The article discusses the need for a research plan for the digital edition of Portuguese medieval charters, highlighting three essential requirements. Firstly, it emphasises the importance of establishing a cohesive textual corpus, consistently highlighting gaps and interpretative challenges. Secondly, it underscores the need for methodologies and interdisciplinary collaboration, given the complexity of these documents that require contributions from areas such as History, Diplomacy, Paleography, and Linguistics. Finally, it highlights the importance of digital tools for data collection and the dissemination of digital editions in an open format.
The iForal project identified approximately 180 charters, comprising around 400 surviving testimonies, with the majority in Latin, posing a linguistic challenge. A Collaborative Digital Editing System (EDICOLAB) was developed to facilitate collaborative work among editors and provide a visualization module for the public. The system allows users without XML markup training to contribute to electronic editing with differentiated interventions.
The article also discusses the importance of Edition Visualisation Technology (EVT) and the use of TEI-based editing systems for versatile text types. It emphasises the significance of interdisciplinary collaboration, efficient communication within research teams, and the need for digital tools to support data collection and dissemination in the field of digital humanities.
