Náboženství na sítích antického Středomoří: Role primárních a sekundárních center při šíření náboženských inovací

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Project Identification
Project Period
1/2018 - 12/2020
Investor / Pogramme / Project type
Czech Science Foundation
MU Faculty or unit
Faculty of Arts
Spread of religions; Religious innovations; Ancient Mediterranean; Graeco-Roman period; Network theory; Geographical modeling; Statistical analysis; Cult of Isis and Sarapis; Mithraism; Early Christianity

The project is focused on the spread of three innovative religious traditions in the ancient Mediterranean – namely the cult of Isis and Sarapis, Mithraism, and early Christianity. So far historical research has often overestimated the importance of primary centers as the main determinant of the spreading processes. This project proposes a different approach stressing the importance of secondary centers. From the perspective of network theory, the project conceptualizes the spread of religious innovations as a process happening on the ancient transportation network. While the spatial structure of this network, consisting of ancient settlements and routes among them, is shared, its parameters vary according to the research cases. Using methods of formalized modeling, the specific parameters will be derived from suitable proxies and attributed to the network. This framework enables us to analyze which parameters indicate the potential presence of secondary centers and how they might have influenced the spatial dissemination of the religious innovations under scrutiny.