The publication presents the results of the interdisciplinary Freiburg Colloquium 2021 (Université de Fribourg, Switzerland) \"Paradigms and Perspectives of Comparative Medieval Studies\". The contributions explore the theoretical and methodological premises of historically orientated comparative research that focuses on the specific cultural conditions of the pre-modern period. The focus is on two central paradigms in current medievalist discourse: the materiality and mediality of medieval manuscript culture on the one hand and the central role of the Latin language as a supra-regional lingua franca and motor for exchange and innovation across linguistic and cultural borders on the other.