Giovanni Candido’s Historiographic Work Commentariorum Aquileiensivm libri octo and Slovene History

Abstract

In 1521, Udine’s notary Giovanni Candido (approx. 1420-1528) published Commentariorum Aquileiensivm libri octo, a historic work on the history of Friuli since antiquity. It contains a number of geographical data pertaining to the area that roughly corresponds to present-day Slovenia. The focus of this article is mainly on Candido’s perception of different peoples, particularly the Slavs. Candido’s mentions of events connected with the early medieval history of the Slavs had been idirectly taken from Historia Langobardorum by Paul the Deacon. Although Candido did mention the Slavs, he did so only briefly, and paid equally little attention to other peoples. Since in that period people had not yet been classified by their ethnic origin but rather by their social, religious, territorial, and other affiliations this is merely a reflection of the times. Candido’s work exhibits his biologically determined perception of ethnic groups that, according to him, were subjected to continuous development.