Manuscript tradition

Manuscript tradition refers to the way written texts have been preserved and transmitted before the invention of the printing press. It involves copying texts by hand, often by scribes in monasteries or scriptoria, creating many versions over time. This process allowed literature, religious texts, and scholarly works to survive across generations, but also led to variations and errors. Studying manuscript traditions helps scholars understand how texts evolved and how different versions relate to each other, providing insight into historical cultures and the transmission of knowledge.