Rationes y decimas: Some Evidences on the Management of Eleventh Century Sernas in Northwestern Iberia

Abstract

Sernas were one of the main type of early medieval common land, but their definition remains elusive. The key must be found in the ways to organize and manage them, because of the diversity of crops. The paper uses four case studies in different places of the Dueuro Valley (Viñayo, Valdesaz de los Oteros and Villasinta de Torío) and nowadays Northern Portugal (Arouca). The evidence proves the existence of a pattern based on a double level of ownership. On one hand and at a higher level, an authority that would have been in charge of ensuring the safeguarding and correct use of the sernas, acting as arbitrator in case of conflict or as defender in case of threat. On the other hand, and at a lower level, the entitlement of communities, which allowed the exploitation of the internal plots of sernas by households, probably paying some duties. Finally, the organization and control of sernas are linked to the notion of «moral economy» and the ways of legitimization of the social dominion.