Vandals, Romans and Berbers

Dr Andrew Merrills

• Contents: Introduction: Vandals, Romans and Berbers: understanding Late Antique North Africa, A.H. Merrills. Part 1 African Identities: The Vandals: fragments of a narrative, Walter Pohl; The settlement of the Vandals in North Africa, Andreas Schwarcz; The house of Nubel: rebels or players?, Andy Blackhurst; From Arzuges to Rustamids: state formation and regional identity in the pre-Saharan zone, Alan Rushworth. Part 2 Written Culture: 'Romuleis Libicisque litteris': Fulgentius and the 'Vandal Renaissance', Gregory Hays; Vandal poets in their context, Judith W. George; The perils of panegyric: the lost poem of Dracontius and its consequences, A.H. Merrills; The so-called Laterculus Regum Vandalorum et Alanorum: a 6th-century African addition to Prosper Tiro's chronicle?, Roland Steinacher; Who wrote the Ostraka from the Ilôt de l'Amirauté, Carthage?, Jacqueline F. Godfrey; Literacy and private documentation in Vandal North Africa: the case of the Albertini Tablets, Jonathan P. Conant. Part 3 The African Church In Context: Who were the Circumcellions?, Brent D. Shaw; From Donatist opposition to Byzantine loyalism: the cult of martyrs in North Africa 350-650, W.H.C. Frend; Intentions and audiences: history, hagiography, martyrdom, and confession in Victor of Vita's Historia Persecutionis, Danuta Shanzer; Disputing the end of African Christianity, MarkA. Handley. Select bibliography; Index.

'... this detailed scholarly collection is a most thorough study of North Africa in late antiquity; it will undoubtedly remain the definitive study on the topic for decades... Highly recommended.' Choice 'Vandals, Romans and Berbers is an extremely important collection of studies on a rather neglected range of topics, and will shortly become indispensable reading for anyone interested in the history of late antique and early medieval North Africa.' Scripta Classica Israelica 'It cannot be but a healthy field when scholars read with such sensitivity and interpret their sources with this much respect.' Early Medieval Europe 'The chapters contained within Vandals, Romans and Berbers do exactly that; they challenge the many pre-conceptions that students and scholars of late antique Africa may have, and encourage them to pursue their interests, whether they are ecclesiastical, literary, or social.' Bulletin of International Medieval Research