THE PROBLEM OF AUTHORSHIP OF THE EDICT OF THEODORIC

The Edict of Theodoric is a collection of legal norms compiled around the turn of the 5^th–6^th centuries and reflected the process of assimilation by the barbaric legislation of the norms of Roman law after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. The document has been known since the 16^th century, but the question of its authorship is still debatable. Based on modern historiography, the author summarizes the views of researchers on the authorship of the Edict and identifies two main hypotheses of the document’s origin: traditional and alternative. Supporters of the traditional one think that the author of the Edict is the Ostrogothic ruler of Italy, Theodoric the Great, who seized power in Italy after the removal of the usurper Odoacer. According to this hypothesis, the Edict is a monument of law created to ensure the peaceful coexistence of Romans and Ostrogoths on the lands of the former Western Roman Empire. The alternative hypothesis raises doubts about the affiliation of the Edict to Theodoric the Great and suggests other variants of its authorship. The article analyses the arguments in favour of both hypotheses and the weight of each of them.