Saxon Identities, AD 150–900

Nonfiction, History, Western Europe, Medieval
Cover of the book Saxon Identities, AD 150–900 by Dr Robert Flierman, Bloomsbury Publishing
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Dr Robert Flierman ISBN: 9781350019461
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Publication: July 13, 2017
Imprint: Bloomsbury Academic Language: English
Author: Dr Robert Flierman
ISBN: 9781350019461
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication: July 13, 2017
Imprint: Bloomsbury Academic
Language: English

This study is the first up-to-date comprehensive analysis of Continental Saxon identity in antiquity and the early middle ages. Building on recent scholarship on barbarian ethnicity, this study emphasises not just the constructed and open-ended nature of Saxon identity, but also the crucial role played by texts as instruments and resources of identity-formation. This book traces this process of identity-formation over the course of eight centuries, from its earliest beginnings in Roman ethnography to its reinvention in the monasteries and bishoprics of ninth-century Saxony.

Though the Saxons were mentioned as early as AD 150, they left no written evidence of their own before c. 840. Thus, for the first seven centuries, we can only look at the Saxons through the eyes of their Roman enemies, Merovingian neighbours and Carolingian conquerors. Such external perspectives do not yield objective descriptions of a people, but rather reflect an ongoing discourse on Saxon identity, in which outside authors described who they imagined, wanted or feared the Saxons to be: dangerous pirates, noble savages, bestial pagans or faithful subjects. Significantly, these outside views deeply influenced how ninth-century Saxons eventually came to think about themselves, using Roman and Frankish texts to reinvent the Saxons as a noble and Christian people.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

This study is the first up-to-date comprehensive analysis of Continental Saxon identity in antiquity and the early middle ages. Building on recent scholarship on barbarian ethnicity, this study emphasises not just the constructed and open-ended nature of Saxon identity, but also the crucial role played by texts as instruments and resources of identity-formation. This book traces this process of identity-formation over the course of eight centuries, from its earliest beginnings in Roman ethnography to its reinvention in the monasteries and bishoprics of ninth-century Saxony.

Though the Saxons were mentioned as early as AD 150, they left no written evidence of their own before c. 840. Thus, for the first seven centuries, we can only look at the Saxons through the eyes of their Roman enemies, Merovingian neighbours and Carolingian conquerors. Such external perspectives do not yield objective descriptions of a people, but rather reflect an ongoing discourse on Saxon identity, in which outside authors described who they imagined, wanted or feared the Saxons to be: dangerous pirates, noble savages, bestial pagans or faithful subjects. Significantly, these outside views deeply influenced how ninth-century Saxons eventually came to think about themselves, using Roman and Frankish texts to reinvent the Saxons as a noble and Christian people.

More books from Bloomsbury Publishing

Cover of the book 100% Pig by Dr Robert Flierman
Cover of the book The First Mapping of America by Dr Robert Flierman
Cover of the book The Indian Mutiny 1857–58 by Dr Robert Flierman
Cover of the book Flann O'Brien & Modernism by Dr Robert Flierman
Cover of the book The Angry Brigade by Dr Robert Flierman
Cover of the book The History of the Panzerwaffe by Dr Robert Flierman
Cover of the book Airstream by Dr Robert Flierman
Cover of the book The New Zealand Expeditionary Force in World War I by Dr Robert Flierman
Cover of the book City of Shadows by Dr Robert Flierman
Cover of the book How To Be A Philosopher by Dr Robert Flierman
Cover of the book What is Discourse Analysis? by Dr Robert Flierman
Cover of the book Turkey by Dr Robert Flierman
Cover of the book Secret of the Oracle: An Ancient Greek Mystery by Dr Robert Flierman
Cover of the book Triple-Axis by Dr Robert Flierman
Cover of the book The Lost World of James Smithson by Dr Robert Flierman
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy