Parents, Children, and Law

Abstract

This research covers the changes in the familial structures that occurred during the first millennium. In particular, it focuses on the institution of patria potestas and on emancipation. By looking at the transformation of juridical institutions, this article seeks to show the long-term evolution of the relation between adulthood, marriage, and emancipation in the families of late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages. This research analyzes Roman law and the law of the Christian Mediterranean during this period, particularly in the Iberian and Italian Peninsulas as well as in the Byzantine Empire.