Nomadic Pastoralism in the Archaeology of Medieval Western Balkans - New Insights through Old Data

Abstract

Medieval nomadic pastoralism in the Western Balkans is known from historical sources, but problematic to recognize archeologically. By focusing on ethnographic data of living inhabitants of both humans and livestock of the Dinaric Alps, a better strategy for research may be forged to understand medieval nomadism. Through a transdisciplinary perspective that compares ethnography with existing historical and archaeological data on similar medieval phenomena, more light may be shed on the border-crossing of medieval shepherds moving with their herds. Moreover, a new perspective may be forged on old data for the field of human-animal relations.