A confraternity book (, or ''confraternitatis''), also called a ''liber memorialis'' (memorial book) or ''liber vitae'' (book of life), is a

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

register of the names of people who had entered into a state of spiritual brotherhood (confraternity) with a church or monastery in some way, often by visiting it in the capacity of a pilgrim. Persons named in such a book were actively remembered in the prayers of the priests or monks. In many cases these books were established as early as the 8th century and continued up to the 13th century. So-called '' Jahrtagsbücher'' (year books) are in many ways their successors. Confraternity books are a rich source for

prosopography Prosopography is an investigation of the common characteristics of a group of people, whose individual biographies may be largely untraceable. Research subjects are analysed by means of a collective study of their lives, in multiple career-line a ...

and

historical linguistics Historical linguistics, also known as diachronic linguistics, is the scientific study of how languages change over time. It seeks to understand the nature and causes of linguistic change and to trace the evolution of languages. Historical li ...

of the early Middle Ages.

List of confraternity books

The following is a list of some earlier medieval confraternity books: * Confraternity book of the Abbey of Saint Gall * Confraternity book of Reichenau Abbey * Confraternity book of St Peter's Abbey, Salzburg * ''Liber memorialis'' of Remiremont Abbey * ''Liber Vitae'' of the Imperial Abbey of Corvey * ''Liber Vitae'' of Durham * ''Liber Vitae'' of the New Minster, Winchester and Hyde Abbey * ''Liber Viventium'' of Pfäfers Abbey, Switzerland * Memorial and Liturgiecodex of San Salvatore, Italy

Sources

* {{Citation , last = Geuenich , first = Dieter , editor-last = Rollason , editor-first = David , editor-link= David Rollason , contribution = A Survey of the Early Medieval Confraternity Books from the Continent , title = The Durham Liber Vitae and Its Context , year = 2004 , pages = 141–8 , place = Woodbridge , publisher = Boydell Press , isbn = 1-84383-060-4 * Paulus Piper (Ed.): ''Libri Confraternitatum Sancti Galli Augiensis Fabariensis.'' In: ''Monumenta Germaniae Historica.'' Berlin 1894 (transcription of the Verbrüderungsbuch of St. Gallen with commentary) * Franz Beyerle: ''Die Fratres de Friburch im St. Galler Verbrüderungsbuch.'' In: ''Schau-ins-Land.'' Published by the Breisgau-Verein Schau-ins-Land, Freiburg im Breisgau 1954 Christian genres Christian monasteries in Germany Christian monasticism Documents of the Catholic Church History of Catholicism in Germany Medieval documents of Germany Medieval Christian texts Catholicism in the Middle Ages Confraternities