Profile

Thomas Foster Earle (b. 1945) is a distinguished British scholar specializing in Portuguese literary studies. Professor of Portuguese at the University of Oxford from 1996 to 2014, he was also a Fellow of St. Peter’s College during that period.

He graduated in Romance Languages and earned his doctorate (DPhil) in 1976 at the same university, with a thesis focused on the poetry of Sá de Miranda.

His academic work concentrates on Portuguese literature of the early modern period, with particular emphasis on poetry, drama, chronicles, and the history of the book. He is the author of monographs such as Estudos sobre cultura e literatura portuguesa do Renascimento (2013) and Portuguese Writers and English Readers (2009), in addition to having edited critical editions of works by António Ferreira, Sá de Miranda, and Camões.

Beyond teaching, he held leadership roles within Oxford’s Faculty of Medieval and Modern Languages. His research has made a significant contribution to the transmission and preservation of Portuguese Renaissance literature.