87751 - History of the Near East in the Middle Ages (1)

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course students will have acquired a thorough knowledge of the main historical, cultural, and religious problems concerning the Near East in the medieval period, regarding both the specific geo-historical context and its interactions with the Christian West, the Islamic world, the Byzantine area, and the Mongol territories in Asia. Students will be able to place political, religious, and cultural phenomena in their historical context and investigate their relations critically, looking comparatively at the European historical and political context. They will be able to recognize and analyse documentary and textual sources pertaining to this area, and will also learn to listen, understand and debate respectfully with different cultures and viewpoints, spotting the tie-ups among different disciplines.

Course contents

The first part of the course (weeks 1-3) provides an introduction to the religious and institutional history of the Eastern Mediterranean in the medieval era, focusing especially on the relations between religious and political configurations and on the religious plurality, which characterizes the region under consideration. The presence of plural communities in the Eastern Mediterranean will receive particular attention, in order to evaluate the significance of Christian-Muslim interactions in the region especially in the 11^th-15^th centuries.

First, we will address the main historiographical perspectives on the study of the medieval Mediterranean. We will then concentrate on the history of Islamic civilisation in the medieval century, the history of Byzantium and the Eastern Christian Churches, with a focus on mutual perceptions and interactions.

The second part of the course (weeks 4-5) will  focus on the phenomenon of crusades, placed at the crossroad of political, religious, cultural, and economic factors and regarded as a major occasion of transmediterranean interaction in the pre-modern era. The course aims to discuss the issue of the theological legitimation of violence and analyze the historical and historiographical elaboration of the ideas of crusade and holy war. It will then offer an overview of the major events and introduce various interpretative lines in the light of the recent scholarship.

Readings/Bibliography

Attending students:

In addition to class notes and materials made available on Virtuale (powerpoint presentations and other materials), attending students will prepare the following readings:

1. Storia del Mediterraneo medievale. Tempi, spazi, interazioni, a cura di A. Musarra e P. Silanos, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2025 (Part 2, 3, 4 and 5).
   

2. Luigi Russo, I crociati in Terrasanta: una nuova storia (1095-1291), Roma, Carocci, 2018.

Non-attending students:

1. Storia del Mediterraneo medievale. Tempi, spazi, interazioni, a cura di A. Musarra e P. Silanos, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2025.

2. Luigi Russo, I crociati in Terrasanta: una nuova storia (1095-1291), Roma, Carocci, 2018.
3. One of the following books:

• Averil Cameron, I Bizantini, Bologna, il Mulino, 2008.

• Giorgio Ravegnani, Bisanzio e l'Occidente medievale, Bologna, il Mulino, 2019.

• Antonio Musarra, Le crociate. L'idea, la storia, il mito, Bologna, il Mulino, 2022.

   

Teaching methods

Frontal lectures, class discussion.

Assessment methods

Students who attend at least 75% of the lessons are considered to be attending.

Students are required to attend the course regularly and participate actively in class discussions. Please note that those who will miss more than 4 classes will have to take the exam as non-attending students.

The preparation of the reading materials by attending and non-attending students will be evaluated on the basis of an oral exam. Students will be asked questions aimed to evaluate their knowledge of the bibliography, critical skills, command of the specific language of the discipline, and capacity of re-organizing the acquired information.

Evaluation criteria:

In-depth knowledge of the reading materials, with good analytical and critical skills and command of the specific language will qualify for a good/excellent mark.

Acceptable and more mechanical knowledge of the reading materials, and/or not always appropriate use of the language will lead to a sufficient/fair mark.

Fragmentary knowledge of the reading materials, weak critical skills, and/or insufficient command of the specific language and will lead to a failure or to a pass mark.

NB: Exam sessions are scheduled almost every month.

Students with learning disorders and\or temporary or permanent disabilities: please, contact the office responsible (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students ) as soon as possible so that they can propose acceptable adjustments. The request for adaptation must be submitted in advance (15 days before the exam date) to the lecturer, who will assess the appropriateness of the adjustments, taking into account the teaching objectives.

Teaching tools

Frontal lectures will be supported by Power Point presentations aimed to show visual and textual materials.

Links to further information

https://www.unibo.it/sitoweb/irene.bueno

Office hours

See the website of Irene Bueno