Jerome’s relations to the area of the Western Balkans and the Northern Adriatic in the time of his sojourn in the East (375–420)

In historiography and theology Christian epistolography of the late antiquity is one of the signifi cant sources for researching a comprehensive spectrum of social factors. Since his own time and throughout history Jerome has, with his profound intellect, long been rousing interest. His literary works, not only translations and exegetic treatises, but also theological, biographic and historical compositions, were written in and speak of a turning point in history. The letters are certainly one of the most important witnesses to the social situation in the Western Balkans and the Northern Adriatic at that time and to his personal relations with the people of the area in question, which are best and most eloquently depicted through his celebration of the ideals of the ascetic life and monasticism, culminating in the very time of Jerome.