Estorians

Estorians is a scholarly designation used for researchers who specialize in the Estoria tradition of historical writing, primarily the medieval Iberian chronicle tradition known as the Estoria de Espana. The Estoria de Espana, begun in the 13th century under King Alfonso X of Castile, is one of the central works studied by Estorians; it presents a narrative history of the Iberian Peninsula from Creation to the contemporary era, drawing on Latin, Hebrew, and Arabic sources as well as earlier Christian chronicles.

Estorians examine the aims and methods of such compilations, the sources they rely on, and the ways in which they were redacted, translated, and transmitted across manuscripts. They analyze authorship, editorial practices, and the political and cultural goals of the patronage institutions that commissioned them. They also study the reception and influence of these texts on later historiography, literature, and national identity formation in Castile and beyond.

In practice, the term Estorian is not widely standardized; many scholars in medieval Iberian studies would identify as historians, medievalists, or philologists rather than as Estorians. The designation can be used to emphasize a focus on Estoria-linked corpora and their philological-thematic analysis.

See also Estoria de Espana; Castilian Chronicles; Alfonso X.