Sheep, and to a lesser extent goat, pastoralism was a central component of the economy of medieval Sicily. Unlike the Byzantine period (6^th- early 9^th c. AD), when sheep/goat were mainly raised for their wool, husbandry strategies were much more generalised during the Arab occupation (9^th-11^th c. AD). In this latter period, caprines were equally exploited for meat, dairy products and wool. Biometrical analyses indicate an increase in sheep size in the Arab period, which is probably a consequence of an interest in maximising outputs. This phenomenon can be interpreted as a component of the broader changes associated with the so-called Arab Agricultural Revolution. In the Norman/Aragonese period (11^th- late 13^th c. AD), a further improvement in sheep size indicates a continuity of the animal husbandry strategies initiated by the Arabs. In this period, sheep/goat culling profiles suggest the existence of a more specialised economy focused on meat and, to a lesser extent, wool production.

绵羊和山羊，畜牧业是中世纪西西里经济的核心组成部分。与拜占庭时期（公元 6^世纪- 公元 9 世纪初期^{）不同，当时绵羊/山羊主要是为了羊毛而饲养的，而在阿拉伯占领时期}（公元9世纪 -11^世纪） ，畜牧策略更为普遍。在后一个时期，山羊同样被用于生产肉类、奶制品和羊毛。生物特征分析表明，阿拉伯时期绵羊的大小有所增加，这可能是出于对产量最大化感兴趣的结果。这种现象可以解释为与所谓的阿拉伯农业革命相关的更广泛变化的一个组成部分。在诺曼/阿拉贡时期（11^日- 13 年末^c . AD），绵羊大小的进一步改善表明阿拉伯人发起的畜牧业战略的连续性。在这一时期，绵羊/山羊宰杀概况表明，存在着一个更专业的经济，重点是肉类，在较小程度上是羊毛生产。