Medieval Sardinia viewed from modernity. A historiographical epitome of the alleged mediterranean connectivity

Abstract

This article presents a condensed synopsis and a critique of the most influential notions in modern Mediterranean historiography, aiming to offer a new perspective on the ways in which medieval Sardinia was conceived. This brief work explains how these historiographical notions have contributed to the presumption of the commercial and cultural unity of the Inland Sea during the Middle Ages. This is presented in order to link the assumed connectivity of the medieval Mediterranean to the perception of Sardinia’s historical particularity. It is on this epitome that I address key points of historical interpretation and review the controversies of medieval Sardinia, focusing on the independent Sardinian kingdoms – that is to say, the giudicati of the eleventh to the thirteenth centuries. As such, the discussion presented here will introduce the need for further, more robust research on the Sardinian social orders during the central Middle Ages