The ''Notitia provinciarum et civitatum Africae'' ("Notice of the Provinces and Cities of Africa") is a

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

-era document listing the

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

s and sees in the

Roman province The Roman provinces (, pl. ) were the administrative regions of Ancient Rome outside Roman Italy that were controlled by the Romans under the Roman Republic and later the Roman Empire. Each province was ruled by a Roman appointed as Roman g ...

s of

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; ; ) is the Mediterranean islands#By area, second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, and one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. It is located west of the Italian Peninsula, north of Tunisia an ...

and the

Balearics The Balearic Islands are an archipelago in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago forms a province and autonomous community of Spain, with Palma de Mallorca being its capital and largest ...

. The cause of its preparation was the

council of Carthage The Councils of Carthage were church synods held during the 3rd, 4th, and 5th centuries in the city of Carthage in Africa. The most important of these are described below. Synod of 251 In May 251 a synod, assembled under the presidency of Cyprian ...

held on 1 February 484 by the

Arian Arianism (, ) is a Christological doctrine which rejects the traditional notion of the Trinity and considers Jesus to be a creation of God, and therefore distinct from God. It is named after its major proponent, Arius (). It is considered he ...

king of the

Vandals The Vandals were a Germanic people who were first reported in the written records as inhabitants of what is now Poland, during the period of the Roman Empire. Much later, in the fifth century, a group of Vandals led by kings established Vand ...

Huneric Huneric, Hunneric or Honeric (died December 23, 484) was King of the (North African) Vandal Kingdom (477–484) and the oldest son of Gaiseric. He abandoned the imperial politics of his father and concentrated mainly on internal affairs. He was ma ...

(477–484). It is arranged according to provinces in the following order: Proconsularis,

Numidia Numidia was the ancient kingdom of the Numidians in northwest Africa, initially comprising the territory that now makes up Algeria, but later expanding across what is today known as Tunisia and Libya. The polity was originally divided between ...

Byzacena Byzacena (or Byzacium) (, ''Byzakion'') was a Late Roman province in the central part of Roman North Africa, which is now roughly Tunisia, split off from Africa Proconsularis. History At the end of the 3rd century AD, the Roman emperor Dioclet ...

Mauretania Caesariensis Mauretania Caesariensis (Latin for "Caesarea, Numidia, Caesarean Mauretania") was a Roman province located in present-day Algeria. The full name refers to its capital Caesarea, Numidia, Caesarea Mauretaniae (modern Cherchell). The province had ...

Mauretania Sitifensis Mauretania Sitifensis was a Roman province in Northwest Africa. The capital was Setifis. History In the later division of the Roman Empire under the Emperor Diocletian, the eastern part of Mauretania Caesariensis, from Saldae to the river Amps ...

Tripolitana Tripolitania (), historically known as the Tripoli region, is a historic region and former province of Libya. The region had been settled since antiquity, first coming to prominence as part of the Carthaginian empire. Following the defeat ...

and

. It also names exiled bishops and vacant sees, and is an important authority for the history of the

early African church The name early African church is given to the Christians, Christian communities inhabiting the region known politically as North Africa during Antiquity#Roman era, Roman Africa, and comprised geographically somewhat around the area of the Roman D ...

and the geography of these provinces. It is preserved in the sole extant manuscript containing the ''History of the Vandal Persecution'' by Bishop

Victor of Vita Victor Vitensis (or Victor of Vita; born circa 430) was an African bishop of the Province of Byzacena (called Vitensis from his See of Vita). His importance rests on his ''Historia persecutionis Africanae Provinciae, temporibus Genserici et Hunir ...

Description

The ''Notitia provinciarum and civitatum Africae'' is the conventional long title in Latin, but it is also known simply as the ''Notitia Africae'' (NA). The ''Notitia'' lists the

Chalcedonian Chalcedonian Christianity is the branches of Christianity that accept and uphold theological resolutions of the Council of Chalcedon, the fourth ecumenical council, held in AD 451. Chalcedonian Christianity accepts the Christological Definitio ...

(Catholic) bishops (''nomina episcorum catholicorum'') who participated in the council held at Carthage on 1 February 484, as well as those who were victims of the Vandal Persecution and those who were exiled or fled (''fugerunt''). It also by implication describes the extent of the

Vandal Kingdom The Vandal Kingdom () or Kingdom of the Vandals and Alans () was a confederation of Vandals and Alans, which was a barbarian kingdoms, barbarian kingdom established under Gaiseric, a Vandals, Vandalic warlord. It ruled parts of North Africa and th ...

at that time. It lists four hundred and eighty-three dioceses in seven

ecclesiastical province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian churches, including those of both Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity, that have traditional hierarchical structures. An ecclesiastical province consist ...

s, five of which correspond to Roman provinces. The order of the provinces seems to follow the chronological order of their creation: *The first list is the Proconsularis (or Zeugitana), which includes the diocese of Carthage, whose bishop is the

primate of Africa The Primate of Africa is an honorific title in the Catholic Church, but in early Christianity was granted to the leading bishop (''primas'') in Africa. There were at times primates in Numidia and Byzacena,François Decret, ''Early Christianity in N ...

. *The second list is that of

, the first bishop of which,

Secundus of Tigisis Secundus of Tigisis () was an early church leader and primate of Numidia. He was a leading organiser of the early Donatist movement in Carthage. Biography Personal life Little is known about Secundus' personal life. He lived in Numidia during the ...

