Muslims in medieval Sicily and southern Italy

Medieval Sicily and Southern Italy have long been important arenas of Muslim-Christian interaction: the seventh century saw early Muslim activity in these regions before Sicily was incorporated into the Islamicate sphere through conquest during the ninth century. Later, in the eleventh century, the island was conquered and integrated into the Latin-Christian orbit, but Muslim settlement in Southern Italy prevailed into the fourteenth century. This chapter offers an overview of Muslim-Christian contacts and conflicts under the changing dominant powers from Muslim to Norman, and from the Hohenstaufen to Angevin dominions.