Becoming Byzantine

Children and Childhood in Byzantium

Edited by Arietta Papaconstantinou

Edited by Alice-Mary Talbot

    Despite increased interest over the last fifty years in childhood in Byzantium, the bibliography on this topic remains rather short and generalized. Becoming Byzantine: Children and Childhood in Byzantium presents detailed information about children’s lives, and provides a basis for further study. This collection of eight articles drawn from a May 2006 Dumbarton Oaks symposium covers matters relevant to daily life such as the definition of children in Byzantine law, procreation, death, breastfeeding patterns, and material culture. Religious and political perspectives are also used to examine Byzantine views of the ideal child, and the abuse of children in monasteries. Many of these articles present the first comprehensive accounts of specific aspects of childhood in Byzantium.

  • Cover: Becoming Byzantine

Arietta Papaconstantinou is Marie-Curie Fellow in Oriental Studies at Oxford University.

Alice-Mary Talbot is Director of Byzantine Studies at Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection.