ALEXANDER OF VILLEDIEU

(ca. 1170-ca. 1250)

   French grammarian whose Doctrinale (1199) became the standard textbook of Latin grammar in medieval universities. This collection of doggerel Latin verses became an object of contempt among humanist educational reformers who sought to introduce a more classical style of Latin. In most places, its replacement by a recent humanistic grammar based on the practices of the best classical authors was a major step toward the new educational program of the Renaissance.