THe martial function of the central places

• What was the role of central places in Viking Age Scandinavia? This paper discusses this question by examining the central places in a historical perspective. They often have a remarkable site continuity with roots in the Roman Iron Age, or slightly earlier, where certain buildings were superimposed, i.e. erected on the same spot, for generations. This speaks in favour of the idea that several of the functions/structures that were there in the early history of the central places still were important in the Viking Age. Therefore, to fully encompass the role of central places it is important to shed light upon both the early group established in the Early Iron Age and the late group that arise in the beginning of the Late Iron Age, in the late 6th/7th century. In this article the Roman influences are underlined and it is argued that these could be the root of the martial functions of the central places. 

Subject headings

HUMANIORA  -- Historia och arkeologi -- Arkeologi (hsv//swe)

HUMANITIES  -- History and Archaeology -- Archaeology (hsv//eng)

Keyword

central places

martial culture

Roman impact

Helgö

Uppåkra

Ravlunda

arkeologi

Archaeology

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

kap (subject category)