), [[prose]]s, [[drama]] scripts, and [[pantun]]s. Notable anthologies that are used in [[secondary school]]s include [[Education in Malaysia|''Sehijau Warna Daun'', ''Seuntai Kata Untuk Dirasa'', ''Anak Bumi Tercinta'', ''Anak Laut'' and ''Kerusi'']].<ref>William Katz and others. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=2OyWjxFi5lEC&q=Denes+Agay The Columbia Granger's Guide to Poetry Anthologies]'', 2nd, edition 1994</ref>

=== 20th century ===

In the 20th century, anthologies became an important part of poetry publishing for a number of reasons. For [[English poetry]], the [[Georgian poetry]] series <ref>{{cite web|author=James Bridges (Independent Scholar) |url=http://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=470 |title= Bridges, James. Georgian Poetry. The Literary Encyclopedia. 31 July 2002 |publisher=Litencyc.com |date=2002-07-31 |access-date=2012-12-24}}</ref> was trend-setting; it showed the potential success of publishing an identifiable group of younger poets marked out as a 'generation'. It was followed by numerous collections from the 'stable' of some literary editor, or collated from a given publication, or labelled in some fashion as 'poems of the year'. Academic publishing also followed suit, with the continuing success of the Quiller-Couch ''Oxford Book of English Verse'' encouraging other collections not limited to modern poetry.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bartleby.com/101/ |title=Quiller-Couch, Arthur, ed. 1919. The Oxford Book of English Verse: 1250 – 1900 |publisher=Bartleby.com |access-date=2012-12-24}}</ref> Not everyone approved. [[Robert Graves]] and [[Laura Riding]] published their ''Pamphlet Against Anthologies'' in 1928, arguing that they were based on commercial rather than artistic interests.<ref name=cb/>

The concept of ''modern verse'' was fostered by the appearance of the phrase in titles such as the [[Faber & Faber]] anthology by [[Michael Roberts (writer)|Michael Roberts]] in 1936,<ref>[http://www.faber.co.uk/tags/genre/Faber%20Anthologies/ Faber Anthologies] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090206023716/http://www.faber.co.uk/tags/genre/Faber%20Anthologies/ |date=February 6, 2009 }}</ref> and the very different [[William Butler Yeats]] [[Oxford Book of Modern Verse]] of the same year.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/y/w-b-yeats/oxford-book-of-modern-verse.htm/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141104204431/http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/y/w-b-yeats/oxford-book-of-modern-verse.htm/|url-status=dead|title=Fantastic Fiction – Oxford Book of Modern Verse|archive-date=November 4, 2014}}</ref> In the 1960s ''[[The Mersey Sound (anthology)|The Mersey Sound]]'' anthology of [[Liverpool poets]] became a bestseller, plugging into the countercultural attitudes of teenagers.<ref>Michael Thurston, Nigel Alderman. [https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Reading_Postwar_British_and_Irish_Poetry/jYAKAgAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22the+mersey+sound%22+%22anthology%22&pg=PT276&printsec=frontcover ''Reading Postwar British and Irish Poetry''] (2013)</ref>

Since publishers generally found anthology publication a more flexible medium than the collection of a single poet's work, and indeed rang innumerable changes on the idea as a way of marketing poetry, publication in an anthology (in the right company) became at times a sought-after form of recognition for poets. The self-definition of movements, dating back at least to [[Ezra Pound]]'s efforts on behalf of [[Imagism]], could be linked on one front to the production of an anthology of the like-minded.<ref>Helen Carr. [https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/The_Verse_Revolutionaries/TWqLCfkmSaoC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=H.+D.,+Ezra+Pound+and+Imagism&printsec=frontcover ''The Verse Revolutionaries: Ezra Pound, H.D. and The Imagists''] (2013)</ref>

Also, whilst not connected with poetry, publishers have produced collective works of fiction and non-fiction from a number of authors and used the term anthology to describe the collective nature of the text. These have been in a number of subjects, including ''Erotica'', edited by [[Mitzi Szereto]], and ''[[American Gothic Tales]]'' edited by [[Joyce Carol Oates]]. ''The Assassin's Cloak: An Anthology of the World's Greatest Diarists'', published in 2000, anthologises four centuries of diary entries into 365 'days'.<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/books/2000/nov/12/biography.euanferguson ''The Assassin's Cloak'', reviewed in ''The Guardian'', 12 November 2000]</ref>

== See also ==

* [[Chrestomathy]] * [[Diwan (poetry)|Diwan]] * [[Omnibus edition]] * [[Primer (textbook)|Primer]]

== References ==

== External links ==

{{Commonscat-inline|Anthologies}} * {{cite EB9 |wstitle= Anthology |volume= II |pages=103-106 |short= 1}} {{works series}}

[[Category:Anthologies| ]]