Norman-Arab-Byzantine culture

[Ianus]

It quickened under the Swabians (particularly under Frederick II) with their patronage of the Sicilian School of poetry, which was written in Sicilian; by the time of the Angevins most of the island was Latinized both linguistically and religiously.

Islama Araba history of Sicily practically ended with Frederick II, he crashed several revolts of Arab Sicilians, most were killed or deported and other fled to Africa. Around 1250 Islam in Sicily was eradicated.

[Virtuous]

Frederick II is the man. Why weren't they all booted out immediately in the first place? Much disappointed.

[Ulla]

Which ruling dynasty or power really pushed the Latinization of Sicily?

As written by Vesuvian Sky, the Norman Hauteville family, known in Italian as Altavilla.

Roger's last wife was Adelaide del Vasto, a Piedmontese noble woman belonging to the Aleramici family of Frankish origins (Salian Franks) that ruled for many centuries North-West Italy.

After their marriage, Roger and Adelaide encouraged migrations into Sicily from Adelaide's possessions in North-West Italy. With these migrations of Lombards started the Latinization of Sicily. Lombard is the ethonym used in Medieval times for North-Western Italians. Probably the first Lombards arrived in Sicily as soldiers along with the Normans during the conquest of Sicily.

Per la crisi che travagliava, nella seconda metà del sec. XI, il mondo feudale dell'Italia settentrionale, piccoli vassalli e servi erano indotti ad espatriare per cercare altrove migliore fortuna: notevoli furono le immigrazioni nella Sicilia, poiché i Normanni, sotto la guida di Ruggero I d'Altavilla, andavano smantellando il dominio arabo nell'isola (1060-1091) e creavano in essa un nuovo assetto politico. Tra gli immigrati era anche Enrico del Vasto, figlio del defunto Manfredo: egli, dopo aver dato aiuto, insieme con suoi conterranei, al conte Ruggero, nelle ultime fasi della guerra contro i musulmani, ricevette da lui due vasti conglomerati feudali, le contee di Butera e di Paternò.

Nel 1089 Ruggero I, vedovo per la seconda volta, sposò A., sorella di Enrico, venuta nell'isola con altre due sorelle, le quali erano in pari tempo destinate dallo stesso Ruggero in mogli rispettivamente a due suoi figliuoli.

Alla conclusione di tali matrimoni non furono estranei moventi di ordine politico: Ruggero I veniva insediando gli immigrati in una zona della Sicilia gravitante intorno all'Etna, zona che stava a cavaliere tra l'area occidentale abitata da Arabi e quella orientale popolata da Greco-Bizantini. Era suo interesse legare alla dinastia e ai conquistatori franco-normanni l'affine elemento italico, in cui primeggiavano i del Vasto, e fare di questi elementi etnici di origine latino-germanica un contrappeso agli altri due elementi, l'arabo e il greco, esistenti nell'isola.

http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/...Biografico%29/

[Ianus]

As written by Vesuvian Sky, the Norman Hauteville family, known in Italian as Altavilla.

Roger's last wife was Adelaide del Vasto, a Piedmontese noble woman belonging to the Aleramici family of Frankish origins (Salian Franks) that ruled for many centuries North-West Italy.

After their marriage, Roger and Adelaide encouraged migrations into Sicily from Adelaide's possessions in North-West Italy. With these migrations of Lombards started the Latinization of Sicily. Lombard is the ethonym used in Medieval times for North-Western Italians. Probably the first Lombards arrived in Sicily as soldiers along with the Normans during the conquest of Sicily.



http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/...Biografico%29/

Yet in Sicily a latin Language was spoken before the arrival of Normans, the Island wasn't completely arabized or Grecized as Sikeliot thing.

[Ulla]

Yet in Sicily a latin Language was spoken before the arrival of Normans, the Island wasn't completely arabized or Grecized as Sikeliot thing.

Sicily was a Roman province, that's sure that Latin was spoken there.

But in the case of the Norman period Latinization is a word used by historians not just in terms of language only, but also cultural, ethnic and religious ones.

[Ianus]

In Sicily they had to compete with the Byzantines who took a very severe stance. Normans basically played their cards better and aimed towards getting the population on their side.

The geopolitical situation of South Italy played a big role for the raise of Norman Kingdom: there was a void of power, Duchy of Benevento, the biggest Longobard duchy ad split in several states, the Catapanate of Italy challenged revolts against the central power and the empire had problems against Turks and Peceneghs, the Emirate of Sicily was in a civil war.

[Vesuvian Sky]

As written by Vesuvian Sky, the Norman Hauteville family, known in Italian as Altavilla.

Roger's last wife was Adelaide del Vasto, a Piedmontese noble woman belonging to the Aleramici family of Frankish origins (Salian Franks) that ruled for many centuries North-West Italy.

After their marriage, Roger and Adelaide encouraged migrations into Sicily from Adelaide's possessions in North-West Italy. With these migrations of Lombards started the Latinization of Sicily. Lombard is the ethonym used in Medieval times for North-Western Italians. Probably the first Lombards arrived in Sicily as soldiers along with the Normans during the conquest of Sicily.



http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/...Biografico%29/

Ah I was wondering about that. Is the Altavilla still found in Sicily? Great post BTW.

[Ulla]

Ah I was wondering about that. Is the Altavilla still found in Sicily? Great post BTW.

Yep, Altavilla is a common Southern Italian surname, mostly concentrated in Apulia and Sicily.

http://www.cognomix.it/mappe-dei-cog...iani/ALTAVILLA

[Piccolo]

Yep, Altavilla is a common Southern Italian surname, mostly concentrated in Apulia and Sicily.

http://www.cognomix.it/mappe-dei-cog...iani/ALTAVILLA

Do Southern Italians take pride in having a Norman surname? In Britain having a Norman surname is often a sign of upper-class ancestry.

[Scandalf]

It's interesting to see the lasting effect of Arab culture in Sicily being harmonized with the European Byzantine and Norman cultures, but this seems to be the exception, since in Iberia Arab culture died out, so geography also played a role in this.

Some words are still in use today, as well as the names of some places. I married in a Cathedral built over a mosque built over an ancient church built upon the ruins of a Greek temple built over a non-Greek native shrine (I saw it!). It seems all blended together. Nothing is really destroyed.