Christian Settipani
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Christian Settipani | |
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Born | 31 January 1961 |
Occupation(s) | IT Technical Director, Genealogist, Historian, Author |
Christian Settipani (born 31 January 1961) is the Technical Director of an IT company in Paris and a genealogist and historian (D.E.A. at the Sorbonne University).
Settipani specialises in the genealogy and prosopography of elites in Europe and the Near East during the early Middle Ages and earlier. He is a source for historians in early medieval and late antique Europe[1], [2] and genealogists who work in the field of Descent from antiquity (DFA). Particularly notable among his researches have been studies in the early medieval origins of the Carolingians, his consideration of the familial ties between the Gallo Roman bishop Ruricius of Limoges during the period of the Visigothic Kingdom in Aquitaine and the senatorial gens Anicii of the Late Empire, his broad study of the continuity during the Imperial period of Roman senatorial clans (gens) and the ties that bind newer aristocratic families like the Anicii and Caeioni to ancient Republican era Roman clans, his study of the Carolingian era origins of lesser nobility of the Auvergnat region of Gaul (see the list of publications below), and his debate with historian Bernard Bachrach concerning Burgundian and Auvergnat origins of 9th century Angevin matriarch Gerberga [3], [4]. His work is one important example of the trend in Early Medieval Historical Studies away from the idea, dominant since Edward Gibbon at least, that elites of the late Roman Empire were entirely displaced in the west by unrelated Germanic invaders and "new men". Historians have remarked with favor on the breadth of presentation, his extensive citation of prior research and alternative viewpoints and the inspiration of some of his solutions to genealogical and prosopographical questions but at the same time express concern that the very breadth and volume of material make accessible presentation difficult. His own work draws on that of professional genealogists such as Prince Cyril Toumanoff and Sir Anthony Wagner.[5]
Settipani is associated with CNRS, the National Centre for Scientific Research in Paris[citation needed] and is co-founder and general editor with Katharine S. B. Keats-Rohan (FRHistS) of the publication series of the Unit for Prosopographical Research at Oxford University. Keats-Rohan is regarded as the "godmother" of modern prosopographical and network analysis research,[citation needed] which has become highly computer-dependent.
Publications
The earlier works were originally published by Éditions Francis Christian (no link with the author) in French, although some nonofficial English translations have been produced. Later works have been released via other publishers.
- Les ancêtres de Charlemagne, 1989
- Nos ancêtres de l'Antiquité, 1991
- Christian Settipani, La préhistoire des Capétiens, 1993
- Continuité gentilice et continuité sénatoriale dans les familles sénatoriales romaines à l'époque impériale, 2000
- Onomastique et Parenté dans l'Occident médiéval, 2000, Settipani and K.S.B. Keats-Rohan, editors
- La noblesse du Midi Carolingien, 2004
- Continuité des élites à Byzance durant les siècles obscurs. Les princes caucasiens et l'Empire du VIe au IXe siècle, 2006
References
See also
- Descent from antiquity
- Ralph Mathisen, Ruricius of Limoges and Friends: A Collection of Letters from Visigothic Gaul. Liverpool University Press(1999)
- Constance Brittain Bouchard, Those of My Blood: Constructing Noble Families in Medival Francia. University of Pennsylvania Press. (2001)
- Bernard S. Bachrach, "Some observations on the origins of the Angevin dynasty", Medieval Prosopography 10 no. 2 (1989): 1-24.
- Christian Settipani, "Les comtes d'Anjou et leur alliances aux Xe et XIe siecles", in K. S. B. Keats-Rohan, ed., Family Trees and the Roots of Politics (Woodbridge, Suffolk, 1997): 211-267.
- Greg Halfond, Review of La Noblesse du Midi carolingien: Etudes sur quelques grandes familles d'Aquitaine et du Languedoc du IXe au XIe siecles, Toulousain, Perigord, Limousin, Poitou, Auvergne. Prosopographica et Genealogica, in the Medieval Review. vol. 5. Pp. 388.