OVERVIEW

The course aims to provide students with the tools for a basic understanding of the main political, institutional, economic, social and cultural phenomena that characterised the areas of medieval Europe bordering the Mediterranean, in relation to the Byzantine world, the Islamic world and Eastern civilisations. Particular attention will be paid to the Mediterranean as a melting pot of culinary traditions and practices, through the analysis of various types of sources, ranging from documentary sources to treatises and narratives.

AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Students will expand their knowledge in Medieval History (achieved in the three-year degree) and will have a grasp of the problems connected with the development of political, economic and cultural relations in the Mediterranean. They will also study maritime societies in the Middle Ages. Students will get acquainted with sources, research methods and updates in historiography related to specific topics.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of the course, students are expected to:

- have acquired specific knowledge of the main events and phenomena that characterised the Mediterranean in the Middle Ages, in order to identify similarities, differences and links between the great civilisations that bordered it (Western Europe, the Byzantine world, the Islamic world);
- be familiar with the methodological tools of the discipline, the fundamental features of historiography on the subject, and the sources that will be presented during the lectures;
- be aware of the variety of culinary traditions that characterised the Mediterranean region in the medieval period.

PREREQUISITES

None prerequisite is required.

TEACHING METHODS

The course comprises 60 hours of lectures covering both the main themes of Mediterranean history in the Middle Ages and specific topics relating to the history of food, using teaching materials (primarily sources translated into Italian, but also in their original languages) provided by the lecturer.

Attendance, although not compulsory, is recommended. 

For the timetable, please consult the portal https://easyacademy.unige.it/portalestudenti//index.php?_lang=it.

Lectures will include PowerPoint presentations and in-depth discussions in a seminar format.

Students with disabilities or specific learning difficulties (SLD) can find information on how to request services, compensatory tools or special arrangements, and specific aids in the document available at the following link: https://unige.it/disabilita-dsa/modulistica.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

An overview of the history of the Mediterranean in the Middle Ages; guidance on research and the reading and interpretation of sources, particularly those relating to food supply and culinary practices. 

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR ATTENDING STUDENTS (9 CFU)

Reference books for general preparation:

• A. Musarra, P. Silanos (a cura di), Storia del Mediterraneo medievale. Tempi, spazi, interazioni, Bologna, il Mulino, 2025
• E. Ivetic, Studiare la storia del Mediterraneo, Bologna, il Mulino, 2024

Material presented in class and two texts chosen from the following:

• A. Riera-Melis, Il Mediterraneo, crogiuolo di tradizioni alimentari. Il lascito islamico alla cucina catalana medievale, in Il mondo in cucina. Storia, identità, scambi, a cura di M. Montanari, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2002, pp. 3-43
• M. Montanari, Mangiare mediterraneo, in Mediterraneo mare aperto (secc. XII-XV). Atti del LIX Convegno storico internazionale (Todi, 9-11 ottobre 2022), Spoleto, CISAM, 2023, pp. 93-122
• P. Horden, N. Purcell, Il mare che corrompe. Per una storia del Mediterraneo dall'Età del ferro all'Età moderna, Roma, Carocci, 2024 (only the chapters 4 and 5)
• Storia dell'alimentazione, a cura di J.-L. Flandrin e M. Montanari, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 1996 (only the "Quarta Parte", chapters: XIX-XX)

Attending students sitting the 6-credit exam must bring the material covered in class plus one of the texts listed above.

BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR NON-ATTENDING STUDENTS (9 CFU)

Textbooks for general preparation:

• A. Musarra, P. Silanos (a cura di), Storia del Mediterraneo medievale. Tempi, spazi, interazioni, Bologna, il Mulino, 2025
• E. Ivetic, Studiare la storia del Mediterraneo, Bologna, il Mulino, 2024

In addition, three texts to be chosen from the following:

• A. Riera-Melis, Il Mediterraneo, crogiuolo di tradizioni alimentari. Il lascito islamico alla cucina catalana medievale, in Il mondo in cucina. Storia, identità, scambi, a cura di M. Montanari, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2002, pp. 3-43
• M. Montanari, Mangiare mediterraneo, in Mediterraneo mare aperto (secc. XII-XV). Atti del LIX Convegno storico internazionale (Todi, 9-11 ottobre 2022), Spoleto, CISAM, 2023, pp. 93-122
• P. Horden, N. Purcell, Il mare che corrompe. Per una storia del Mediterraneo dall'Età del ferro all'Età moderna, Roma, Carocci, 2024 (only the chapters 4 and 5)
• Storia dell'alimentazione, a cura di J.-L. Flandrin e M. Montanari, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 1996 (only the "Quarta Parte", chapters: XIX-XX)

Non-attending students sitting the 6-credit exam must bring, in addition to the textbooks for general preparation, two texts of their choice from those listed above. 

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

LESSONS

LESSONS START

The course will start in the week of 15 September 2026, in accordance with the timetable.

Class schedule

The timetable for this course is available here: Portale EasyAcademy

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

 Oral exam.

Register online for your final exam.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

The final examination will consist of an oral interview, which will cover the topics presented in class, including the topics addressed in seminars and exercises, and the textbooks indicated in the Bibliography.

In order to pass the exam, the student will have to demonstrate that he/she understands the main topics covered in the course, that he/she can identify the main socio-economic, cultural and institutional processes of the Middle Ages, and that he/she can critically use, with reference to them, the sources available on the website and the bibliographical material indicated by the lecturer. Assessment will also take into account autonomy of judgment and the ability to express oneself using the specialized vocabulary related to the discipline.

FURTHER INFORMATION

For further information, please contact the lecturer by email (francesca.pucci.donati@unige.it).