Midwives in Byzantium : an overview

This paper aims to draft an overview of what being a midwife in Byzantium meant, according to the literary sources. Midwife in Byzantium appears to be a rather complex and elusive figure to study. This is due to both the scarce references in the sources and the vague definition of midwifery itself i...

ver descrição completa

Detalhes bibliográficos
Autor: Gollo, Giulia
Formato: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2022
País:España
Recursos:Universidad de Alcalá (UAH)
Repositorio:e_Buah Biblioteca Digital Universidad de Alcalá
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:ebuah.uah.es:10017/56973
Acesso em linha:http://hdl.handle.net/10017/56973
https://dx.doi.org/10.37536/ebizantinos.2022.10.2071
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palavra-chave:Midwife
Birth
Breastfeeding
Gender studies
Anthropology
Nodriza
Nacimiento
Lactancia
Estudios de género
Antropología
Historia
Filología
History
Philology
Descrição
Resumo:This paper aims to draft an overview of what being a midwife in Byzantium meant, according to the literary sources. Midwife in Byzantium appears to be a rather complex and elusive figure to study. This is due to both the scarce references in the sources and the vague definition of midwifery itself in the ancient world. The main fields of activity of Byzantine midwives were three: medical, religious and care. As a first attempt of studying Byzantine midwife all-round, this paper ends by suggesting further research perspectives in order to get a clearer and more complete understanding of such figure.