To the question of the origin of "Decretum Gratiani"

The «Decretum Gratiani» is, without exaggeration, the first source that brought into compliance and resolved the contradictions between the norms of medieval Canon law in Western Europe. Western and Russian experts’ particular interest to the work of Bologna monk Gratiani is caused by several reasons, among which: the lack of common view on the process of creating this «Decretum», reasoning on its source base, as well as disputes over the author’s personality. In connection with the above, the author of the article considers the question of the origin of «Decretum Gratiani» taking into account the latest achievements of Russian and Western specialists on the stated issue. Based on the research findings, the author comes to the conclusion that the text of the «Decretum Gratiani» changed over time, as views of Gratiani on law were also modified (hence the disputes over the exact date of the creation of the source and its revisions). Starting to create the «Decretum Gratiani» as a tutorial for his personal use, later he reworked it into a full-fledged tutorial of Canon law for priests and lawyers, and then into a collection of norms of Canon law, the likes of which did not exist in Europe at that time.