Paper short abstract:

Food had a central role in the development of law and city expansion in Constantinople during the Byzantine Empire. Laws were developed to regulate food distribution which impacted daily life in the city. Also, food contributed to the expansion of the city in ways that influenced people’s lives.

Paper long abstract:

During the Byzantine era, food served a multifunctional purpose. Not only was food the cultural centre for daily life but it was perceived as a socio-economic pillar upon which Byzantine civilization heavily relied. Constantinople was located near the water which enabled the Byzantine Empire's economy to flourish. Laws were installed to administer the food economy and regulate the distribution of food in the markets. Indeed, prior research indicated that food played a social and economic role in the city of Constantinople (e.g., Dalby, 2003). In the present paper, I discuss how food influenced the socio-economic development of Constantinople. In the context of daily life in Constantinople, I demonstrate how the development of local laws used to regulate the distribution, trade, and sale of food contributed to social and economic growth. As well, I discuss the influence of social class on people's consumption and storage of food within the household. Second, I demonstrate how the food influenced the physical expansion of the city (e.g., the creation of storage facilities), and how this expansion enhanced the economic prosperity of the inhabitants of Constantinople. Third, the reciprocal influence between food laws on the one hand and city expansion on the other hand will also be discussed in terms of their mutual impact on daily life in Constantinople and the broader Byzantine Empire.