Monasteries, Monks, and Villages in Western Galilee in Late Antiquity

Former studies on monasticism in Late Antiquity overlooked the Western Galilee. Due to the lack of literary data and the misinterpretation of archaeological finds, very little—if anything—was known about this monastic landscape. Recent excavations and surveys conducted in Western Galilee, together with a comparative study that takes into account a close analysis of monastic landscapes in Syria and Palestine, offer a new look at the relation between monastery and village and suggest a new perspective on the place of monasticism in rural society in Late Antiquity.