Universität Wien

090062 VU Manifestations of Byzantine Culture in Southern Italy: Manuscripts, Texts and Contexts (2025S)

5.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 9 - Altertumswissenschaften
Continuous assessment of course work
Moodle
Mo 28.04. 14:15-15:45 Seminarraum d. Inst. f. Byzantinistik u. Neogräzistik, Postgasse 9, 2.Stock

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

max. 10 participants
Language: German, English

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

  • Monday 10.03. 14:15 - 15:45 Seminarraum d. Inst. f. Byzantinistik u. Neogräzistik, Postgasse 9, 2.Stock
  • Monday 17.03. 14:15 - 15:45 Seminarraum d. Inst. f. Byzantinistik u. Neogräzistik, Postgasse 9, 2.Stock
  • Monday 24.03. 14:15 - 15:45 Seminarraum d. Inst. f. Byzantinistik u. Neogräzistik, Postgasse 9, 2.Stock
  • Monday 07.04. 14:15 - 15:45 Seminarraum d. Inst. f. Byzantinistik u. Neogräzistik, Postgasse 9, 2.Stock
  • Monday 05.05. 14:15 - 15:45 Seminarraum d. Inst. f. Byzantinistik u. Neogräzistik, Postgasse 9, 2.Stock
  • Monday 12.05. 14:15 - 15:45 Seminarraum d. Inst. f. Byzantinistik u. Neogräzistik, Postgasse 9, 2.Stock
  • Monday 19.05. 14:15 - 15:45 Seminarraum d. Inst. f. Byzantinistik u. Neogräzistik, Postgasse 9, 2.Stock
  • Monday 26.05. 14:15 - 15:45 Seminarraum d. Inst. f. Byzantinistik u. Neogräzistik, Postgasse 9, 2.Stock
  • Monday 02.06. 14:15 - 15:45 Seminarraum d. Inst. f. Byzantinistik u. Neogräzistik, Postgasse 9, 2.Stock
  • Thursday 05.06. 11:00 - 12:30 Seminarraum d. Inst. f. Byzantinistik u. Neogräzistik, Postgasse 9, 2.Stock
  • Monday 16.06. 14:15 - 15:45 Ort in u:find Details
  • Monday 23.06. 14:15 - 15:45 Seminarraum d. Inst. f. Byzantinistik u. Neogräzistik, Postgasse 9, 2.Stock
  • Wednesday 02.07. 10:00 - 11:30 Hörsaal d. Inst. f. Byzantinistik u. Neogräzistik, Postgasse 9, 2.Stock

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

Content: Among the territories of the Byzantine Empire, southern Italy is certainly one of the most culturally active, a crossroads of traditions and languages, of which, fortunately, many traces have survived the destruction. Byzantine rule over southern Italy lasted for around 500 years and traces of its presence can still be seen today in the spoken language of some communities, for example in Salento and Calabria (where the so-called Italo-Greek dialects called Griko and Grecanico are spoken), as well as in the continued use of the Byzantine liturgy by such communities.
This course offers an exploration of the impact of the Byzantine presence in southern Italy between the 6th and 11th centuries. After a historical introduction, a number of characteristic aspects of Byzantine culture in southern Italy will be presented through selected case studies: we will talk about locally produced literature, manuscripts, art (mosaics, frescoes, churches), monasticism, liturgy, multilingualism. We will focus on three main areas that were under the control of the Byzantine Empire: Terra d’Otranto, Calabria and Sicily. Our journey will end with the Norman conquest of the 11th and 12th centuries.

Aims, Methods: The aim of the course is to provide an overview on Byzantine cultural heritage in southern Italy, with a special focus on written culture. The topics for the oral presentations will be assigned according to the interests of the participants: e.g. history, literature, manuscript studies, art history, liturgical studies. A visit to the Austrian National Library is planned so that the students can study in person the manuscripts produced in southern Italy and now kept in Vienna, or which contain texts composed in southern Italy.
Classes are held in English, but German may be used as the language of discussion and conversation. The oral presentations and the final written examination may be held in English or German, at the choice of each participant.

Assessment and permitted materials

30% Active participation (max. 2 absences)
40% Oral presentation (Referat)
30% Final oral examination July 2nd, 10.00

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

A basic knowledge of Greek is desirable but not essential. Both the oral presentation and the final examination must be graded at least “genügend/sufficient” in order to complete the course successfully.
As this is a continuous assessment course, attendance is compulsory. No more than two absences will be allowed in order to sit the final examination. Absences must be notified to the course instructor by email in advance.

Examination topics

30-35 min. presentation on a topic chosen in accordance with the instructor

For the final oral exam (on July 2nd, 10.00):
- materials discussed during the course
- Davis-Secord, Sarah C. “Medieval Sicily and Southern Italy in Recent Historiographical Perspective.” History Compass 8, no. 1 (2010): 61–87.

For a better historical overview, a manual of your choice:
- Cosentino, Salvatore. A Companion to Byzantine Italy. Leiden Boston: Brill, 2020.
- Cosentino, Salvatore. Storia dell’Italia bizantina, VI-XI secolo : da Giustiniano ai normanni. 1. ed. Bologna: Bononia University Press, 2008.
- Falkenhausen, Vera von. Untersuchungen über die byzantinische Herrschaft in Süditalien vom 9. bis ins 11. Jahrhundert. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 1967. (Also available in Italian)
- Ravegnani, Giorgio. I bizantini in Italia. Bologna: Il Mulino, 2004.

Optional, but highly recommended:
- Houben, Hubert. Roger II. von Sizilien : Herrscher zwischen Orient und Okzident. Darmstadt: Primus-Verl., 1997. (Also available in English and in Italian)
- Metcalfe, Alex. The Muslims of Medieval Italy. Edinburgh: Edinburgh Univ. Press, 2009.

Reading list

The literature will be announced in the course of the semester.

Association in the course directory

Last modified: Tu 25.03.2025 00:06