Interpreting protohistoric societies through place names of landscape features

A case study in València, Spain

Bibliographic Data

ID11167809
AuthorsJoan Carles Membrado-Tena (0000-0001-6961-1449, Universitat de València, corresponding author)
Year2021
Volume46
Issue6
Pages811-827
Publication date2021-08-18
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueLandscape Research (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0142-6397 • E-ISSN: 1469-9710
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/01426397.2021.1914567
OpenAlexW3157604682
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited36

Protohistoric place names, created before written history and related to extinct languages, are analysed in this article. Our case study deals with place names of current towns (over 20,000 inhabitants) in the Spanish region of València. Linguistics is needed when dealing with the origin of an opaque protohistoric place name, but observation of landscape features is crucial when finding or choosing the most plausible origin of a place name if there is more than one theory. Protohistoric names are thus interpreted in this article from two perspectives: landscape feature observation and philology. This multimethod analysis produces more reliable results. The main results reveal that protohistoric town names in our case study derive from natural features of landscape, while historic town names refer mainly to cultural features of landscape. Place names are one of the most valuable sources available to explain the concerns of protohistoric peoples

Archaeology · Cultural landscape · Ethnology · Genealogy · Geography · Linguistics · Sociology · Toponymy · Anthropology · Archaeological Research and Protection · Categorization, perception, and language · Cultural Heritage Management and Preservation · History · Philosophy

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