¹This prologue is a clear statement of the ‘Arthurian values,’ and corresponds to the prologue in a religious poem in which the praise would be given to God.  The belief in the survival of King Arthur was widespread among the Celtic peoples and is mentioned, for example, in Malory’s Mort d’Arthur.  According to legend,  King Arthur never died but was whisked away to the island of Avalon where he is still awaiting his return.
²Hartmann von Aue mentions his name several times in the poem (ll. 2974, 2982, 7027).  His claim to be a literate knight, made here and in the prologue to Der arme Heinrich, is in amusing contrast to Wolfram von Eschenbach’s statement that he himself is not a learned man.  It is conceivable that Wolfram knew of Hartmann’s claim and deliberately put himself in the opposite camp.
³The herdsman—a “waltman,” that is a »savage«—who  clearly exists on the periphery of courtly society, shows more sense than the sophisticated Arthurian knight, perhaps suggesting that adventure for adventure’s sake (a »zweckentfremdetes Abenteuer« as contrasted to a »zweckgebundenes Abenteuer«, that is, one that is embedded in an ethico--historical context)  is sheer folly.
⁴The »Linde« (linden) is a pine tree in Chrétien de Troyes’s Yvain. Its properties are clearly reminiscent of E.R. Curtius’s eternal spring topos.
⁵It is interesting to note that in contrast to Chrétien de Troyes, Hartmann has Kaleogreant depart to the left, the ‘sinister’ (from the Latin word for »left«) side where misfortune lurks, instead of having him forge straight ahead.
⁶It is not entirely clear why the precious stones happen to be an emerald and rubies. Medieval lapidaries suggest that the stones’ allure may lie in their potential for honor and fortune.
⁷Fallgatter:  portcullis
⁸Laudine acts solely out of necessity.
⁹verlegen:  uxorious
¹⁰splitternackt:  stark naked.  This scene marks the ‘death’ of the old Iwein, his descent to a subhuman level. Later, rebirth will bring him a new awareness of his responsibilities.
¹¹This is a typical example of the »timely rescue« topos.  In fact, it is here in Iwein that the theme occurs for the first time in medieval fiction.
¹²Strictly speaking, Iwein was at fault in allowing the lion to take part in the combat, but the fight had been unfair from the start.  It will be noted that in the fight with Gawan the lion is kept out of the way.  The seneschal (the oldest servant and most powerful official at a medieval court who administered justice, managed domestic affairs, and represented the lord in court), like all those of his class in the romances, belongs to courtly society but fails to live according to its spirit.
¹³It is interesting to note that  no such practice is found in medieval German law.  Nevertheless, Hartmann insists that it is the law of the land at this particular time (“ze den zîten site”).
¹⁴With the oath, taken on holy relics, Lunete tricked Laudine into taking back Iwein and at the same time protected herself against any consequences.