The Muslim Colony of Luceria Sarracenorum (Lucera) – by Mario Cassar | Papers by Mario

1 2 3 The Muslim Colony of Luceria Sarracenorum (Lucera) – life and dispersion as outlined by onomastic evidence Giuseppe Staccioli Former researcher at the Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (Italy) e-mail address: giuseppestaccioli@libero.it and Mario Cassar, B.Ed. (Hons), M.A. Lecturer, Department of Maltese, University of Malta Junior College, Malta e-mail address: mario.cassar@um.edu.mt Abstract: The life and dispersion of Lucerine Muslims in Apulia (c.1220–1300) are examined from the onomastic point of view. Many Muslim names are recorded in Latinscripted official documents. These do not differ greatly from those reported by Salvatore Cusa and those found in the Maltese Militia List of 1419/20. Some Lucerine names present several variants which can be used as ‘markers’ to locate the presence of Muslims after their dispersion. The diffusion of modern surnames related to these markers confirms reports in Angevin documents, namely that the cities of Naples and Barletta were the main centres for the subsequent relocation of Muslims. However, large concentrations of these surnames are to be found also in the regions of Latium and the Marches. Keywords: Muslims of Lucera, Celano exiles, Frederick II, Malta, Arab nomenclature, surnames. Formation and dismantling of the Muslim settlement of Luceria Sarracenorum In the 1220’s Frederick II, for the purpose of eradicating political and social upheaval in Sicily and of creating an economic and military station in Apulia, began to transfer part of the Muslim population of Sicily (ca. 15,000–20,000 people) to Lucera, a city located in the Capitanata, the northern corner of Apulia.1 According to Riccardo di S. Germano,2 the places in Sicily drained by the transfer of Muslim deportees were later occupied by families from Celano, city of Abruzzo, whose population had revolted, bravely but unsuccessfully, against Frederick II.3 Further Muslim populations came to Lucera from another area of the reign; in 1249, according to Ibn Khaldūn, the emperor decided to expel the Muslims of Malta, and some of them were also deported to Lucera. However, Muslim resistance in Sicily seems to have been obliterated altogether by 1246;4 presumably, Ibn Khaldūn was actually giving a partially accurate description of the events of 1224, when Frederick II was effectively in Sicily and crushed the Sicilian Muslims.5 1 Julie Taylor, Muslims in Medieval Italy: the Colony at Lucera, Lanham, USA, 2003, p. 37. Lucera is now a commune in the province of Foggia. 2 Riccardo di San Germano, Chronica, Bologna, 1937, pp. 112--3. 3 Celano is now a locality in the province of L’Aquila. 4 The final known deportation to Lucera was carried out in 1246 following a new Muslim uprising in Entella. Cf. Taylor, p. 12. 5 Anthony T. Luttrell, (ed.), Medieval Malta: Studies on Malta before the Knights, The British School at Rome, London, 1975, pp. 37–8. Another source, still, seems to believe this event occurred as late as 1271, as at this date Muslims were allowed to hold land in exchange for the payment of an annual tribute. Cf. Taylor, p. 77. 4 From the bureaucratic point of view Muslims were considered as servi fisci or servi camerae, depending directly on the Crown and therefore protected as subjects of the king 6. Severe restrictions were not applied to Lucerines since they were allowed to travel and work outside the city, as verified in 1302 by the toponym Ulmen Zamarra, rather far away from Lucera, and as hinted by the practice of living in Foggia and nearby Stornara, as well as other villages around Lucera 7. The majority worked as farmers, cultivating wheat and barley, or as breeders of sheep, cows, goats, chickens, horses, and pigs, and, from 1239, of wild and exotic animals such as leopards and camels.8 Others worked as artisans and craftsmen (smiths, carpenters, tentmakers, tailors, bowmakers, saddlemakers, etc.), merchants, moneychangers, and civil servants. The Muslim Lucerines were also obliged by the Crown to participate in the ongoing war effort, generally as cavalrymen and archers. They were employed both on the Italian mainland and abroad, for instance, in Romania and Albania 9. For running internal affairs and resolving conflicts among its members, the community chose its town judges or qadis (< al-qādī, translated in Latin or Italian as Alchadius or Archadio). Other leaders in the community were the qā’id or chieftain, transformed in Italian as Caito and Gaieto; the faqīh or jurist, converted, according to Egidi, into Fichino or Fachino; and the šayh or elder, transformed, according to Pellegrini, into Sceca10 and, within the Sicilian Jewish communities, according to Bresc, into Sico.11 The relative proximity to Rome instigated several missionary campaigns for Muslim conversions in 1236 and in the 1290’s, carried out by mendicant preaching Orders. The Muslims, unwisely, chose to support Conradin during the Hohenstaufen struggle with the Angevins, precipitating a definite deterioration in their status after their rebellion in 1268 and their surrendering in 1269. In order to discourage revolutionary activities, Lucera was watched over by a castle whose date of erection, however, is unknown. The present castle surely dates from the Angevin period and functioned as a prison as well as a depository for armour and weaponry. The very cause of the annihilation of Luceria Sarracenorum is much debated. According to Taylor, Charles II’s true motive was to make money by selling the inhabitants of the city into slavery, and hence finance the war in Sicily. He justified his decision in religious terms, arguing that the Muslims posed a threat to the spiritual well-being of Christians. Lucera was captured by Angevin troops on 15 August 1300, the day of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary.12 In spite of many setbacks and difficulties, the Muslims strove to preserve their own identity, language, culture, and religious practices. The desire to uphold Muslim traditions is evidenced in the retention of traditional Muslim names, despite indications that some Christian names gradually began to be taken on. Collection of Muslim names from extant documents13 Muslim documents, namely those compiled in Arabic, if any, were not preserved; so, Islamic names are only found in Latin administrative records. The only document containing some Arabic words is an act found in the Archivio Cavense of S.S. Trinità, compiled for the repossession of the Church of S. Giacomo, located at Burganu, by the Abbey of Cava dei Tirreni in 1284. Among the signatures one finds those of Abū ‘Abd Allāh ibn Sayyd, Solimā al-Bāris, 6 7 Taylor, pp. 51 and 67. Ibid., p. 42. 8 Within this context, links with surnames Leopardi and Camilleri are indeed very alluring. 