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Public Health Problems in the Medieval Statutes of Croatian Adriatic Coastal Towns: From Public Morality to Public Health

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Abstract

The article seeks out the regulations about public health in the oldest medieval statutes of fourteen cities of the eastern Croatian Adriatic coast, between the thirteenth and sixteenth century. The research revealed numerous examples of direct or indirect ways of protecting public health. Through the analyzed documents, a noteworthy relationship between public morality and public health can be noted. The described rules are important as a reflection of awareness about public health as a condition of survival and progress in the past. They witness a progressive transition from an original common law into a written law as well as the impact that religion had in influencing people’s general opinion and lifestyle in light of public health problems.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to give a special thanks to Prof. Catherine Paul (Department of English, Clemson University) who assisted in the translation and proofreading of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Forensic Medicine, Rijeka University School of Medicine, Brace Branchetta 20, 51 000, Rijeka, Croatia

    Anja Petaros

  2. Department of Social Sciences and Medical Humanities, Rijeka University, School of Medicine, 51 000, Rijeka, Croatia

    Ante Skrobonja

  3. Teaching Institute for Public Health, 51 000, Rijeka, Croatia

    Tatjana Culina

  4. Department of Forensic Medicine, Rijeka University School of Medicine, 51 000, Rijeka, Croatia

    Alan Bosnar

  5. Department of Anaesthesiology and ICU, Rijeka University Hospital, 51 000, Rijeka, Croatia

    Vedran Frkovic & Josip Azman

Authors
  1. Anja Petaros
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  2. Ante Skrobonja
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  3. Tatjana Culina
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  4. Alan Bosnar
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  5. Vedran Frkovic
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  6. Josip Azman
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Correspondence to Anja Petaros.

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Petaros, A., Skrobonja, A., Culina, T. et al. Public Health Problems in the Medieval Statutes of Croatian Adriatic Coastal Towns: From Public Morality to Public Health. J Relig Health 52, 531–537 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-011-9503-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-011-9503-7

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