"esclavina" - two puzzles

[Tom Priestly]

Can someone help me with a problem in the late medieval history of
some Catholic Slavs? And/or the etymology of a Western Romance and
English word for a cloak?

In his book *The Road to Santiago* about the pilgrimage to Santiago
de Compostela (Spain), Walter Starkie (1957) writes:

"We can gauge the number of Slovenian pilgrims who must have
journeyed to Compostella in the Middle Ages by the fact that they
gave their name in Italian, Spanish and English to the long pilgrim's
shaggy garment the schiavina, esclavina or slaveyn, which was also
worn by the nomadic Gypsies. The Slovenians made a practice of taking
part in the pilgrimages for three successive years, for in their
country a man who made three trips might live exempt from taxation.
They would arrive at the end of April so as to be present in the
sanctuary on May Day and when they reached their third year and had
fulfilled their vow they paraded in solemn procession wearing
garlands on their heads."

Starkie is quoting  Manuel Murguía's book *Galicia* of 1888. Starkie
renders Murguía's report (as far as I can tell) accurately, except
for the word "Slovenians." The original reference begins: "De los
esclavones se dice que, según sus leyes, el que visitaba tres veces
la casa del Apóstol, quedaba libre de pechos y tributos," which I
understand as "Of the Slavs [?] it is said that, according to their
laws, he who visited the House of the Apostol [i.e., the Cathedral of
St. James in Santiago de Compostela] remained free of taxes and
tributes."

I read 'esclavones' as, perhaps, 'Slavs'; but maybe Murguía meant a
specific Slavic nationality or ethnic group, the most likely one
apparently being the Slavonians. Anyway, my question is: which Slavs
were these? A historian colleague in Ljubljana tells me that there
seems to be no reference to Slovenians having this custom. Taking as
a point of departure that the people referred to were Catholic, could
they have been Poles? Virtually all of the other Catholic Slavs were
subjects of the Habsburgs in 1600: it was unlikely that Slavic
subjects of the Emperor,  but no others, would be awarded special
privileges for making the pilrgimage.

Secondly, the etymological origin of Spanish esclavina (which is
still a common word for a women's cloak), Italian schiavino, French
esclavine, and medieval English slaveyn, is another puzzle. (I think
the word occurs in late medieval Dutch and German also). The Romance
etymological books I have consulted disagree in part; all say that it
was borrowed from Slavic /slav-/ but some say (a) it was a mark of
penitence to wear a slave's costume, others say (b) it was the name
of a costume-style worn in Slavonia or some unnamed Slavic country.

If anyone can throw light on either of these points - or suggest
sources of information -, I shall be very grateful.

Tom Priestly
--
=======================
Tom Priestly
9215-69 Street
Edmonton AB
Canada T6B 1V8
phone 780-469-2920
fax 780-492-9106
e-mail: tom.priestly at ualberta.ca
=======================

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