9 For Romania cf. R. Filangieri (ed.), Registri della Cancelleria Angioina, Vol. 10, Reg. 48, No. 230, Naples, 1950, p. 62. For Albania cf. ibid., No. 228, p. 61. 10 Giovan Battista Pellegrini, Arabismi nelle lingue neolatine, Brescia, 1972, p. 387. 11 Henri Bresc, Arabi per lingua ebrei per religione, Messina, 2001, p. 250. 12 The city was hence renamed Civitas Sanctae Mariae, until the end of the reign of Joanna II (1414–1435). Cf. Taylor, p. 192. 13 Most names derive from P. Egidi, Codice diplomatico dei Saraceni di Lucera, Naples, 1917. Other sources, including Taylor, op. cit., are cited within the text. 5 and Al-Māsir ibn Hasan as witnesses, along with two lines written in Arabic, which constitute the only Arabic script reminiscent of Lucerine Muslims.14 The most important Latin documents are those collected by Egidi. 15 These documents concern, however, the final years of the colony and the period immediately following its dissolution, including the selling of Muslim slaves and their movements through the kingdom. Further documents were recently catalogued and published by Petrucci in the 1990’s; they concern records rather close to the Muslim age of Lucera16. Other researchers have reinterpreted the history of Lucera Sarracenorum (Julie Taylor, 2003) or some aspect of it (Abulafia, 1998).17 Other fragments of information can be derived from old publications about Lucera such as that of Del Preite (1690).18 The following is a list of Saracenic names recorded at Lucera (arranged alphabetically according to their notarial attestations). The entries in bold type, when applicable, suggest the original Arabic names. Abdale; Abdel; Abdella; Abdula: ‘abd Allāh or ‘abd al-a’lā ‘servant of Allah’. Cp. Maltese surname Abdilla. Abdebius or Agegius: hağğāğ ‘pilgrim’, ‘performer of the hadj (to Mecca)’. Abdelasis Benfitihen (ibn Fityān, recorded by Cusa); Adelagisius Argentarius; Adelasia; Adelasis Guinisi; Abdelagius Forruin (presumably farrūğ ‘fowl’); Adelagisius Testor; Adelasa uxor Salomonis; Adelasius Abdelagege (hağğāğ ‘pilgrim’); Adelasius; Adelasisius Simisii (šāmī ? ‘Syrian’); Adelasisius cognatus Maymuni (Maymūn ‘fortunate’): ‘abd al-‘azīz ‘servant of the precious’. Abderamus Bisimy (Abū šāma ? ‘birth mark’, ‘mole’); Aderraman Fortetti (fartītū ‘butterfly’); Abderramen Symy (šāmī ? ‘Syrian’): ‘abd rāhmān ‘servant of the most gracious’. Abraam; Abraha; Abraham; Abram; Abraòe; Braam Helcadi (al-qādī ‘chief’, ‘judge’); Braha; Habraam; Habraha; Habron: Abraham, modification of Ibrāhīm. Absalem Sata (sa’āda ‘happiness’); Adasalem: ‘abd salām ‘servant of peace’. Abū Qara (Taylor, p. 112): Abū Qara (Syrian and Egyptian small towns). Abū Sa’id (Taylor, p. 115): Abū Sa‘īd ‘happy’. Cp. Maltese surname Said. Achamet de Agege (hağğāğ ‘pilgrim’); Achemet; Amette Succari (sukkār ‘maker or vendor of sugar’); Amida Tendarius; Amidius filius Iannini Bisciani (Abū šāma ? ‘birth mark’, ‘mole’): Ahmad ‘the most praised’. Achsen: Hasan ‘good’, ‘handsome’. Adamuel Sarragi (sarrāğ ‘saddler’): ‘abd al-mawlā ‘lord’, ‘chieftain’. Cp. Maltese surname Mula. Addet: haddād ‘smith’. Adiequius; Agegius; Ageius; Ageta; Algesius; Sigius; Agegius filius Riccardi Maltesii; Aqueque; Hagege; Hasex Iuvii: hağğāğ ‘pilgrim’. Adragoman; Adrahmen; Adraguman Zerredi (Arabic root z-r-d ? ‘glutton’): al-turğumān ‘translator’. Agumectus pater Lye (‘Ālī pre-Islamic name): Ahmad (with Latin desinence). 14 15 Egidi, p. xiv. P. Egidi, ‘La colonia saracena di Lucera e la sua distruzione’, Archivio Storico per le Province Napoletane, Vols. 36-9, Naples, 1912. 16 Armando Petrucci, I più antichi documenti originali del Comune di Lucera (1232--1496), Vol. 33, Castellana Grotte, 1994. 17 David Abulafia, La caduta di Luceria Sarracenorum, Rome, 1998. 18 Rocco Del Preite, ‘Breve Descrittione della città di Lucera di S. Maria prima detta Luceria’ (Lucera, 1690). The manuscript, housed at the Biblioteca Comunale di Lucera, was published in book form: Rocco Del Preite, Breve descrittione della città di Lucera di S. Maria prima detta Luceria, Giuseppe Trincucci and Michele Conte (eds), Lucera, 2005. 6 Alamanna uxor Maltesii: al-amanah ‘loyalty’ (or < Alamanno, ‘German’). Albiasus or Abdrasus: pobably ‘abd ‘servant’ + ra’s ‘head’. Alchadedus: haddād ‘blacksmith’. Alchaydus; Helcaydus; Archaydi: al-qā’id ‘chieftain’. Alfia soror Lye (‘Alī pre-Islamic name): alfyyah? ‘ one thousand’. Ali Babusi (babuš ‘snail’); Ali Binicar (ibn + unknown name); Aly; Haly: ‘Alī (pre-Islamic name ‘lofty’, ‘sublime’). Amir Sturnara (Stornara, a locality between Foggia and Cerignola): ‘āmir ‘prosperous’. Amorosius filius Samoroni Muracar; Amur: ‘Umar, a pre-Islamic name of uncertain origin, perhaps < ‘āmir ‘prosperous’, ‘substantial’ (The root word ‘umr means ‘life’). Andreas Corbit: Latin? Angchi: unexplained. Ansesenius: hağğāğ ? ‘pilgrim’ (with excrescent ‘n’). Arrabitus: ‘arabī ‘Arab’ (with Latin suffix). Atinus filius Yachie (Yahyā, ‘John’) Capabu: Latin? Ayme Dalilee (dalīl ? ‘guide’); Ayme de Sara: unexplained. Aysuna filia Adraguman Zerredi (Arabic root z-r-d ? ‘glutton’); Aysa filia Salomonis; Ausa: ‘ayša ‘life’. Augnita filia Septima: Latin? Azalem filius Mulfictoy (Umm al-futūh ‘victories’): al-salām ‘peace’. Babusus Taliaferrus: babūš ‘snail’. Baldassem filius Babusi (babuš ‘snail’); Baltassen: ‘abd al-Hasan ‘servant of the good’, ‘handsome’. Balitus: wālī ? ‘governor’. Bartha or Barcha: Abraham, modification of Ibrāhīm. Batherius or Buckerius or Bucherius; Bathemus: Abū’l-hayr ‘goodness’ or Abū Bakr ‘young camel’. Balcasam; Balagasse filius Alchadedi (haddād ‘blacksmith’); Baltassem filius Babusi (babūš ‘snail’); Belcasem Cherem (karīm ‘noble’ or karrām ‘vine-dresser’); Belcasem Cutya or Cuya; Bulcasem Gaytus (qā’id ‘chief’); Bulchasem Dybane; Bulgassem: Abū al-qāsim ‘divider’. Belfettus filius Alchadedi (al-haddād ‘smith’); Belfictone filius Alchadedi (al-haddād ‘smith’): abū’l-fath ‘victory’. Benacan: ibn hakīm or ibn hākim ‘wise’or ‘judge’. Benaveth: ibn ‘Abbad ‘devoted servant’. Benbuscheuky de Luceria: ibn Abū šawqī ? ‘nostalgia’. Benculcuchius: ibn + unexplained name. Boabdilla Indulti or Indulscie (andalusī ‘Andalusian’): Abū abd Allāh ‘servant of Allah’. Bocquerie Ferquie (farah ‘joy’); Bucherius Tinctor: Abū hayr ‘goodness’. Bulfaracius Carricatus; Bulfaracius Sfringi: Abū al-farağ ‘remedy’, ‘comfort’. Bulfuctoy filius Maltesii: Abū al-futūh ‘victories’. 