ltural work, and women purchased for domestic service. In fact, women were bought with an additional concept in mind: to serve the sexual appetites of their aristocratic owners. There are actually two churches in Termini Imerese dedicated to patron saints of female slaves: Santa Lucia and Santa Caterina del Egitto. Indeed this state of affairs in Termini Imerese, which was common all over the 16th-century lands of the Mediterranean and has been suppressed for centuries, has only begun to come to light in recent years.
The following image shows an entry in Codex A for the baptism of a female slave: Translation from Sicilian-Latin: ‘Father Caspano [Crisciuni] baptized the daughter of the female slave of Turrimbeni. She was named Caterina. Her godparents were two male slaves.’ In this case, the father was most likely Turrimbeni, himself.
The next image shows an entry in Codex A for the baptism of another female slave: Translation from Sicilian-Latin: ‘On day 29 [December 1547] Father Martino [Romano] baptized the daughter of Giovanni, the latter of whom is of the household of Pietro La Scola. She was named Sapia. The godfathers are Monsignore Filippo Satti and Monsignore Battista L’Abbate. The godmother is [Sister Filippa] L’Angelica’. This is an unusual case, for it would appear that Giovanni, whomever he was, had impregnated a female slave who has given birth to a daughter who was given a typical slave name, Sapia, that is, Wisdom. If Giovanni was, in fact, himself a slave, his punishment would have been severe as would that of the mother of Sapia because slaves in Sicily were forbidden to have sex among themselves unless they were married, which was not common.
In Codex A, most slaves are listed by owner, and sometimes it is possible to spot an original Tartar or Greek name among them. Five slaves: Paulino, Domenica, Filippa, Antonia, and an unnamed female which are designated ‘moro’ for the single male, and ‘mora’ for the four females (‘moro’ being the Sicilian term for ‘black person’ as opposed to ‘lu scavu’, the general term applied to all other slaves) might have been among those unfortunates imported into Sicily from the sub-Saharan region of Africa. Furthermore, a number of Termini’s slaves are designated in Codex A as Gypsies, that is to properly say, Roma. Surely the Roma must have been highly sought after in Termini as they were expert artisans in several areas (especially metalworking) not to mention being renowned for their prowess in handling horses. A total of 55 slaves are mentioned in the baptismal records just for the years 1542-48 alone; one can only imagine how many more there were in service.
The former Jews of Termini Imerese (Neofiti) are represented in Codex A by several families; among them, the Palumbo [Jonah], Saccomanno [Isacco-Ermanno], Salamuni [Solomon], and Levitza [Levi] families. Only 50 years before the first baptisms were recorded in Codex A, many among these families were still practicing Jews living in Termini’s Jewish Quarter, known as the Celtigene. After the events of 1492, their synagogue, which was located not far from the church of San Nicola Bari, in the area where the Roman Amphitheater once stood, was torn down and replaced by the San Dighiera Monastery which still stands.
Among the priests and nuns who were present for the Baptisms of Termini’s residents, several must have had practically star status in their day because of their tireless devotion. Among them are the the priests, Fathers Martino Romano, Antonino Vianisi, Filippo Teresi, Pietro DiFerro, and Caspano Crisciuni; and the nuns Sisters Antonina LaProvenza, Caterina LaGiuffrida and Mother Superior Domenica LaGrigola.
Of course, the greater part of the Codex A consists of the names of the artisans, the fisherman, and other workers who made up the core population of 16th-century Termini. Current readers of Sicilian heritage will certainly be surprised to see the names their families so well represented.
One of the more fascinating questions that has been raised regarding baptisms in Termini Imerese concerns the present