The Notion of ‘Lombard’ and ‘Lombardy’ in the Middle Ages
Diego Zancani
Lombardy is, historically, the territory of Lombards, and today it is one 20 administrative regions within Republic Italy, with Milan as its capital city. The origin word, in Italian Lombardia, lies syncopation Latin Longobardia or Langobardia, modelled on Greek, rather Byzantine-Greek Langobarrdla, to indicate occupied (since mid-sixth century ad) by Germanic population Longobards/Langobards who, according Paulus Diaconus, were so called because long beards, much Romania (modern Romagna) indicated land Romans’. In ninth ad Langobardia referred whole Italy Langobards, i.e. most Northern except Venice, ‘Romania’ exarchate, duchies Spoleto Benevento. After 888 carolingian Mark Milan. Later, term came refer even central-northern zone.1 This meaning that would have been recognised Dante while discussing vernaculars, mentions following geographical partitions: ‘Et dextri regiones sunt Apulia, sed non tota, Roma, Ducatus, Tuscia et Januensis Marchia; sinistri autem pars Apulie, Marchia Anconi-tana, Romandiola, Trivisana cum Venetiis.’2 Godfrey Viterbo thirteenth ‘powerful possesses thirty towns: will be hard find another like them world’ {Lombardia potens ter denas continet urbes. Una quibus similis vix invenietur orbe). a fourteenth-century chronicle 30 cities are minutely listed, although Verona, which part Venetia, included, Trevisan Venice itself still excluded:
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