7 Cadigia: Hadīğah (Islamic name). Cafaro Roberto [from Malta] (Taylor, p.101): kāfir ‘infidel’or haffār ‘engraver’, ‘digger’. Cammise Thamis Nebi (nabī ‘prophet’); Camusa Babusi (babuš ‘snail’); Chamis; Hamisi Schirifi (šarīf ‘noble’): kamīš ? ‘industrious’. Caraba uxor Ulmen (Utman ? Islamic name) Zamarra: qarāba ‘belly bottle’. Caravan socrus Machamugi (Mahmmūd ‘Mohammed’): Kayrawān ? (city of Tunisia) or kār(ū)wān ‘caravan’. Cp. Maltese surname Caruana. Casayra uxor Lye Armosi: qusayrah ? < qasr ‘castle’. Case Sarau; Causa filia Babusi (babuš ‘snail’): Latin? Cayra: hayrah ‘good’. Cibele (Zibele) filius Agegi (hağğāğ ‘pilgrim’): ğabal ? ‘mountain’. Dallesius Maltesius: dalīl ? ‘guide’. Damulusus filius Babusi (babūš ‘snail’): unexplained. Damurrisium filius Samuruni (samrah ‘brown’, ‘dark’): dammūs ra’īs ‘vault’. Damusius filius Maymuni (maymūn ‘fortunate’) Ammirat ( amīr ‘chief’): dammūs ‘vault’. Delosvi Maltese Garufe (qarūf ‘rebel’): unexplained. Donadeus (Taylor, p.101): calque of hibat Allāh? Dulaysa uxor Amidalille (amīn dalīl ‘loyal’ + ‘guide’): Arabic root d-l-s ? ‘little cheat’. Ebutu Caffesu (qafīz ‘a measure for grains’):‘Abbad ? (Islamic name). Elia filius Mactie; Elyas; Elias Augnoti; Haly; Helie; Aly; Elyas; Lya Annop (an-nabī ? ‘prophet’); Lya filius Maltesii, Lya nepos Babusi (babuš ‘snail’): ‘Alī ? ‘lofty’, ‘sublime’. Fatuma; Fatuma mater Salomonis; Fatuma cognata Salomonis; Fatuma uxor Adelasi (‘abd al-‘azīz ‘servant of the beloved’): Fātima (pre-Islamic name). Fertay, Muslim notary (Taylor, p. 85): fartās ? ‘bald’. Fichterius: akin to Belfictone? Floria: Latin. Folimon (corruption of Solimon): Sulaymān ‘Solomon’. Fortunna: Latin. Franzonus: Latin. Gayeto Madio (mahdī ? ‘well directed’); Gaytanus; Gayetanus: al-qā’id ‘chieftain’. Garufa; Garuffa filia Dulayse; Garufa uxor Maymuni Ammirat (amīr ‘leader’): qarūf ‘rebel’. Grassa Sicula: Latin (or Italian). Gunia: Arabic root ġ-n-n ? ‘rich person’ or ‘singer’. Guideus: Latin. Hamar: hammār ‘vine-seller’ or ‘Umar ‘prosperous’. 8 Itctar Array: unexplained. Iacynfus quondam Ulmen (‘Umar ? ‘prosperous’): Latin ? ‘hyacinth’? Ianninus Biscianus: Latin. Iohannes olim Marzuccus (marzūq ‘fortunate’);Iohannes Christianus olim Sarracenus fisicus (1308) alias Giovanni Moro: Latin ‘John’. Iosep; Iosep Spatarius; Ioseph; Iuffius; Iusuf Fare (or Furce farğ ? ‘comfort’); Iussius; Iusufus; Iussufus; Iusufus filius Ulmen (‘Umar ? ‘prosperous’) Zamarran (zammara ? ‘fife’, ‘pipe’): Yūsuf ‘Joseph’. Kayra mulier: hayrah ‘good’. Lachassey; Lahassen; Lasehen; Lazey; Laxen; Elason: al-hasan ‘handsome’. Lamuto: al-Hammūd ‘much praising’. Liwan (Taylor, p. 146): lawn ? ‘colour’. Macciocta sarracenus; Maccioctus campsor: Latin? Machadem Achadet (haddād ? ‘smith’): muqaddim ‘administrator’. Machatus; Machetus; Machocus: perhaps < mahdī ‘well-directed’, otherwise unexplained. Macometus: Muhammad ‘Mohammed’. Madius Gaytus; Mahdi Mathia (Taylor, p. 86): mahdī ‘well-directed’. Maffia de Luceria olim Zaraffa (zarāfa ‘giraffe’): Italian Mattia? Maltesius Sellarius; Maltisius [of Capitanata] (Taylor p. 101): Latin. Marcus de magister Madio (mahdī ‘well directed’), notary: Latin. Maria olim Ayia (hayāh ‘life’); Maria mulier sarracena; Maria sarracena: < Maryam or Māria. Marczuccus filius Mactiae; Marzuc Buntura; Marzuccus Modi (mahdī ‘well-directed’); Marzucca mater Salamonis; Marzuccus Multucabes (‘Abbās ‘stern’, ‘austere’) Marzucchus; Marzuccus filius Mulfictoy (Umm al-futūh ‘victories’): Marzūq ‘fortunate’. Maymonus Bahalat; Maymonus Ammirat (amīr ‘leader’); Memuno Lemudi (al-Hammūd ‘much praising’): Maymūn ‘fortunate’. Maymurca: deformation of Mulcayra? Mulfoctoy: Umm al-futūh ‘victories’. Mercat (Morcat) Zeleme (salām ‘peace’): marqad ‘sheepfold’. Mulcayra mater Adelasis argenteri; Mulgayra uxor Salomonis Gazel (ġazāl ‘gazelle’); Mulgayra filia Helie (‘Alī ? ‘lofty’): Umm al-hayrah ‘good’. Muracar: deformation of Mulcayr(a)? Moyse filius Florie; Musa Accubati (al-quba ‘dome’); Musa magister tendarius; Musa miles saracenus; Musa filius Samoroni (samrah ‘brown’, ‘dark’): Mūsā, ‘Moses’. Mussuda mater Helie (‘Alī ? ‘lofty’): mus’ūdah ‘happy’. Musagutus (voiced form of mas’ūd with Latin desinence): mas’ūd ‘happy’. Muta: mut’ah ‘pleasure’. Nachassar; Nahasser; Nohasser: Nāsir ‘supporter’, ‘helper’. 9 Negius magister tendarius: Nağā ‘salvation’ or nağğār ‘joiner’. Occhimen or Hosmen Notarius; Oseyne filius Elie (‘Alī ?): ’Utmān or Husayn. Palemus de Sarracena ; Paolino da Malta (Taylor, p. 102): Latin and Italian. Petrus Abraam (Ibrāhīm): Latin. Quosme Marzocchi (Marzūq ‘fortunate’): deformation of Cusman. Ricardus Maltensis; Riccardus Agegi (hağğāğ ‘pilgrim’); Riccardus Budinus; Riccardus Gaytus (al-qā’id ‘chieftain’); Riccardus miles; Riccardus sarracinus : < Gmc Rikhard, < ric + hard. Sadona filia Maymuni; Sadone uxor Marzucchi; Saduna; Sadona; Sadora: sa’āda (+ suffix -un or -on) ‘happiness’. Saduccus: sadūq ‘sincere’. Sala miles saracinus: Hebrew? Salam filius Ninabet (ibn ‘Abbad ?) ; Salem de Gesi; Salem Fasect; Salem Garrusi (‘arūs ‘husband’); Salem; Salem Garruyno; Salem Intrabet; Salem Maculgen; Salem Torchi (‘Turkish’?); Salem Leopardarius: salām ‘peace’. Sammatorus Brussah; Samura; Samurunus murator: samrah ‘brown’, ‘dark’. Sari or Siri Bucherius (Abū hayr ‘good’): sarrī ? ‘secret’. Cp. Maltese surname Scerri/Xerri. Sarracenus: šarqī ‘oriental’, ‘easterner’. Saxda mater Mulfuctoy (Umm al-futūh ‘victories’): sa’ādah ‘happiness’. Seccalbia uxor Mulfuctoy (Umm al-futūh ? ‘victories’); Secceda; Seccelasus mulier sarracena; Seccelcolla uxor Adraguman (al-turğumān ‘translator’); Seccelmilca filia Adraguman Zerredi; Seccue mater Adraguman; Secculrafum: šayh ? ‘old man’, or better sitt ‘lady’. Secten uxor Bisciani; Septelgoy uxor Guidei; Septellumen; Septelmulta uxor Andree; Septuardi filia Mulfuctoy; Septima; Septuday filia Guidei; Septum; Serecul mater Marzuccu Multucabes; Socteca Salomon: sitt ‘lady’. Solimen Sursi; Solimen Ziet (zayyāt ‘oil seller’); Solomon; Solomonus Gazel; Sulimen; Sulimen Mudia (mahdī ? ‘well directed’);Sulmen; Sulimen filius Agegii (hağğāğ ‘pilgrim’); Salimene Simfi; Sulmen; Salomon Garufe (qarūf ‘rebel’); Sulayman; Salamonus: Sulaymān ‘Salomon’. Sicobutterius: šayh ‘old man’. Sidona cognatus Mascalis: Greek. Simon Balistarius: Latin. Symegius: Simağ ‘ugly’. Thebit Gave: Tābit ‘resistent’. Tonino Saraceno (šarqī ‘oriental’): Italian. Ulmen Zamarre (zammara ? ‘fife’, ‘pipe’):‘Utman ? (pre-Islamic name). Utman notarius: ‘Utman (pre-Islamic name). Yachie filius Belfictoy (Abū al-futūh ‘victories’); Yachie Capabu (habb ‘seed’ or ‘love’); Yaya; Yaye Ayme; Yaye Iannem; Yaye Cassisius (hağğāğ ‘pilgrim’): Yahya ‘John’. Zainarda uxor Salamonis Sulaymān ‘Salomon’): unknown etymolgy. Zaraffa soror Maymuni (Maymūn ‘fortunate’): zarāfa ‘giraffe’. Cp. Maltese surname Zerafa. Zarza filia Guidei: Hebrew? Zaynin uxor Samuruni (samrah ‘brown’): zayn ‘beauty’. 