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Why did scholars question the authenticity of Barzaz Breiz?

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The old walled city of Saint-Malo, Brittany région, France. — Brittany The old walled city of Saint-Malo, Brittany *région*, France.

Scholars questioned the authenticity of the Barzaz Breiz because, contrary to Théodore Hersart de La Villemarqué’s claim that the collection consisted of ancient oral literature preserved unchanged by Breton peasants, it was revealed to be a composite work.12

Demonstrated by critics such as R.-F. Le Men and François-Marie Luzel in the 1870s, the collection was found to be a mixture of:
* Rearranged traditional love songs and ballads.1
* Modern poetry intentionally crafted to appear medieval.1
* Spurious poems featuring figures like Merlin and Nominoë.1

While these findings challenged the work's status as an authentic anthology of folk tradition, later reviews of Villemarqué’s personal papers in the 1980s confirmed that at least some of the poems were indeed authentic. Despite the controversy, the collection was highly influential in reviving Breton pride and stimulating further academic study of regional folklore.12