minnesinger , (from German, Minne: “love”) Any of certain German poet-musicians, c. 1150–c. 1325, parallel to the troubadours and trouvères. Like their French counterparts, the minnesingers’ subjects were not limited to love but also included politics and ethics. Originally members of the high nobility, minnesingers later came from the emerging middle class and had an economic as well as social interest in singing. Walther von der Vogelweide, Neidhardt von Reuental (c. 1180–c. 1250), and Tannhäuser were among the most famous of the minnesingers.
Discover