The archaeological study of neighborhoods and districts in ancient cities

Smith, Michael E.

doi:10.1016/j.jaa.2010.01.001

Cited by 187 publications

(108 citation statements)

References 54 publications

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“…And by far the bigger tendency for low-income neighborhoods is to remain "stuck in place" (9). More generally, neighborhood inequalities have persisted across long time scales and historical eras despite the transformation of political regimes and the specific layout of cities (18). Although beyond the scope of this paper, sharp and growing inequalities characterize most international cities as well (19).…”

Section: The Landscape Of Cumulative Adversitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Urban sustainability in an age of enduring inequalities: Advancing theory and ecometrics for the 21st-century city

Sampson

2017

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

112

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The environmental fragility of cities under advanced urbanization has motivated extensive efforts to promote the sustainability of urban ecosystems and physical infrastructures. Less attention has been devoted to neighborhood inequalities and fissures in the civic infrastructure that potentially challenge social sustainability and the capacity of cities to collectively address environmental challenges. This article draws on a program of research in three American cities—Boston, Chicago, and Los Angeles—to develop hypotheses and methodological strategies for assessing how the multidimensional and multilevel inequalities that characterize contemporary cities bear on sustainability. In addition to standard concerns with relative inequality in income, the article reviews evidence on compounded deprivation, racial cleavages, civic engagement, institutional cynicism, and segregated patterns of urban mobility and organizational ties that differentially connect neighborhood resources. Harnessing “ecometric” measurement tools and emerging sources of urban data with a theoretically guided framework on neighborhood inequality can enhance the pursuit of sustainable cities, both in the United States and globally.

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Section: The Landscape Of Cumulative Adversitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Urban sustainability in an age of enduring inequalities: Advancing theory and ecometrics for the 21st-century city

Sampson

2017

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

112

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“…This work complements nicely on-going research on complex societies in other areas of the world. Smith and others have been at the forefront in developing a method for defining neighborhoods and districts in ancient cities (74,75). This approach involves defining spatial zones in urban places that may be bounded by physical features, such as walls, avenues, canals, or open spaces; that may be characterized by some element of social distinctiveness, such as shared patterns of material culture; or that may be defined by discrete clusters of residential buildings (75).…”

Section: The Investigation Of Ethnic Neighborhoodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Smith and others have been at the forefront in developing a method for defining neighborhoods and districts in ancient cities (74,75). This approach involves defining spatial zones in urban places that may be bounded by physical features, such as walls, avenues, canals, or open spaces; that may be characterized by some element of social distinctiveness, such as shared patterns of material culture; or that may be defined by discrete clusters of residential buildings (75). The size and attributes of these spatial zones, along with the spatial analysis of artifacts, may then be used to define neighborhoods and larger-scale administrative districts (typically composed of multiple neighborhoods).…”

Section: The Investigation Of Ethnic Neighborhoodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dynamics of change in multiethnic societies: An archaeological perspective from colonial North America

Lightfoot

2015

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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This Perspective presents an overview of the archaeology of pluralistic colonies (approximately late 1500s-1800s) in North America. It complements the other special feature papers in this issue on ancient societies in Mesoamerica, the Near East, the Armenian Highlands, Peru, and China by presenting another body of literature for examining the dynamics of change in multiethnic societies from a different time and place. In synthesizing archaeological investigations of mercantile, plantation, and missionary colonies, this Perspective shows how this research is relevant to the study of pluralism in both historic and ancient societies in three ways. (i) It enhances our understanding of interethnic relationships that took place in complex societies with imposing political hierarchies and labor structures. (ii) It helps us to refine the methods used by archaeologists to define and analyze multiethnic communities that were spatially delimited by ethnic neighborhoods. Finally, (iii) it presents more than a half century of experimentation with various models (e.g., acculturation, creolization, ethnogenesis, and hybridity) that have been used to study the dynamics of culture change in multiethnic societies.European colonies | indigenous peoples | enslaved laborers | colonial hierarchies | ethnic neighborhoodsAn important issue in the study of the dynamics of change in multiethnic societies is understanding how pluralism may have created new forms of social relationships, cultural practices, and sociopolitical organizations over time. Archaeologists have long been interested in documenting ancient places where large, pluralistic populations resided. There is growing interest in the investigation of culture contact, pluralism, and social dynamics in ancient cultures using crosscultural, comparative analyses (1-3). The comparative study of social formations in complex societies is particularly timely for the field of archaeology (4, 5). That is why the papers in this PNAS Special Feature are so important: they make a significant contribution in broadening our perspective and understanding about the social dynamics of complex, multiethnic polities in Mesoamerica, the Near East, the Armenian Highlands, Peru, and China.The purpose of this Perspective is to place the PNAS papers into the broader archaeological literature on pluralistic places. It is important to recognize that an extensive body of research exists for the study of multiethnic communities. Since the 1960s historical archaeologists have used a diverse range of datasets, including archaeological materials, archival documents, ethnographic accounts, and oral traditions to examine interethnic interactions in colonial settings. I begin by presenting a brief overview on the archaeology of colonialism in North America that has focused on settler, managerial, and missionary colonies. I then outline how this research may be relevant for scholars working elsewhere in the world who are examining the dynamics of change in multiethnic societies characterized by notable politica...

