Parzival was the central hero of Wolfram von Eschenbach’s German epic poem Parzival.
Parzival tells the story of a young man who begins life in isolation and gradually becomes a knight of the Round Table. His development includes training, adventures, mistakes, moral reflection, and eventual recognition as a worthy ruler. The poem was written in Middle High German in the early 13th century.
A major part of Parzival’s story concerns the Holy Grail and the wounded Fisher King. Parzival initially fails to ask the compassionate question that could heal the king, then spends years seeking understanding and redemption. His journey reflects medieval concerns about knighthood, religious duty, courtesy, sin, and spiritual growth.
Wolfram’s poem adapts and transforms material associated with Chrétien de Troyes’s unfinished Perceval. The names and details differ across languages and literary traditions, so Parzival is the German form while Perceval is the common French form. They are related versions of the same Arthurian hero, not entirely unrelated characters.