scholarly journals Landscape changes and human–landscape interaction during the first millennium AD in the Netherlands

2021 ◽  
Vol 100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harm Jan Pierik
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Middle Ages ◽  
Coastal Plain ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Human Movement ◽  
Roman Period ◽  
Landscape Changes ◽  
Landscape Sensitivity ◽  
First Millennium ◽  
Human Landscape

Abstract The first millennium AD encompasses the Roman period (12 BC to AD 450) and the Early Middle Ages (AD 450 to 1050). In the Netherlands, this millennium saw population growth, steep decline and subsequent revival. In addition, many changes occurred in the physical landscape, marking a transition from a mainly natural prehistorical lowland landscape to an increasingly human-affected landscape. This paper synthesises the main landscape changes and human–landscape interactions in the Netherlands during this dynamic period. The degree of landscape change is compared between the coastal plain, the delta and the Pleistocene sand area. Human activities caused major often unintended geomorphological changes in all studied landscapes. Landscape sensitivity to human impact, however, strongly varied as a function of preceding landscape state. The most prominent changes took place in many parts of the coastal plain, where back-barrier peatlands transformed into open tidal basins. Presence of compaction-prone peat and intensified artificial drainage led to subsidence. This precondition and slow anthropogenic forcing combined, made the area more sensitive to stochastically occurring storms, which could serve as tipping points for large-scale drowning. Eventually, major peatlands turned into tidal areas that for many centuries would remain unsuitable for habitation. Human-induced peatland subsidence also led to the formation of the new Hollandse IJssel and Lek river branches. This marked a major reorganisation of the river network in the lower Rhine–Meuse delta. In the middle and upstream parts of the delta, the landscape was more stable. Yet, settlements on the natural levees show adaption to increasing flooding frequency from the Late Roman period onwards. The settlements shifted towards higher positions, while route networks between them largely remained intact. Smaller-scale landscape changes were found in the Pleistocene sand area. Here, local sand drifting occurred, most frequently occurring close to human movement corridors. Drift sand intensity became larger as population density increased after c.AD 900.

Formation and Land-Use History of Celtic Fields in North-West Europe – an Interdisciplinary Case Study at Zeijen, the Netherlands

2003 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 141-173 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theo Spek ◽  
Willy Groenman-van Waateringe ◽  
Maja Kooistra ◽  
Lideweij Bakker
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
The Netherlands ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Roman Period ◽  
Soil Tillage ◽  
North West ◽  
Late Iron Age ◽  
History Of

Celtic field research has so far been strongly focused on prospection and mapping. As a result of this there is a serious lack of knowledge of formation and land-use processes of these fields. This article describes a methodological case study in The Netherlands that may be applied to other European Celtic fields in the future. By interdisciplinary use of pedological, palynological and micromorphological research methods the authors were able to discern five development stages in the history of the field, dating from the late Bronze Age to the early Roman Period. There are strong indications that the earthen ridges, very typical for Celtic fields in the sandy landscapes of north-west Europe, were only formed in the later stages of Celtic field agriculture (late Iron Age and early Roman period). They were the result of a determined raising of the surface by large-scale transportation of soil material from the surroundings of the fields. Mainly the ridges were intensively cultivated and manured in the later stages of Celtic field cultivation. In the late Iron Age a remarkable shift in Celtic field agriculture took place from an extensive system with long fallow periods, a low level of manuring and extensive soil tillage to a more intensive system with shorter fallow periods, a more intensive soil tillage and a higher manuring intensity. There are also strong indications that rye (Secale cereale) was the main crop in the final stage of Celtic field agriculture.

scholarly journals Medieval impacts on the vegetation around the confluence of the river Meuse and its tributary the Swalm, the Netherlands

2016 ◽  
Vol 96 (2) ◽  
pp. 165-173 ◽  
Author(s):  
Corrie Bakels
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Middle Ages ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Vegetation History ◽  
Black Death ◽  
Anthropogenic Stress ◽  
River Meuse ◽  
Pollen Diagrams ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Middle Ages

AbstractThe vegetation history of the area around the confluence of the rivers Meuse and Swalm (the Netherlands) during the Middle Ages is covered by two pollen diagrams. The diagram Swalmen reveals a large-scale deforestation as a result of the foundation of a nobleman's homestead around 950. The diagram Syperhof shows a period during which the forest partly returns after a long history of unremitting anthropogenic stress. This temporary phenomenon is ascribed to the onslaught of the Black Death in 1349. Both diagrams provide evidence of the start of buckwheat growing.

