CACrown ArchivesThe cinema collection
Menu
Research dossier · People & Ideas

Ramon Llull

Majorcan writer and philosopher (c.1232–1315/6)

Correspondence, annotated notebooks and portrait silhouettes prepared for research
People and ideasInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionSep 23, 2026
Entity authorityQ193660 ↗
Source-derived summary

Ramon Llull (; Catalan: [rəˈmoɲ ˈʎuʎ]; c. 1232 – 1316), sometimes anglicized as Raymond Lully, was a Catholic philosopher, theologian, poet, missionary, apologist and former knight, born in Palma de Mallorca. He invented a philosophical system known as the Art, conceived as a type of universal logic to prove the truth of Christian doctrine to interlocutors of all faiths and nationalities. The Art consists of a set of general principles and combinatorial operations. It is illustrated with diagrams.

A prolific writer, he is also known for his literary works written in Catalan, which he composed to make his Art accessible to a wider audience. In addition to Catalan and Latin, he also probably wrote in Arabic (although no texts in Arabic survive). His books were translated into Occitan, French, and Castilian during his lifetime.

Although his work did not enjoy huge success during his lifetime, he has had a rich and continuing reception. In the early modern period his name became associated with alchemical works. More recently he has been recognized as a precursor of the modern field of social choice theory, 450 years before Borda and Condorcet's investigations reopened the field.

Editorial summary

“Ramon Llull” enters the record as majorcan writer and philosopher (c.1232–1315/6). Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Ramon, Llull and Majorcan can confirm, complicate or overturn.

Editorial reviewA productive starting point for separating a subject’s documented career from later reputation and commemoration. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1232, 1316—that can be checked directly. The authority record carries competing date values—1232, 1232-01-01—which should remain separate until their references and qualifiers are resolved. Its strongest next move is a source search built around Ramon, Llull and Majorcan.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

“Ramon Llull” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Ramon, Llull and Majorcan provides the most credible route into that argument.

Evidence profile

Biographical claims are most persuasive when dates, appointments and relationships can be traced to records created close to the events described. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 23, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q193660. VIAF identifies the subject as 120696927. The Library of Congress control number is n79142616. 1 of 4 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1232 and 1316.

Critical limits

A concise life account rarely captures disputed attribution, private networks or the changing language used to describe a career. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Read biographical claims against dates, named institutions and the cited references. Distinguish a subject’s later reputation from evidence produced during their lifetime.

Best used for
  • Establishing names and roles
  • Building a first chronology
  • Locating cited institutions
Verify next

Personal papers, civil or court records, institutional files and the scholarship cited by the source.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Ramon Llull”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Ramon Llull primary sources, Ramon Llull archive and Ramon research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Ramon Llull”?
  2. Which primary records establish identity, chronology and institutional ties?
  3. Which claims depend on a single source or contested interpretation?
Subject index

Search terms from this dossier

Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Ramon Llull” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.