10 Zelem Beremerese or Bementesse: salām ‘peace’. Zirde filius Phebit (Tābit ‘resistent’): modification of Zerredi? Zuffarus Umari (‘Umar ‘prosperous’?) or Zuffan Uman (‘Umar ‘prosperous’?): Ğafar ‘merciful’, ‘forgiving’. Zuffi Benne (bannah ‘mason’): sūfī ? ‘wool’ or ‘Sufic’. Zurafa; Zurafa filia Aymet (Ahmad ? ‘the most praised’); Zuraffa filia Babusi (babuš ‘snail’); Zuraffa filia Dulayse (Arabic root d-l-s ? ‘little cheat’): zarāfa ‘giraffe’. Examination of documented names The collected names, except for some clusters containing variants derived from the same Arabic name, are listed alphabetically in the table above. The reported names are seldom easily recognizable. As a rule, they have been so much altered as to render, in some cases, the identification of the original Arabic lexical element impossible. The variety of forms depends not only on the whims and idiosyncrasies of different scribes and notaries, but, presumably, on the different pronunciations within the Muslim community itself. The influence of external languages on the Arabic names increases progressively in time and examples of double-barrelled names containing a non-Arabic element becomes very frequent in later periods. Muslim names are divided in almost equal numbers between single names and double names. The first element is usually an Arabic name, while the second element (in Arabic or some other language) suggests a patronymic, a trade, a rank within the community, or a provenance. Sometimes the name is downright impenetrable in both structure and meaning. The incidence of variants within the cluster of names corresponding to an original Arabic name is rather frequent and sometimes exceeds ten units. The differences among the variants are sometimes minimal, presumably due to a misunderstanding on the part of the scribe; otherwise, it is evident that the scribe intentionally concocted a variation. All the names evidently belong to Muslims, as each name is followed and certified by the tag Sarracenus or Sarracena, appended by discerning notaries. The numerous guttural sounds of Arabic are difficult to transliterate in Latin or Italian, so that names exhibiting such letters present numerous variants, for instance, Ahmad and hağğāğ. A significant source of variants is the phonetic closeness or assonance of some personal names, both in Arabic and in Latin, easily explained by their common biblical origin. The first couple is Ibrāhīm and Abraham, which produced several variants. Another couple is Sulaymān and Salomon, which is also quite copious. Further couples are Yahyā and Johannes (‘John’) and, to a lesser degree, Yūsuf and Joseph. A couple formed on the basis of assonance is ‘Alī and Elias, which are by no means cognate forms. The semantic scrutiny of these names (both the single names and the double names) should throw further light upon the Muslim society of Lucera. However, the names at our disposal cannot be considered representative of all the names of the colony. The notary names represent only those community members which had frequent intercourse with the Angevin authorities, and hence pertained to the higher echelons of society. Sidestepping this shortcoming, the examination of the meanings can be summarized as follows: Several names evidence the social position of the person concerned; for instance, Braam Helcadi (Ibrāhīm al-qādī) signals a Muslim which held a top-ranking position within the community. Similar positions were held by the persons with the names containing the term qā’id, such as Bulcasem Gaytus, Madius Gaytus, Riccardus Gaytus, and Gaytanus; and those containing the term amīr, like Amir Sturnara. A vital role within the workings of communication was surely played by the interpreter, who is represented by the turğumān; for instance, the Muslims Adragoman, Adraguman Zerredi, and Adrahmen. Surprisingly, among these names we do not find any reference to other authority figures typical of Muslim society, namely Sciorti or Sciortino (< šurtī ‘constable’, ‘sentinel’), Wālī (‘governor’), Mulè (< mawlā ‘lord’), Murabito (murābit ‘monk-warrior’), Hakim (‘judge’ or ‘scholar’), etc. 11 Inklings of everyday activity are revealed by the second element of some double names; for instance, Adamuel Sarragi, who earned his living as a saddler; Machadem Achadet and Addet, who were evidently smiths; Negius Magister Tendarius, a joiner; and Zuffi Benne, a mason. Other activities are described in numerous second names expressed in Latin such as Notarius, Tinctor, Taliaferrus, Argentarius, Tendarius, and several Miles and Balistarius and even Camillarius and Leopardarius. Other names suggest signs of religious friction and perhaps hint at some degree of dissidence. Such cues can be deduced from the names Nebi (< nabī ‘prophet’) and Madius (< mahdī ‘well directed’), usually names with revolutionary resonances. The widespread names Garufa and Garufe (< qarūf ‘rebel’, according to Pellegrini) also reek of incitement. There are two clusters of names, grouped according to mere assonance, which are rather difficult to explain. One is characterised by names apparently containing the first element secca, secce, or seccu, followed by a second element which is often obscure. The immediate interpretation of secc should be šayh (‘old man’); however, such names are not frequent within Arabic nomenclature. The study of Jewish communities in Sicily reveals that there were Prothus (Proto) and Sichus (Sico), among their charges, the latter derived from the Arabic šayh 19 . If the terms are comparable, this occurrence could suggest the presence of Jews among the Muslim community. The second cluster of names is bound by a vague recollection of the Latin word septem (‘seven’) by the elements Sect or Sept. Also in this case, the Arabic names do not supply any clear information, while the names of medieval Sicilian Jews might provide some sort of hypothesis. From Bresc one picks the name Sittillimen (< sitt al-īmān ‘lady of prosperity’) which can easily be compared with Septelumen, probably altered, through popular etymology, to lumen (‘light’). Other names containing sitt (‘lady’) can be recovered from Simonsohn20, who assiduously assembled the Jewish names of Sicily. In the period 383–1300, one encounters the terms sitt al-dār (‘lady of the house’), sitt al-husn (‘lady of beauty’), Sictibineti (< sitt al-banāt ‘lady of the girls’), Sittāt (‘ladies’?), Sittachu, Sictuta, Sytti (< sitt), and Syttinesi (< sitt annisāh? ‘lady of the women’). All show some vague similarity with the Lucerine names of the cluster under examination. The word sitt (‘lady’) seems congruous as it agrees with the feminine gender of these names, specified by notaries, for instance, by the Latin words uxor (‘wife’), filia (‘daughter’), mater (‘mother’), etc. This inference could be applied to the previous cluster of names containing the terms secca, secce, or seccu, as most names prove to be feminine and, at least two of them, could be explained with the word sitt ‘lady’. In particular, Seccelcolla could be derived from sitt al-kull (‘the prettiest women in the world’) and Seccelmilca (< sitt al-milk ‘lady of means’ or ‘queen’?). Due to these suggestions, the term šayh can be only assigned with certainty to the name Sicobutterius. The comparison between Muslim names present in Sicilian documents dating from the Norman period and those appearing under subsequent regimes, gathered by Cusa,21 indicates that the most frequently used names in Lucera are basically the same as their Sicilian counterparts. However, the less frequently used names depict a Lucerine society tellingly different from that of Sicily. Significant discrepancies are notable not only due to the presence of the name Mahdi, but also due to the lack of the most common trade names such as harīrī (‘silk weaver’ or ‘silk merchant’), hayyāt (‘tailor’), and tahhān (‘miller’). The occurrence of multilingual names in Lucera can be explained by the external influence and pacific interaction with other ethnic and religious denominations. However, such names can also be found in Cusa, which lists names containing ‘Isa ‘Jesus’, figureheads of the Christian Church like qasīs, qīss (‘priest’), šammās (‘deacon’), as well as names with biblical allusions, for instance Gethsemane22. The extraneous names commonly accepted in Lucera such as Riccardo, Roberto, and Andreas differ from those provided by Cusa, who, on his part, records 19 Bresc, p. 250. Shlomo Simonsohn, The Jews in Sicily: Vol 1 383–1300, Leiden, 1997, passim. 