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The Mediterranean mountain areas have long been considered poor regions marked by economic archaism. Braudel outlines that the Mediterranean mountains are not an independent reality, also often being linked to plains and cities. They have diversified and remarkable resources (water, forests, meadows and mines), insufficient, however, for the livelihoods of their populations. Seasonal work, migration to cities and transhumance are the primary means to complement the scarce resources of families (Braudel 1953). Also regarding the Italian Central Apennines, their environmental characteristics have long fostered the image of an area suffering from isolation, backwardness, and stagnation. However, the most recent historiography has contributed to a redefinition devoid of the stereotypes that the documentary evidence has proved to be unfounded. This paper examines the largest mountain mass of the entire Apennines concentrated in a roughly elliptical shaped area of over 9.500 square kilometers containing the highest peaks (Corno Grande of Gran Sasso, and Mount Amaro in the Maiella group). The physical environment gives to this area a specific identity, as observed by Vitte in its wide and deep description (Vitte 1986). The aim is to illustrate for the early modern centuries the mountain’s ability to balance the economic system, where agriculture and animal husbandry did not provide sufficient means of searly modern centiriesubsistence. For this reason, inhabitants were engaged in a wide range of activities deploying flexibility and creativity in response to external stresses on the local economy and market. Through this strategy they managed to overcome the limits set by environmental conditions. The mountain economy was an ‘integrated economy’ (Coppola 1989 e 1991; Panjek 2011, 2014 and 2015; Mocarelli, Panjek, Larsson 2017). This concept means a flexible system characterized by a systematic integration of smallholder agricultural sector and a variety of marked oriented activities from the secondary and tertiary sectors. It has been verified for the Abruzzo mountain area (Bulgarelli 2017). This paper presents a brief description of the mountain economy, namely the non-agricultural activities producing revenue, the market orientation of this 33 economy too often defined as a closed economy aiming for self-sufficiency, and its market-oriented activities. It will be possible to shed light on the following features: – Integration, flexibility and resilience of this economy in the Early Modern Age. – Social capital as strength of the Apennine mountain area. Sharing rules, information, penalties and values defines the quality of the networks and social relations that are decisive in promoting adaptation to changes in the economic system. – In terms of social capital, among the multiple characters, at least one aspect is deserving of mention: the management of collective resources. – The question of commons was particularly important in Mediterranean upland economy and their role played in and their long lasting will be stressed. Bibliographic references Braudel, F. (1953). Civiltà e imperi del Mediterraneo nell’età di Filippo II. Torino, Einaudi. Coppola, G. (1989). La montagna alpina. Vocazioni originarie e trasformazioni funzionali. In P. Bevilacqua (a cura di), Storia dell’agricoltura italiana in età contemporanea. Spazi e paesaggi. Venezia, Marsilio editori, pp. 495-530. Coppola, G. (1991). Equilibri economici e trasformazioni nell’area alpina in età moderna: scarsità di risorse ed economia integrata. In G. Coppola, P. Schiera (a cura di), Lo spazio alpino: area di civiltà, regione cerniera. Napoli, Liguori, pp. 203-222. Farinelli, F. (2000). I caratteri originali del paesaggio abruzzese. In M. Costantini, C. Felice (a cura di), L’Abruzzo. Storia d’Italia, Le Regioni. Torino, Einaudi. Vitte, P. (1986). Les campagnes du haut Apennin. Evolution d’une société montagnarde. Clermont-Ferrand, Presses universitaires Blaise Pascal. Mocarelli, L., Panjek, A., Larsson, J. (2017). Integrated Peasant Economy in a Comparative Perspective. Alps, Scandinavia and Beyond. Koper, University of Primorska Press. |
