Подвижното скотовъдство в Македония през X–XIII век. Форми и стопанско значение
Pastoralism in Macedonia (10th–13th centuries): forms and economic importance

Summary/Abstract: The present paper deals with the various forms of pastoralism in Macedonia and their role in the economic history of this region. The Byzantine reconquest around the year 1000 and the expansion of the Serbian Kingdom in the Late Middle ages build the chronological framework of this study. From the various forms of pastoralism, transhumance – especially that of seasonally migrating Vlach pastoralists – and animal husbandry practiced on grazing grounds, which are situated in the highlands close to the settlements by shepherds whose families, however, live sedentarily (germ. Almwirtschaft, fr. élevage / pâturage pendulaire), seem to have had the greatest impact on the economy of the region. The analysis of Greek and Slavonic charters supplemented by data from other sources can help us to reconstruct the migration of humans and animals which often happened on seasonal base between summer pastures in the mountainous and highland regions of the Balkan hinterland, and winter pastures in the valleys and the seashore areas of the Aegean. The growth of the monastic property through donations by Byzantine, Bulgarian and Serbian rulers seems to have facilitated the economic role played by pastoralists, who offered their services to the local land owners, of which many were religious foundations. Finally, an attempt will be made to reconstruct – as far as the scarce source documentation allows it – the everyday life of the medieval pastoralists.

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