Material Culture, Communities and Identity in Early Medieval Northumbria, 600-867 CE : A Land of Five Languages

This book convincingly argues that the early medieval kingdom of Northumbria existed as a single political entity with a shared culture. Sián Webb makes the case that, while the kingdom itself includes three major cultural regions with distinct identities, by studying the similarities and differences in material and artistic culture it can be demonstrated that these identities managed to exist in tandem and were taken up by communities and groups when necessary and convenient. Webb shines a light on how the individual regions possessed different histories that helped shape how the people and communities expressed the shared Northumbrian identity. Focusing on the period from 600 CE to 867 CE, Material Culture, Communities and Identity in Early Medieval Northumbria builds upon the developing tradition of research into layered identities and group culture established in various academic disciplines. The purpose here is to consider the different identities and cultural differences that developed in different regions and among different hierarchical communities from those in power to the less influential, though no less interesting or important, individuals whose work both allowed their communities to function and helped drive, adapt and spread new cultural traditions. Taking an interdisciplinary approach, the book broadens the view of early medieval Northumbria beyond the high-status settlements and people and, where possible, uses material culture and archaeological sources to include texture of non-elite identities within the kingdom.