History and identity in Frankish kingdoms during the reign of the Merovingians and the Carolingians

By examining historiographic texts from the Frankish period that have been preserved in different versions and contexts the article points out their role in the formation of Frankish identity, together with the fact that they had often assumed a competitive character. In view of this, it is imperative in the study of ethnic identities and state formations of early medieval Europe to take into consideration the diversity as well as the competitive nature of the perceptions of history of that time.