Urban society and space. Issues and the possibilities of utilising social topography in the research of medieval towns
2015
Abstract
Social topography deals with questions involving the manner in which the social order created settlement space and how the establishment of certain settlement structures in return influenced the living conditions and social relations of their residents. The aim of this methodological approach is not a description of a specific situation, but rather an attempt to capture the dynamic transformation of urban society and space.
An interdisciplinary approach is a new feature of social topography. Prosopographic analysis, building history and archaeology make it possible in many cases to uncover unanticipated social-spatial networks.
Issues on which medieval sources provide no immediate testimony can then be studied.