This translation of Alle radici del mondo giuridico europeo published in Italy in 1994 is a comprehensive reappraisal of thinking on the common structural features of the various European jurisdictions. Professor Lupoi argues the case for the existence of an earlier system of common law as far back as between the sixth and eleventh centuries. Based on vulgar Roman legal culture and various Germanic customs, this law was codified in Latin and survives in modified form in modern English common law. Legal sources from all over Europe are compared and discussed. Cultures formerly considered to be ‘barbarian’ emerge in a different light and common strands are seen to emerge.