Courtney Wells

Courtney J. Wells is Professor of French, Francophone, and Italian Studies and Chair of the Department at Hobart and William Smith Colleges, where he has been a faculty member since 2012. He holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in Medieval French Literature from Boston University and a B.A. from the University of Dallas.

• Ph.D., Romance Studies, Boston University
• M.A., Romance Studies, Boston University
• B.A., University of Dallas

His research focuses on medieval lyric poetry, particularly troubadour traditions in medieval Catalonia and Italy, the transmission of Occitan texts, and the role of langue d’oïl and langue d’oc as international literary languages. He also explores verse and prose romance, medieval and Renaissance literary theory, and modern receptions of medieval literature. He teaches courses on contemporary Catalan and Occitan culture and Dante’s Divine Comedy. Wells is currently preparing his book manuscript, Strange Territory: The Troubadour Lyric in Medieval Catalonia and Italy, for publication.

His recent scholarly output includes numerous articles on Occitan manuscript culture, Dante, textual parody, and multilingualism in medieval Iberia and Italy. He has also contributed bibliographies and editorial work to the journal Tenso, where he serves as the medieval bibliographer. His publications reflect a strong engagement with digital humanities, textual scholarship, and comparative literary analysis, particularly in the context of cross-cultural transmission in the Mediterranean world.

• Medieval Bibliographer, Tenso: Journal of the Société Guilhem IX
• Guest Editor, Special Issues of Tenso on troubadour manuscript culture and multilingualism

Wells has been actively involved in academic service through editorial roles and scholarly curation. There is no mention of research grants or advising students in the provided text, but his leadership as department chair and editorial contributions indicate significant institutional and disciplinary engagement.

He is affiliated with the Department of French, Francophone, and Italian Studies within the Faculty of Humanities at Hobart and William Smith Colleges. His office is located in Smith Hall, and he can be reached at wells@hws.edu.