Hannah Robinson

My research focusses on the representation of multilinguals in Medieval German Literature and explores pre-modern perspectives on the intersection of language and identity prior to the rise of nationalism. My project aims to work against the dominant perspective that multilingualism is a modern concern; rather, I hope to show how both the benefits and anxieties surrounding multilinguals are clearly represented in and have shaped German literature from its very inception.

Languages have always been my passion. During my BA [H] at the University of Windsor, I won a DAAD Undergraduate Scholarship to study a year abroad at the University of Heidelberg in order to take classes in Old and Middle High German. In 2018, I completed an MA from the University of Toronto’s Centre for Medieval Studies where I studied an array of medieval languages including Latin, Old English, Old Norse, Old Irish, and Middle Welsh. In 2020, I earned a CELTA certificate from the University of Cambridge and taught English as a Second Language for several years before I returned to academia for a second MA at the Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures in 2024. My major research paper “Transgressive Translation: Examining Perceptions of Multilinguals as Boundary-Crossers in Wolfram von Eschenbach’s Willehalm” won German Studies Canada Best MA Thesis prize.

Outside of my research, I enjoy cycling and hiking the Don Valley, baking, and reading and writing fiction.