21 Salvatore Cusa, I diplomi greci ed arabi di Sicilia, Palermo, 1868-82. 22 Cusa, p. 604. 20 12 William, Leo, and Martin. Most of these non-Arabic names were often borne by high-ranking people involved in political or economic activities. Another divergence from the Cusa names is the relatively small quantity of provenance names, other than those emanating from Malta. Muslims of Maltese extraction are, in fact, regularly tagged by epithets such as Maltensis, Maltesii, Maltese, Maltesius/Maltisius, and da Malta, while their wives and children are specified by the terms uxor Maltesii and filius Maltesii. This singling out seems to suggest that the Maltese exiles in Lucera enjoyed, if not some privileged status, at least, a good reputation. Some names could also be attributed to the Jewish community which was flourishing in Apulia in these years, for instance Sadducco from Trani. Noteworthy is the Latin name Donadeus which can be explained as a calque of the Arabic hibat Allāh (‘gift of God’), a name used in the Middle Ages even among the Sicilian Jews and at present found in Sicily as Bittalà and Pittalà.23 Examination of names according to the classical Arabic nomenclature24 The kunyah is the first part of the Arabic denomination which corresponds to a name compound with the words Abū (‘father’) or Umm (‘mother’) with a secondary meaning of ‘holder’ or ‘possessor’. Belonging to this denomination are the names Bulcassem, Bulgassem, Bucherius, Bocquerie, Boabdilla, Bulfaracius, etc. The ism alan is the proper Arabic name corresponding to simple pre-Islamic names, Islamic names, and theophoric names. Lucerine names corresponding to these characteristics are Achemet, Amette, Achsan, Alì, Abdilla, Abdelasis, Abdelrachmen, Absalem, etc. The nasab, the patronymic (or matronymic) element of the Arabic denomination, incorporating the element ibn meaning ‘son of’, is little represented in Lucerine names other than Benaveth, Benbuascheuky, and, perhaps, Benacam. The nisba is an adjective denoting a provenance, an occupation, or a personal characteristic. Lucerine names containing nisbas as the second element of double names include Sarragi, Helcadi, and Alchadedi. However, it is not always distinguishable; other nisbas are translated in Latin, for instance Tendarius, Taliaferrus, and Spatarius, etc. This distribution does not correspond with the names recorded by Cusa which depict a Sicilian society, whose nomenclature reflects various provenances within the Arabic world (Maghrib, Malta, Gozo, Libya, the Tunisian islands, etc.) and an extensive series of occupations, from the harīrī to the ‘muezzin’. A comparison with actual Arabic names in South-Western Sicily Although significant time has since elapsed and names have evolved and changed, one can attempt a comparison of Lucerine names with current Italian surnames of Arabic origin extant in the provinces of Agrigento and Trapani. The list of shared names is rather short and includes Alì, Buccheri, Caito, Garufi, Garufo, Gibella, Mossuto, Nasser, Rabita, Salam, Salemi, Vadalà, and Zirafa. From a morphological point of view, the Sicilian names occasionally exhibit major changes, e.g. Vadalà with respect to Abdella. Sometimes the Sicilian names are closer to the original Arabic names, perhaps due to changes employed by scribes and notaries: Caito versus Gayetus, Salam versus Salemme, and Musagutus versus Mossuto. Comparison with the Arabic names in the Maltese Militia List of 1419/20 The Maltese Militia List of 1419/20 was compiled more than a century after the fall of Lucera. The names common to both places are the following: Brahimi, Cadide, Cagege, Caruana, Cussam (Hasan?), Garuf, Gazeli, Mahumudi, Samud, and Zurafe.25 The Maltese list is important because the Arabic names intimate a society involved in agriculture and the breeding of animals, 23 24 Simonsohn, p. 142. For a comprehensive overview of Arabic nomenclature cf. Encyclopaedia of Islam, Vol. IV, E.J. Brill, Leiden, 1978, sub ‘ism’. 25 Cf. Godfrey Wettinger, ‘The Militia List of 1419–20’, Melita Historica, Vol. 5, No. 2, Malta, 1969, pp. 80-106. The original document, ‘Quaderni Diversi, No. 3’, is housed at the Mdina Cathedral Museum (Malta). 13 an activity similarly present in Lucerine society, but practically ignored in the names collected in official documents. The presence of Maltese Muslim families in Lucera According to Luttrell, beyond doubt, the Maltese Muslims were banished from the island in the first half of the 13th century, but the exact date is hard to pin down. Ibn Khaldūn places the event after 1249, although the king never went to Malta and died in 1250. It is generally thought that Ibn Khaldūn actually described the events of 1224 when Frederick was surely in Sicily.26 Kantorowicz considers the expulsion of at least some Muslims from Malta and the compensatory installation of Christian families from Celano quite reasonable, as it is exactly analogous to what happened in Sicily.27 Evidence of the Maltese exiles in Lucera is unfortunately scarce. It is simply known that a certain Riccardus Malthesii, one of the five milites of the Saracens of Lucera, accepted baptism there as late as the year 1300.28 From reading Egidi and Taylor, other names suggesting apparent Maltese provenance can be recovered. In particular, Maltesius Sellarius, Bulfuctoy filius Maltesii, Dallesius Maltesius, Delosvi Maltese filius Garufe, and perhaps Cafaro Roberto from Malta29, Donadeus30, Maltisius of Capitanata31, Paolino da Malta32, in addition to the aforementioned Riccardus Maltesius, a cavalryman from Lucera, renamed Philippo de Luceria after his conversion in 1300. From the scanty information at hand, Taylor suggests that the exotic animals present in Lucera, namely camels and leopards, were breeded by Maltese farmers; this specific activity could be supported by the high incidence of surname Camilleri, still present in Malta, where it