Gli ebrei in Italia meridionale nell’epistolario di Gregorio Magno

The Jews in Southern Italy in the Epistles of Gregory the Great The Registrum of Pope Gregory the Great is a primary source for the history of the Jewish presence in the Mediterranean, including different local contexts in Southern Italy in the early Middle Ages. As is known, 28 of the 857 existing pontifical letters contain references to individual Jews or Jewish communities active in various regions of the Mediterranean world, mainly in the important cities of Southern Italy, Sicily, and Sardinia. A careful consideration of the evolution of the conflict between the Byzantines and the Lombards can contribute to the understanding of the birth and purpose of certain measures undertaken by Gregory against Jews in Southern Italy. At the same time, it clarifies the relationship between the “Gregorian theory” relating to the Jews and the administrative practice of his pontificate.