The Libellus of the Carolingian monk Walahfrid presents a first history of the Eucharistic liturgy, with special reference to topics such as fasting, frequency of communion, and arrangement of sections of the mass. Walahfrid also examines the origins of certain liturgical actions in baptism, traces the development of hymnography, and considers the etymology of various terms for church architecture. Walahfrid's unusually explicit citation of sources makes his work of particular value to the modern historian.
This translation is the first into modern English. The commentary establishes the place of the language and argument in the development of early writings on the liturgy, while also relating it to the wider context of non-liturgical writings from the Fathers to mid-ninth century. The author's detailed examinations of Walahfrid's sources—historical, legislative and literary—show the lines of transmission of texts and their availability in the Carolingian period.

Translated by: Jonathan Chapman