, is attested in 305. *The third list is that of

, which had a bishop by the middle of the 4th century. *The fourth list is that of

, the provincial seat of which might go back to the 4th century and the acts of the council of Carthage (407). *The fifth is a list of

, which was set up after the general council of Africa held at Hippo on 8 October 393. *The sixth list is that of

Tripolitania Tripolitania (), historically known as the Tripoli region, is a historic region and former province of Libya. The region had been settled since antiquity, first coming to prominence as part of the Carthaginian empire. Following the defeat ...

. *

is not presented as a province but as an island. The list also contains the names of the Bishops of

Majorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest of the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain, and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, seventh largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. The capital of the island, Palma, Majorca, Palma, i ...

and

Menorca Menorca or Minorca (from , later ''Minorica'') is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. Its name derives from its size, contrasting it with nearby Mallorca. Its capital is Maó, situated on the isl ...

, in the

Balearic Islands The Balearic Islands are an archipelago in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago forms a Provinces of Spain, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain, ...

. The author of the Notitia is unknown. It has long been attributed, wrongly, to Victor of Vita, and its author is designated, by convention, as Pseudo-Victor.

Victor Vitensis Victor Vitensis (or Victor of Vita; born circa 430) was an African bishop of the Province of Byzacena (called Vitensis from his See of Vita). His importance rests on his ''Historia persecutionis Africanae Provinciae, temporibus Genserici et Hunir ...

, ''Notitia provinciarum et civitatum Africae'' (Centre Traditio Litterarum Occidentalium, Brepols (Firm), Brepols Publishers, 2010 )

Bishops named in the ''Notitia''

Fulgentius of Ruspe Fabius Claudius Gordianus Fulgentius, also known as Fulgentius of Ruspe (462 or 467 – 1 January 527 or 533), was a North African Christian prelate who served as Bishop of Ruspe in what is now Tunisia, during the 5th and 6th century. He is vene ...

and Stephen * Tiberiumus * Paschasius *

Aemilianus Marcus Aemilius Aemilianus ( – September 253), also known as Aemilian, was Roman emperor for two months in 253. Commander of the Moesian troops, he obtained an important victory against the invading Goths and was, for this reason, acclaimed ...

Amourah Amourah, or Amoura is a town and Latin Catholic titular bishopric in Algeria. The Communes of Algeria, commune lies in Djelfa Province. According to the 1998 census it has a population of 5,879. History Amaura corresponds to Classical antiquity ...

* Athenius of Cercina * Aurilius of

Kelibia Kelibia (Kélibia) ( '), often referred to as Klibia or Gallipia by European writers, is a coastal town on the Cap Bon peninsula, Nabeul Governorate in the far north-eastern part of Tunisia. Its sand beaches are considered some of the finest in ...

* Benantius of Oppidum Novum *

Collo Collo (), known as Chullu in antiquity, is a port town in the Skikda Province in northeastern Algeria, and forms part of the Collo Massif region. It is the capital and one of three municipalities of the Collo District. Formerly a Phoenician t ...

Crescens Crescens ( Greek: Κρίσκης) was an individual who appears in the New Testament. He is traditionally considered one of the 72 disciples sent out by Jesus in Luke 10. He was a missionary in Galatia and became a companion of Paul. The na ...

* Dantus * Eugenius of Carthage * Florentinus * Fortunatas and Optantius * Felix * Fortunatianus of Cillium *

Frumentius Saint Frumentius (; died c. 383) was a Phoenician Christian missionary and the first bishop of Axum who brought Christianity to the Kingdom of Aksum. He is sometimes known by other names, such as Abuna ("Our Father") and Aba Salama ("Father ...

* Honartus of Tlemcen * Reparatus of Cissi * Leporis of Azura * Martialis of Columnata * Maximus of Cova * Petrus * Peregrinus (bishop) * Pudentius of

Madauros Madauros (''Madaurus'', ''Madaura'') was a Roman-Berber city and a former diocese of the Catholic Church in the old state of Numidia, in present-day Algeria. History The birth of the city dates back to the 5th century BC under the aegis of the ...

M'Daourouch M'daourouch is a communes of Algeria, commune in Souk Ahras Province, Algeria, occupying the site of the Berber-Roman town of Madauros in Numidia. Demographics As of the 2008 census, M'daourouch has 36,351 inhabitants, which gives it 11 seats i ...

* Tacanus of Albulae * Tiberianus of Quiza * Rogatus *

Quintian, Lucius and Julian Quintian (Quinctianus), Lucius and Julian (Julianus) are venerated as saints and martyrs by the Roman Catholic Church. According to the ''Roman Martyrology'', they were inhabitants of North Africa who were killed during the persecutions of the Van ...

* Quodvultdeus of Coeliana * Victor of Pomaria * Victorian, Frumentius and Companions * Vadius of Lesvi * Vitalis of Castra Nova * Bishop of

Beniane Beniane (Colonial French Bénian) is a town and commune in Mascara Province, Algeria at the site of ancient Ala Miliaria, a former bishopric which earns a Latin Catholic titular see. According to the 1998 census it has a population of 4,530. ...

Tipasa Tipasa, sometimes distinguished as Tipasa in Mauretania, was a colonia in the Roman province Mauretania Caesariensis, nowadays called Tipaza, and located in coastal central Algeria. Since 1982, it has been declared by UNESCO a World Heritage Si ...

, Bonusta, Macri.

References

{{Authority control Byzantine manuscripts Lists of Roman Catholic bishops and archbishops History of Christianity in North Africa History of the Balearic Islands History of Sardinia Lists of Roman Catholic dioceses

Description

Bishops named in the ''Notitia''

See also

References