This volume gathers a series of selected contributions about settlement patterns in the Italian countryside between Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages. It provides a critical overview of the most recent research carried out on late antique and early medieval Italy (Friuli Venezia Giulia, Liguria, Emilia Romagna, Tuscany, Lazio, Apulia and Calabria) and uses innovative interpretative frameworks to gain a better understanding of rural settlement dynamics.