Name given to associations of medieval and Renaissance lyric poets, whose president was given the fictitious title ‘prince’ (hence the traditional address to a ‘prince’ in the envoi of ballades). They held periodic competitions where lyrics were performed and prizes awarded. The name perhaps derives from the podium which accommodated competitors and judges, or from Le Puy-en-Velay, where Occitan sources suggest these contests first flourished, briefly, in the late 12th c. Later fraternities centred mainly around northern and western French towns, notably Arras (in the 13th c.) and Rouen (c.1486-1654).
[Peter Davies]
