Petrarch, whose full name was Francesco Petrarca, was an Italian scholar and poet during the early Italian Renaissance. His primary vernacular language was Italian, also known at the time as the Tuscan dialect, which he used to compose much of his poetry, including his famous "Canzoniere" (or "Songbook"). However, Petrarch also wrote extensively in Latin, which was the language of academia and formal scholarship during his lifetime (1304–1374). His Latin writings include his philosophical and scholarly works, letters, and epic poetry. Petrarch's contributions in vernacular Italian were instrumental in the development of the Italian language and literature.
