Birgit Constant writes historical fiction for language nerds and is particularly interested in hidden histories. She loves to combine less well-known people and places, unusual perspectives on (in-)famous events and people and a generous helping of old languages.
Birgit has a PhD in medieval studies, has learned eleven languages and worked her way through translation, IT and Public Relations internationally before ending up in the world of books. She is a founding member of the Sisters through Time, an informal consortium of female authors of historical fiction, as well as a member of the Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi).
Fittingly enough, Birgit Constant and her family live in the town with Europe’s biggest medieval festival and the tallest brick tower in the world.
Birgit’s works include the Northumbria Trilogy and a fictional biography about Marie de France, the first French writer of the 12th century.
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“I have a PhD in medieval languages and literature, so it is no wonder my writing coach suggested that I choose historical fiction as my main genre. Since my school days, I have been fascinated by languages and learned English, French and Latin at school (my mother tongue is German) before continuing with more Latin, Ancient Greek, Russian, Scottish Gaelic and Spanish at university. These were all extracurricular, but part of my studies also included dipping my toes into Old and Middle English as well as Old French. After university, I spent almost ten years abroad in England and Ireland before returning to Germany. Since then, I have started dabbling with more exotic languages, such as Old Breton, Arabic, Occitan and Yiddish – and every book I write inspires me to discover even more languages. I love it!”
– Birgit Constant
Historical tales, linguistic trails