Johannes Teutonicus, c.1170-1245.

German Scholastic canonist of Bologna, the great glossator of canon law (ecclesastical law).

Johannes Teutonicus ("John the German"), whose real name was probably John Zemeke or Semeca, was born in or around Halberstadt, Saxony.  He moved to Italy to study law at Bologna under Azo, and went on to teach there.

In the 1210s, while teaching at Bologna, Johannes Teutonicus compiled his gloss on the Compilatio Tercia of Cardinal Petrus Collivacinus of Benevento (the papal decretals of the first part of the papacy of Innocent III).   In 1216, Johannes Teutonicus assembled an unofficial collection of decretals of the latter part of the papacy of Innocent III and the canons of the 1215 Fourth Lateran Council (later known as the Compilatio Quarta).  It is reported that he went to Rome to seek approval from Pope Innocent III himself to endorse this as an official compilation (like the Tertia), but it was a stormy encounter and the pope turned him down..

During this time, Johannes Teutonicus had also compiled his most celebrated work, the Apparatus or Glossa ordinaria. This was a magisterial collection of glosses on Gratian's Decretum by earlier writers, such as Huguccio, Laurentius and others, that had been scattered throughout different manuscripts. The Glossa Ordinaria, revised in 1245 by Bartholomew of Brescia, was immensely influential and covered many economic topics.  Endorsed by the university of Bologna, the Glossa was usually appended to copies of Gratian's Decretum and published together.  (the equivalent  task in civil law was conducted by his contemporary, Accursius)

Johannes Teutonicus moved back to Germany around 1218.  John Zemeke (believed to be be the same person) entered the monastery of St. Mary in Halberstadt, where he was made scholasticus (1220) then provost (1223) and then dean (1235).  He was subsequently made provost of the cathedral chapter of Halberstadt  in 1241, and died in 1245.

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