Forme di mobilità nello spazio mediterraneo: nuove prospettive metodologiche (XV-XX secolo)

Abstract

The Mediterranean Studies have paid significant attention to the theme of mobility. In particular, dynamics of connections and disconnections among the areas bordering on it have often defined the Mediterranean space itself. In this context, specific historiographical trends and the so-called new Mediterranean Studies have combined well-established interests – such as diasporas and religiosity –with an innovative gaze on the role of groups and individuals considered marginal, as well as in the circulation of objects, knowledge, and ecological elements. This introduction draws upon the notion of an expanded Mediterranean that includes the Atlantic, and presents the four contributions hosted in this thematic issue. The case studies under examination analyse the mobility of Albanians and Roma in the Kingdom of Naples between the 15th and 17th centuries; the circulation of material culture objects associated with Afro-Canarian women and the ambiguous identity of Anna/Hiemma in Rome and Algiers in the 16th century; the popularity of eucalyptus between Italy and French Algeria in the 19th century.