Visions of Community in the Post-Roman World : The West, Byzantium and the Islamic World, 300–1100

This volume looks at 'visions of community' in a comparative perspective, from Late Antiquity to the dawning of the age of crusades. It addresses the question of why and how distinctive new political cultures developed after the disintegration of the Roman World, and to what degree their differences had already emerged in the first post-Roman centuries. The Latin West, Orthodox Byzantium and its Slavic periphery, and the Islamic world each retained different parts of the Graeco-Roman heritage, while introducing new elements. For instance, ethnicity became a legitimizing element of rulership in the West, remained a structural element of the imperial periphery in Byzantium, and contributed to the inner dynamic of Islamic states without becoming a resource of political integration. Similarly, the political role of religion also differed between the emerging post-Roman worlds. It is surprising that little systematic research has been done in these fields so far. The 32 contributions to the volume explore this new line of research and look at different aspects of the process, with leading western Medievalists, Byzantinists and Islamicists covering a wide range of pertinent topics. At a closer look, some of the apparent differences between the West and the Islamic world seem less distinctive, and the inner variety of all post-Roman societies becomes more marked. At the same time, new variations in the discourse of community and the practice of power emerge. Anybody interested in the development of the post-Roman Mediterranean, but also in the relationship between the Islamic World and the West, will gain new insights from these studies on the political role of ethnicity and religion in the post-Roman Mediterranean Introduction: Ethnicity, Religion And Empire / Walter Pohl -- What Difference Does Ethnicity Make? Tribe And State: Social Anthropological Approaches. Envisioning Medieval Communities In Asia : Remarks On Ethnicity, Tribalism And Faith / Andre Gingrich -- Tribal Mobility And Religious Fixation : Remarks On Territorial Transformation And Identity In Imperial And Early Post-imperial Tibet / Guntram Hazod -- Identity And Difference In The Roman World. Zur Neustiftung Von Identität Unter Imperialer Herrschaft : Die Provinzen Des Römischen Reiches Als Ethnische Entitäten / Fritz Mitthof -- The Nabataeans : Problems Of Identifying Ethnicity In The Ancient World / Jan Retsö -- Political Identity Versus Religious Distinction? : The Case Of Egypt In The Later Roman Empire / Bernhard Palme -- Ethnic Identities In The Early Medieval West. How Many Peoples Are (in) A People? / Herwig Wolfram -- The Providential Past : Visions Of Frankish Identity In The Early Medieval History Of Gregory Of Tours' Historiae (sixth-ninth Century) / Helmut Reimitz -- Inventing Wales / Catherine Mckenna -- Early Islamic Identities. Religious Communities In The Early Islamic World / Michael G. Morony -- Seventh-century Identities : The Case Of North Africa / Walter E. Kaegi -- Christian Identities In The Middle East. Ethnicity, Ethnogenesis, And The Identity Of Syriac Orthodox Christians / Bas Ter Haar Romeny -- Avoiding Ethnicity : Uses Of The Ancient Past In Late Sasanian Northern Mesopotamia / Richard Payne -- Truth And Lies, Ceremonial And Art : Issues Of Nationality In Medieval Armenia / Lynn Jones -- Roman Identity In A Border Region : Evagrius And The Defence Of The Roman Empire / Hartmut Leppin -- Holy Land And Sacred History : A View From Early Ethiopia / George Hatke -- Political Identities And The Integration Of Communities: Regional And Imperial Identities In The East. Anastasios Und Die 'geschichte' Der Isaurier / Mischa Meier -- Zur Stellung Von Ethnischen Und Religiösen Minderheiten In Byzanz : Armenier, Muslime Und Paulikianer / Ralph-johannes Lilie -- Regional Identities And Military Power : Byzantium And Islam Ca. 600-750 / John Haldon And Hugh Kennedy -- The Challenge Of Difference : Early Medieval Christian Europe. 