now ranks as the second commonest family name. The surname Leopardi too could attest to this particular activity of medieval Malta, but the family name is no longer extant in Malta. Although enjoying important occurrences in northern Italy, this surname seems characteristic of Southern Italian regions, in particular those corresponding with the former Sicilian Kingdom, suggesting, therefore, an influence of the Lucera colony. Even the Maltese name (and surname) Lija could be an indication of Maltese presence among the Lucera Muslims. This can be supported by textual evidence provided by Egidi in his Codice diplomatico dei Saraceni di Lucera; in fact, in document no. 469 one encounters the family of Maltesius Sellarius, complemented by his wife Alamanna and two sons, Lya and Bulfuctoy. In the same document another Maltese family is cited, namely that of Dallesius Maltesius, son of Garufe, which seems a different entity from the family named in document no. 454, that reports the Muslim Delosvi Maltese, ten years old, son of Garufe. Unfortunately, document no. 469 does not divulge the age of Dallesius; so one cannot say whether Dallesius and Delosvi were the same person or not.33 In any case these two families are recorded to have shared the same fate as that of their compatriots there by being sold off into private slaveownership.34 26 27 Luttrell, pp. 37-8. E. Kantorowitz, Kaiser Friedrich der Zweite, Berlin, 1931, p. 6. Luttrell, p. 36, states that the use, by Dante and other contemporary writers of the word ‘Malta’ in the sense of prison may have stemmed from the fact that Malta was then regularly used as a place of exile. For instance, Giovanni de Drago was exiled in Malta in 1240. So was Andrea, son of Marino, in 1252. Cf. A. Huillard-Breholles (ed.), Historia Diplomatica Federici Secundi, Vol. V, Paris (published in 6 volumes and 11 parts in 1852--1861), pp. 931-2. 28 Egidi, ‘La colonia ...’, Vol. 36, pp. 674-5. 29 Taylor, p. 101. In April 1273 the camerarius of Malta and Gozo, Roberto Cafaro, was instructed to have leopards captured in the ‘customary places’. The beasts were to be transported to the Royal Court. Cf. Registri della Cancelleria ..., Vol. 10, Reg. 48, No. 187, p. 53. 30 Taylor, p. 101. In 1277 a Lucerine Muslim named Donadeus was sent apparently from Malta in the light of the order of the camerarius of that island to purchase four leopards from the part of ‘Barbaria’. Cf. Registri della Cancelleria ..., Vol. 11, Reg. 57, No. 358, pp. 163-4. 31 Taylor, p. 101. A man named Maltisius, perhaps a native of Malta, appears to have worked as leopard keeper in other parts of Capitanata. He held a vineyard in Troia and other properties at Civitate. 32 Taylor, p. 102. See also Historia Diplomatica ..., Vol. V, pp.524-5. 33 Egidi, Codice Diplomatico ..., pp. 213 and 222. 34 Godfrey Wettinger, ‘The Arabs in Malta’, Malta: Studies of its Heritage and History, Mid-Med Ltd., Malta, 1986, p.104. 14 The purge of 1224-25 only affected the Maltese islands to a certain extent. This is confirmed by the strong showing of Muslim families in the census conducted only sixteen to seventeen years later by Abbate Giliberto, Frederick II’s agent in Malta.35 Probably more drastic religious (rather than ethnic) cleansing was carried out later, probably in the late 1240’s. As late as 1248 the Florentine Juneta sold Raimondo a Maltese slave girl named Maymūna (que fuit de Malta).36 The fate of the Celano exiles in Malta, on the other hand, is still a controversial issue. Some sources indicate that they were repatriated by 1227, in which case the absence of Celano surnames in present-day Malta would be immediately understood. On the other hand the substantial number of Christian families recorded in Giliberto’s census of c.1241, could only be explained by the sudden influx of exiles from abroad. Further research is certainly necessary to clarify this anomaly. The search for Celano families in Malta proved fruitless; there is no specific surname, either extant or extinct, that corresponds with the family names usually prevailing in Celano. Incidentally, Celano stands near a waterway, the river Vella, and Vella is today the third commonest surname in Malta; but the connection with the Maltese surname, again, cannot be ascertained.37 Linguistic phenomena The most known phenomenon in the evolution of Quranic Arabic phonetics is the imāla, namely the successive change of the sound /a/ (usually when stressed) into /e/ and later into /i/, a change that is quite common in many Mediterranean languages, including Maltese, which has its roots in dialectal Arabic. This change does not necessarily reach the final step /i/ as it can stop at the intermedial stage /e/. It is partially shown by the following names: Achamet, Absalem, Abdella, while it is fully demonstrated by the names Boabdilla, Amidalille, and Negius. The surname Abdilla (< Ar. given name ‘Abdallāh), which reflects the final stage of imāla (i < e < a), is, incidentally, very much in evidence in Malta. Another radical change concerning vowels is the reduction of the diphthong ‘ay’ into ‘i’, e.g. Sulaymān versus Sulimen. In order to facilitate the pronunciation of a cluster of consonants, a vowel is sometimes inserted, for instance, in the name Mus’ud, which is transformed into Musagutus. As regards to consonants, the letter ‘d’ (especially as a final consonant) is sometimes changed into ‘t’ on the basis of devoicing, for instance in Addet, Achamet, Gaytus, and Musagutus. If the word sitt makes up some of the feminine names of Lucera, it presents the dissimilation of the double ‘tt’ into ‘ct’ or ‘pt’, and even the change of ‘tt’ into ‘cc’. The change of ‘q’ into ‘g’ is a general and widespread phenomenon from Spain to Libya and is evident in Gaytus and Bulgassem from qā’id and Abū qāsim, respectively. Another consonantal change concerns ‘š’ that changes into ‘s’: Babusi, Cammise, Aisa, Aisuna, and Sico from Babuš, Kammiš, ‘Ayša, ‘Ayšuna, and šayh. The letter ‘ğ’ can be transformed into ‘s’, for instance, in Hasex, Cassisius and Sigius, from hağğāğ. The sporadic change of initial ‘b’ into ‘m’ can also be observed, but this phenomenon could be explained by a simple orthographic error on the part of a scribe or notary. Some names are progressively simplified or truncated (because of their common use), for instance, Braam from Abraham and Sulmen from Sulaymān. In addition to the rather common reductive changes, the Lucerine names also exhibit forms of endearment both in Arabic and Italian. Some feminine names prevail in affectionate forms according to the Arabic morphological structure, for instance, Dulaysa and Casayra; while some Italian masculine names display endearment forms. Sometimes the Lucerine names share with 35 36 37 Anthony Luttrell, ‘Giliberto Abate’s Report on Malta: Circa 1241’, Proceedings of History Week 1993, Malta, 1998, pp. 1-29. The original text is surely corrupt and presents a distorted picture of the situation. However, the figures as they stand may prove the survival of a large Muslim community even as late as 1240. Archivio Storico di Malta, Vol. VII, p. 391. See also Charles Dalli, Iż-Żmien Nofsani Malti, Malta, 2002, p. 49. Giovanni Bonello, in a letter to the editor, The Sunday Times [of Malta], 21/2/93. Otherwise, Vella is usually explained as a voiced form of Bella, either a nickname meaning ‘beautiful’, or else a place-name. Some Calabrian toponyms bearing the name Bella are actually an aphaeretic rendering of Gabella meaning ‘hired land’. 