Editing Ossian (section)

==Translations and adaptations==

One poem was translated into French in 1762; by 1777, the whole corpus was translated.{{sfn |Okun |1967 |p=330}} In the German-speaking states, [[Michael Denis]] made the first full translation in 1768–1769, inspiring the proto-nationalist poets [[Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock|Klopstock]] and [[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe|Goethe]], whose own German translation of a portion of Macpherson's work figures prominently in a climactic scene of ''[[The Sorrows of Young Werther]]'' (1774).<ref>{{Harvnb|Berresford Ellis|1987|p=159}}</ref><ref>Arnold M. ''Thor, myth to marvel''; Continuum Publishing, 2011, pp92-97.</ref> Goethe's associate [[Johann Gottfried Herder]] wrote an essay titled ''Extract from a correspondence about Ossian and the Songs of Ancient Peoples'' (1773) in the early days of the ''[[Sturm und Drang]]'' movement.

Complete Danish translations were made in 1790, and Swedish ones in 1794–1800. In [[Scandinavia]] and Germany, the Celtic nature of the setting was ignored or not understood; instead, Ossian was regarded as a Nordic or Germanic figure who became a symbol for nationalist aspirations.{{sfn |Okun |1967 |pp=330, 339}} In 1799, the French general [[Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte]] named his only son Oscar after the character from Ossian, at the suggestion of [[Napoleon]], the child's godfather and an admirer of Ossian.{{sfn |Okun |1967 |p=330}} Bernadotte later was made King of [[Sweden]] and [[Norway]]. In 1844, his son became King [[Oscar I of Sweden and Norway]], who was, in turn, succeeded by his sons [[Charles XV of Sweden|Charles XV]] and [[Oscar II]] (d. 1907). "Oscar" being a royal name led to its becoming also a common male first name, especially in Scandinavia but also in other European countries.

[[Melchiore Cesarotti]] was an Italian clergyman whose translation into Italian is said by many to improve on the original, and was a tireless promoter of the poems, in [[Vienna]] and [[Warsaw]] as well as Italy. It was his translation that Napoleon especially admired,{{sfn |Okun |1967 |p=330}} and among others it influenced [[Ugo Foscolo]], who was Cesarotti's pupil in the [[University of Padua]].

[[File:Musée Ingres-Bourdelle - Le songe d'Ossian, 1813 - Ingres - Joconde06070001439.jpg|thumb|right|''[[The Dream of Ossian]]'', [[Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres]], 1813]]
[[File:Ossiansongs.JPG|thumb|right|''The Songs of Ossian'', ink and watercolours, [[Ingres]], 1811–13]]

British composer [[Harriet Wainwright]] premiered her opera ''Comala'', based on text by Ossian, in London in 1792.

The first partial [[Polish language|Polish]] translation of Ossian was made by [[Ignacy Krasicki]] in 1793. The complete translation appeared in 1838 by [[Seweryn Goszczyński]].

By 1800, Ossian was translated into Spanish and Russian, with Dutch following in 1805, and Polish, Czech and Hungarian in 1827–1833.{{sfn |Okun |1967 |p=330}} The poems were as much admired in [[Hungary]] as in France and Germany; Hungarian [[János Arany]] wrote "Homer and Ossian" in response, and several other Hungarian writers – [[Dávid Baróti Szabó|Baróti Szabó]], [[Mihály Csokonai Vitéz|Csokonai]], [[Sándor Kisfaludy]], [[Ferenc Kazinczy|Kazinczy]], [[Kölcsey]], [[Ferenc Toldy]], and Ágost Greguss, were also influenced by it.<ref>{{citation |first=Elek |last=Oszkár |title=Ossian-kultusz Magyarországon |journal=Egyetemes Philologiai Közlöny |issue=LVII |year=1933 |pages=66–76}}</ref>

The opera ''[[Ossian, ou Les bardes]]'' by [[Jean-François Le Sueur]] (with the famous, multimedial scene of "Ossian's Dream") was a sell-out at the [[Paris Opera]] in 1804, and transformed the composer's career. The poems also exerted an influence on the burgeoning of [[Romantic music]], and [[Franz Schubert]] in particular composed [[Lieder]] setting many of Ossian's poems. In 1829 [[Felix Mendelssohn]] was inspired to visit the Hebrides and composed the ''[[Hebrides Overture]]'', also known as ''Fingal's Cave''. His friend [[Niels Gade]] devoted his first published work, the concert overture ''Efterklange af Ossian'' ("Echoes of Ossian") written in 1840, to the same subject.