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“…Ciò implica che i quartieri sono caratterizzati da stretti legami tra i propri abitanti, spesso scanditi da quotidiani interazioni e contatti diretti. Gli studi spaziali nello specifico identificano un quartiere in base alla sua capacità di instaurare relazioni tra i suoi residenti attraverso l'impianto architettonico (Suttles 1972in Smith 2010a, alla presenza di servizi condivisi quali fontane d'acqua (cf. Laurence 2007: 39-61), negozi o altre necessità quotidiane (Van Nes 2011) e, nel caso della nostra città romana, santuari locali o tempi a servizio di una particolare comunità.…”

Section: La Scelta DI Quartieri Antichiunclassified

Due antichi quartieri romani sotto la lente di ingrandimento: un’analisi space syntax dei quartieri delle città antiche e della loro vita sociale

Stöger

Brandimarte²

2015

Arqueol. Arquitect.

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ResumenEl estudio de los vecindarios y el uso social del espacio habitado son temas de interés creciente. Mediante la combinación de métodos arqueológicos y space syntax, este artículo ofrece nuevas formas de analizar el entorno físico de la vida cotidiana en las ciudades romanas. El examen detallado de dos bloques urbanos en Ostia (la ciudad portuaria de Roma en época imperial) nos ha permitido identificar espacios que fomentan la cohesión social y la vida en comunidad. El uso común de patios y pasillos en el Bloque IV ii sugiere un uso comunal continuado desde el siglo II hasta el siglo V d. C. En claro contraste con este sector, el Bloque IV iv no tiene espacios comunes y muestra edificios aislados con accesos individuales al espacio público. El Bloque IV ii disfruta de espacios compartidos dentro de su propio perímetro, mientras que el Bloque IV iv parece estar orientado por el interés de comunidades externas con actividades desarrolladas hacia la calle creando cierto aislamiento del bloque. Estos resultados muestran la flexibilidad de las estructuras urbanas romanas y nos permiten atisbar la actividad de comunidades que permitieron el desarrollo sostenible de la ciudad en procesos de larga duración.Palabras clave: Arqueología romana; Ostia; ciudades portuarias; space syntax; vecindarios urbanos; vida en comunidad. AbstRActNeighbourhoods and the social use of space are areas of growing interest. By combining archaeological methods and space syntax, the article offers new insights into the physical environment of daily life in the Roman city. The detailed examination of two city blocks from Ostia (Rome's imperial port-town), allows the authors to identify spaces which fostered social cohesion and community building. The shared courtyards and passage spaces of Block IV ii suggest continued community focus (2nd -5th centuries AD). In contrast, Block IV iv lacks common spaces and revealed self-contained buildings centred on individual access to public space. Block IV ii enjoyed shared spaces within its own perimeter, while Block IV iv looks toward external community building, with activities centred on the street confining the block. The results show the flexibility of Roman urban structures and allow for suggestive glimpses into the community that sustained the city in the long-term.

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The archaeological study of neighborhoods and districts in ancient cities

Cited by 187 publications

References 54 publications

Urban sustainability in an age of enduring inequalities: Advancing theory and ecometrics for the 21st-century city

Urban sustainability in an age of enduring inequalities: Advancing theory and ecometrics for the 21st-century city

Dynamics of change in multiethnic societies: An archaeological perspective from colonial North America

Due antichi quartieri romani sotto la lente di ingrandimento: un’analisi space syntax dei quartieri delle città antiche e della loro vita sociale

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