'faithful Believers' : Oaths Of Allegiance In Post-roman Societies As Evidence For Eastern And Western 'visions Of Community' / Stefan Esders -- 'einheit' Versus 'fraktionierung' : Zur Symbolischen Und Institutionellen Integration Des Frankenreichs Im 8./9. Jahrhundert / Steffen Patzold -- Diaspora Jewish Communities In Early Medieval Europe : Structural Conditions For Survival And Expansion / Wolfram Drews -- New Visions Of Community In Ninth-century Rome : The Impact Of The Saracen Threat On The Papal World View / Clemens Gantner -- Visions Of Community, Perceptions Of Difference: Islamic Views. Arab-islamic Historiographers On The Emergence Of Latin-christian Europe / Daniel G. König -- The Vikings In The South Through Arab Eyes / Ann Christys -- Identities Of The Ṣaqāliba And The Rūsiyya In Early Arabic Sources / Przemyslaw Urbańczyk -- Byzantine Views. Gog, Magog Und Die Hunnen : Anmerkungen Zur Eschatologischen 'ethnographie' Der Völkerwanderungszeit / Wolfram Brandes -- Strategies Of Identification And Distinction In The Byzantine Discourse On The Seljuk Turks / Alexander Beihammer -- Western Views. 'a Wild Man Whose Hand Will Be Against All' : Saracens And Ishmaelites In Latin Ethnographical Traditions, From Jerome To Bede / John Victor Tolan -- Where The Wild Things Are / Ian N. Wood -- Conclusions. Conclusions / Leslie Brubaker -- Conclusions / Chris Wickham. Edited By Walter Pohl, Clemens Gantner, Richard Payne. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Contributions In English And German. Cover 1 Contents 6 Figures 10 Abbreviations 12 Introduction: Ethnicity, Religion and Empire 14 Part I: What Difference Does Ethnicity Make? 38 Tribe and State: Social Anthropological Approaches 40 1 Envisioning Medieval Communities in Asia: Remarks on Ethnicity, Tribalism and Faith 42 2 Tribal Mobility and Religious Fixation: Remarks on Territorial Transformation and Identity in Imperial and Early Post-Imperial Tibet 56 Identity and Difference in the Roman World 72 3 Zur Neustiftung von Identität unter imperialer Herrschaft: Die Provinzen des Römischen Reiches als ethnische Entitäten 74 4 The Nabataeans – Problems of Defining Ethnicity in the Ancient World 86 5 Political Identity versus Religious Distinction? The Case of Egypt in the Later Roman Empire 94 Ethnic Identities in the Early Medieval West 112 6 How Many Peoples Are (in) a People? 114 7 The Providential Past: Visions of Frankish Identity in the Early Medieval History of Gregory of Tours’ Historiae (sixth–ninth century) 122 8 Inventing Wales 150 Early Islamic Identities 166 9 Religious Communities in the Early Islamic World 168 10 Seventh-Century Identities: The Case of North Africa 178 Christian Identities in the Middle East 194 11 Ethnicity, Ethnogenesis and the Identity of Syriac Orthodox Christians 196 12 Avoiding Ethnicity: Uses of the Ancient Past in Late Sasanian Northern Mesopotamia 218 13 Truth and Lies, Ceremonial and Art: Issues of Nationality in Medieval Armenia 236 14 Roman Identity in a Border Region: Evagrius and the Defence of the Roman Empire 254 15 Holy Land and Sacred History: A View from Early Ethiopia 272 Part II: Political Identities and the Integration of Communities 290 Regional and Imperial Identites in the East 292 16 Anastasios und die ‚Geschichte‘ der Isaurier 294 17 Zur Stellung von ethnischen und religiösen Minderheiten in Byzanz: Armenier, Muslime und Paulikianer 314 18 Regional Identities and Military Power: Byzantium and Islam ca. 600–750 330 The Challenge of Difference: Early Medieval Christian Europe 368 19 ‘Faithful believers’: Oaths of Allegiance in Post-Roman Societies as Evidence for Eastern and Western ‘Visions of Community’ 370 20 „Einheit“ versus „Fraktionierung“: Zur symbolischen und institutionellen Integration des Frankenreichs im 8./9. Jahrhundert 388 21 Diaspora Jewish Communities in Early Medieval Europe: Structural Conditions for Survival and Expansion 404 22 New Visions of Community in Ninth-Century Rome: The Impact of the Saracen Threat on the Papal World View 416 Part III: Visions of Community, Perceptions of Difference 436 Islamic Views 438 23 Arabic-Islamic Historiographers on the Emergence of Latin-Christian Europe 440 24 The Vikings in the South through Arab Eyes 460 25 Identities of the Ṣaqāliba and the Rūsiyya in Early Arabic Sources 472 Byzantine Views 488 26 Gog, Magog und die Hunnen: Anmerkungen zur eschatologischen „Ethnographie“ der Völkerwanderungszeit 490 27 Strategies of Identification and Distinction in the Byzantine Discourse on the Seljuk Turks 512 Western Views 524 28 ‘A wild man, whose hand will be against all’: Saracens and Ishmaelites in Latin Ethnographical Traditions, from Jerome to Bede 526 29 Where the Wild Things Are 544 Conclusions 556 Conclusions 558 Conclusions 564 Index 572 Looks at visions of community in a comparative perspective, from Late Antiquity to the dawning of the age of crusades. This title addresses the question of why and how distinctive new political cultures developed after the disintegration of the Roman World, and to what degree their differences had already emerged in the first post-Roman centuries.