From the late Middle Ages onwards certain sections of the population slowly started to merge with the Slavic peoples of Dalmatia. This process was most evident in the coastal and island regions of Dalmatia and in the Republic of Ragusa. The 1667 Dubrovnik earthquake, which destroyed the greater part of Dubrovnik (Ragusa) has been cited as a turning point for the make up of the ethnic population of the Republic. This new Slavic population within the Republic became, with time, Romanised (adopted Latin culture). Within Ragusa's community there were mixed marriages (i.e. Roger Joseph Boscovich).<ref>[http://books.google.com.au/books?id=J4TZPlihVUoC&pg=PA156&dq=Roger+Joseph+Boscovich+italian+mother&hl=en&ei=q8y-Te2lLISovQOiwpDbBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CDwQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=Roger%20Joseph%20Boscovich%20italian%20mother&f=false The Extraterrestrial Life Debate, 1750-1900 ] by Michael J. Crowe (p.156) </ref> | From the late Middle Ages onwards certain sections of the population slowly started to merge with the Slavic peoples of Dalmatia. This process was most evident in the coastal and island regions of Dalmatia and in the Republic of Ragusa. The 1667 Dubrovnik earthquake, which destroyed the greater part of Dubrovnik (Ragusa) has been cited as a turning point for the make up of the ethnic population of the Republic. This new Slavic population within the Republic became, with time, Romanised (adopted Latin culture). Within Ragusa's community there were mixed marriages (i.e. Roger Joseph Boscovich).<ref>[http://books.google.com.au/books?id=J4TZPlihVUoC&pg=PA156&dq=Roger+Joseph+Boscovich+italian+mother&hl=en&ei=q8y-Te2lLISovQOiwpDbBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CDwQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=Roger%20Joseph%20Boscovich%20italian%20mother&f=false The Extraterrestrial Life Debate, 1750-1900 ] by Michael J. Crowe (p.156) </ref> |