15 the Jewish names of Sicily the suffix -un or –on (probably a diminutive marker): for instance, Aysuna versus Aysa, Samuruna and Samorona versus Samura. In search of present locations of Lucerine Muslim families The diplomatic documents of Lucera state that almost all Muslims were sold as slaves immediately after the fall of the colony and their Arabic names were meticulously registered. Some Muslims, however, for unknown reasons, were spared from the ordeal and were authorised to live as Saraceni liberi, such as the 200 people accepted in the land of Civitate. However, according to Bevere, they were not permitted to construct mosques or issue the call to prayer38. Moreover, other Muslims managed to escape and were never recovered. However the main characteristic of the Lucera settlement is its long stint of a near peaceful relationship with the Christian community, to such an extent that, eventually, Arabic names became familiar enough to be accepted within Christian society itself. By assuming that name clusters indicate the commonest names prevailing among Muslims, they could be used as ‘markers’ to allow us to identify sites inhabited by Lucerine Muslims after their dispersion. The distribution of the original name and of its variants in southern regions of Italy can supply interesting information and allow comparisons with historical data.39 The Abraham-Ibrāhīm cluster is quite unsuitable because of the widespread use of the name within the Jewish community, following a common biblical tradition. More fruitful is the cluster derived from Sulaymān because of its numerous variants and the marked difference with Jewish denominations. The closest name to the original Arabic name is Sulema, which is present only in Sicily (Palermo), suggesting an origin preceding the Lucera settlement. Among the Italian variants recorded by scribes, Solimano occurs only in Apulia, Naples, and Basilicata; its corrupted version, Solimando, is especially present in Capitanata, Terra di Bari, Basilicata, and Naples. Solimene occurs in Apulia, particularly in Capitanata, and Basilicata. Another variant, Solimeno, shares the same diffusion pattern. Solimino prevails mainly in Central Apulia, while Solimine is present in the three cited regions, mostly in the towns and villages located near the respective borders. Surnames Solimini and Solimina do not share the diffusion of the previous ones, but are surely cognates of them. Other names useful as markers are supplied by other clusters such as Iuso, from the clusters Yūsuf (‘Joseph’) and Iaia, a cognate form of Yahyā (‘John’). The former occurs in Sicily as a place-name in Mezzoiuso (manzil Yūsuf, ‘the village of Joseph’), near Palermo, and as a surname in Apulia, especially in Capitanata, and northern Calabria. The latter occurs in Apulia and Campania, apart from traces in Sicily; its variant, Iaione, is present in Campania and Molise. Another variant of Iaia is Jaja (with the same pronunciation) that exhibits an apparent anomalous diffusion in Lombardy, instead of Apulia. This can be ascribed to the internal movements of the Italian population from southern regions to the northern industrial regions during the decades following the Second World War.40 Other surnames like Iachia, containing a guttural sound that characterized the Arabic original name, cannot be taken into consideration because of the contemporary large presence of derivatives from the Latin name Jacobus, i.e. James. The loss of the Arabic letter hā’ is rather frequent in Italian derivatives from Arabic and it is shown by the feminine name of the converted Muslim Maria olim Ayia (< hayāh ‘life’). Research on Italian surnames derived from Salām (‘peace’) has given the following results: Salemi shows the largest diffusion in Sicily; Salemme is, on the contrary, the surname characteristic of Campania, especially Naples, as well as other regions of the ancient Kingdom of Sicily, namely Apulia, Basilicata, and Calabria. The generic name used by Christians to indicate Arabs was Sar(r)aceno, which became Sar(r)acino in the southern regions of Italy: Sarracino is more widespread in Campania and Southern Latium while Saracino is mainly found in Apulia, Northern Basilicata, and Campania. The Italian term saraceno derives from Late 38 Riccardo Bevere, ‘Ancora sulle cause della distruzione della colonia saracena di Lucera’, Archivio Storico per le Province Napoletane, No. 60, Naples, 1935, pp. 225-6. The king imposed on them restrictions similar to the dhimmis in Muslim lands. 39 For this purpose the Internet website gens.labo.com proved valuable indeed. 40 The philosopher Jaja Donato was born in the first half of the 19 th century near Bari, within the territory corresponding to the diaspora of Lucerine Muslims. 16 Latin saracenus, and ultimately from Ar. šarqī meaning ‘oriental, easterner’, referring to all Muslim peoples in the Middle Ages. It is not, however, a very suitable marker in this context as its variants (such as Sarcino in Piedmont and Liguria, Seracino in Tuscany, Saraino and Saraceno in Sicily, etc.) render it too diffused to merit any plausible remarks. Both De Felice (1997) and Francipane (2005), in fact, define Saracino as a pan-Italian surname.41 The surname Gaito (< qā’id) is also focused in Campania, Apulia, and Basilicata, displaying a higher density than that in Sicily, although the latter was ruled by Muslims for a longer period. Finally the surname Lucera is recorded in Palermo and Agrigento.42 In search of present locations of Celano Christian families An attempt to locate some specific surnames of the city of Celano in Sicily was successful for the following surnames: Mostacci, Taccone, and Torrelli. Other surnames, specific of Abruzzo, like Cornelio and D’Ovidio can be located in Sicily too. The distribution of these surnames shows that the actual sites are focused along the Sicilian coast and only a few families have preserved their presumed location in the province of Agrigento. Moreover, some families seem to have moved out of Sicily because some of them, like the Taccones and the Torrellis, also appear in Calabria. However, because of the general habit of referring to newly arrived people by names denoting their provenance, one could look up for the Celano migrants under the surname Abruzzo/i, their ancestors’ region of provenance.43 Significant presences were recorded in the provinces of Agrigento, Trapani, Palermo, and Syracuse (almost exclusively along the coast). The enquiry yielded some settlements in Central Calabria, suggesting other movements of Celano families. The use of the surname Celano itself, pointing to the native city, is even more significant since it confirms the previous data and uncovers other territories where the Celano people seem to have spread. The family name Celano is, in fact, found in Sicily (Palermo, Messina, Catania, and Syracuse), Apulia, Basilicata (formerly Lucania), Calabria (mainly Catanzaro), and Campania (mainly Naples).44 This corroborates with Riccardo di San Germano’s account: Frederick II ordered the population of the city to be dispersed ‘in various parts of the kingdom’45. To confirm the specific importance of the toponym Celano, other surnames corresponding to cities near Celano, for instance Cocullo and Sulmona, were considered, but they were not found outside the region of Abruzzo. Conclusion More than 250 names of the last Muslims of Lucera were collected from various official documents in forms modified by notaries and scribes. They prevail as single names or double names, the first of which often occurs in Arabic while the second is very frequently in Latin, or so modified to the degree of incomprehensibility. From the particular patterns of Arabic nomenclature, it is possible to hint at the kind of Lucerine society which then prevailed, although the documents provide evidence of only the more important social strata. Comparisons with other name lists (Sicilian or Maltese) reveal several similarities, despite the incompleteness of the data and the lexical modifications induced by time. The possible location of new Muslim settlements after the annihilation of Lucera was successfully put to the test by looking for the more frequent names of Lucerine society such as Sulaymān, Yahyā, and Yūsuf. The original names and their variants, e.g. Solimano, Solimando, 41 To complicate matters, the term Saraceno could have been applied, occasionally at least, in a jocular way, to a dark or swarthy looking person, or perhaps to someone who had participated in a Crusade. In the Neapolitan dialect, sarracino also means ‘ferocious’, ‘unruly’. Hence, sometimes, it was employed simply as a nickname, rather than as an ethnic or religious epithet. 42 Girolamo Caracausi, Dizionario Onomastico della Sicilia, Vol. 1, Palermo, 1993, sub ‘Lucera’. 43 Related forms Abbruzzo/i, Abruzzese/i, Abbruzzese/i, Apruzzese, Bruzzese/i should also be considered. All variants are mainly concentrated in Southern Italy. 44 Caracausi, sub ‘Celano’. Incidentally ‘Celani’ is the third commonest surname in Ascoli Piceno, in the Marches, but etymological connections with the Abruzzese toponym is debatable. In fact, it could be related to Celana, a locality in Bergamo, or else derives from Celi, itself an aphaeretic form of surname Miceli. Cf. Michele Francipane, Dizionario ragionato dei cognomi italiani, Milano, 2005, sub ‘Micheli’. 45 Riccardo di San Germano, pp. 112-3. 17 Solimene, Solimeno, Solimino, Solimini, Solimina, Solimine, Sarracino, Saracino, Iaia, Jaja, Iaione, now modern Italian surnames in their own right, proved to be very telling. These surnames are found more frequently in the three regions of Apulia, Campania, and Basilicata. The regions close to them, like Molise, Abruzzo, Southern Latium, and Calabria, also show a significant presence of these ‘marker’ names. The role played by Maltese Muslims in Lucera was more important than that previously described. The few Maltese individuals known by their name, significantly, constitute the handful of inhabitants designated by their provenance. The search for Celano families, who substituted the Muslims deported to Lucera from Sicily, also yielded fruitful results. By using the still extant surnames of Celano, or by the generic surnames Celano and Abruzzo, it is possible to locate the present sites of previous migrants in a southwards direction. REFERENCES ABULAFIA, David, ‘La caduta di Luceria Sarracenorum’, Per la storia del Mezzogiorno medievale e moderno -- Studi in memoria di Jole Mazzoleni, Vol. 1, Rome, 1998. 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HUILLARD-BREHOLLES, Alphonse (ed.), Historia Diplomatica Federici Secundi, 6 volumes, 11 parts, Paris, 1852--1861. IBN KHALDŪN, ‘Kitab al-‘ibar’ in Biblioteca Arabo Sicula Vol. 2 (collected by M. Amari), Umberto Rizzitano (ed.), Palermo, 1997. KANTOROWITZ, E., Kaiser Friedrich der Zweite, Berlin, 1931. LUTTRELL, Anthony T. (ed.), Medieval Malta: Studies on Malta before the Knights, The British School at Rome, London, 1975. LUTTRELL, Anthony T., ‘Giliberto Abate’s Report on Malta: Circa 1241’, Proceedings of History Week 1993, Malta, 1998, pp. 1-29. RICCARDO di San Germano, Chronica, Bologna, 1937. PELLEGRINI, Giovan Battista, Gli arabismi nelle lingue neolatine, Brescia, 1972. PETRUCCI, Armando, ‘I più antichi documenti originali del Comune di Lucera (12321496)’, Codice Diplomatico Pugliese, Vol. 33, Castellana Grotte, 1994. SIMONSOHN, Shlomo, The Jews in Sicily, Vol. 1 383–1300, Leiden, 1997. 18 TAYLOR, Julie, ‘Luceria Sarracenorum, una colonia musulmana’, Archivio Storico Pugliese, No. 52, Bari, 1999, pp. 227-42. TAYLOR, Julie, Muslims in Medieval Italy: the Colony at Lucera, Lanham, USA, 2003. WETTINGER, Godfrey, ‘The Arabs in Malta’, Malta: Studies of its Heritage and History, Mid-Med Ltd., Malta, 1986, pp. 87-110. WETTINGER, Godfrey, ‘The Militia List of 1419–20’, Melita Historica, Vol. 5, No. 2, Malta, 1969, pp. 80-106. Giuseppe Staccioli graduated in Chemistry at the University of Florence. He was formerly a researcher for the Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche in the field of wood science at the Istituto per la Ricerca sul Legno in Florence. He published several papers concerning wood chemical composition, wood acidity, and wood ageing and deterioration. Recently he has specialized in the study of Muslim presence in medieval Italy through onomastic investigation. He is the author of a paper ‘Insediamenti musulmani medievali in Molise?’ in Quaderni Medievali, No. 58, Bari, 2004. He lives in Scandicci, a commune in the province of Florence. Mario Cassar graduated B.Ed. (Hons.) and M.A. at the University of Malta. He is assistant lecturer within the Department of Maltese at the University of Malta Junior College. In the period 1992–94 he was president of the Għaqda tal-Malti (Università), and was involved in the organization of a series of literary seminars and writing skills courses. He is the author of Ir-Reqqa tal-Kitba (Malta, 2000), a manual of Maltese grammar and orthography, and The Surnames of the Maltese Islands: An Etymological Dictionary (Malta, 2003), and several critical essays and papers related to the study of Maltese language, literature, and history. 19