scholarly journals Drift sands, lakes, and soils: the multiphase Holocene history of the Laarder Wasmeren area near Hilversum, the Netherlands

2013 ◽  
Vol 92 (4) ◽  
pp. 243-266 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Sevink ◽  
E.A. Koster ◽  
B. van Geel ◽  
J. Wallinga
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Middle Ages ◽  
Groundwater Level ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Soil Formation ◽  
Open Water ◽  
Second Phase ◽  
15Th Century ◽  
Late Middle Ages ◽  
The Stability

AbstractA unique complex of multiphased Holocene drift sands and paleosols, with at least two lacustrine phases, was discovered during a major sanitation project in the Laarder Wasmeren area near Hilversum, the Netherlands. The complex could be studied in detail, highly facilitated by the excellent and large-scale exposure of the various deposits and soils. OSL dating was used to establish ages of the phases, where possible differentiating between time of deposition and time of burial by taking into account the potential effects of bioturbation. Pollen analysis served to reconstruct the vegetation during the various phases.A first minor phase of aeolian activity already started before approx. 5,000 BC, followed around 4,000 BC by a second phase and a rather massive third phase around 3,000 BC. After a long phase of soil formation, the latest, massive drift sand phase started around the 14th to 15th century. It clearly represents the classic drift sand phase that started in the Late Middle Ages in the Netherlands. Sand drifting followed on soil forming phases during which the vegetation became increasingly dominated by ericaceous plants and culminated in heathlands. The first three aeolian phases and associated heathlands are much older than generally assumed for heathland and drift sand to occur in the Netherlands. Moreover, podzolisation was found to have started very early, true podzols already occurring before 4,000 BC.Around 3,000 BC groundwater in the area reached a maximum altitude of about 230 cm +NAP, resulting in local open water in the area. This rise is probably linked to the development of the Dutch coastal area, where at that time peat accumulated and drainage was poor, inducing a rise of the groundwater level in ‘het Gooi’. This groundwater level fell later on, to never reach this altitude again. The Groot Wasmeer was formed by local stagnation on a slowly permeable podzol and already reached a level of 320-325 cm +NAP by 400 BC, which more or less equals its 20thcentury level.The results demonstrate that earlier concepts on the occurrence and age of aeolian phases, podzols and heathland vegetations in the Netherlands are far too schematic, and that early, pre-agricultural cultures may already have had an impact on the stability of fragile cover sand landscapes, e.g. through burning. Results are in line with those from several contemporary studies on early prehistoric cultures and their impact in river dune areas in the Central and Eastern Netherlands.

The Making of the Medieval Middle East

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jack Tannous
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Middle Ages ◽  
Religious History ◽  
Late Antique ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
Conversion To Islam ◽  
History Of ◽  
First Millennium ◽  
Muslim Communities ◽  
The Middle Ages

In the second half of the first millennium CE, the Christian Middle East fractured irreparably into competing churches and Arabs conquered the region, setting in motion a process that would lead to its eventual conversion to Islam. This book argues that key to understanding these dramatic religious transformations are ordinary religious believers, often called “the simple” in late antique and medieval sources. Largely agrarian and illiterate, these Christians outnumbered Muslims well into the era of the Crusades, and yet they have typically been invisible in our understanding of the Middle East's history. What did it mean for Christian communities to break apart over theological disagreements that most people could not understand? How does our view of the rise of Islam change if we take seriously the fact that Muslims remained a demographic minority for much of the Middle Ages? In addressing these and other questions, the book provides a sweeping reinterpretation of the religious history of the medieval Middle East. The book draws on a wealth of Greek, Syriac, and Arabic sources to recast these conquered lands as largely Christian ones whose growing Muslim populations are properly understood as converting away from and in competition with the non-Muslim communities around them.

Management of the Dutch Waddensea

1984 ◽  
Vol 16 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 485-495 ◽  
Author(s):  
D Vreugdenhil
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Middle Ages ◽  
Human Activities ◽  
Nature Reserve ◽  
The Other ◽  
Hydrological Processes ◽  
Dutch Government ◽  
Shallow Sea ◽  
Management Objectives ◽  
Late Middle Ages

It was not until the late Middle Ages that the sea penetrated far into the interior of The Netherlands, thus flooding three quarters of a million hectares of land. Since then half a million hectares have been reclaimed from the sea. The Dutch Government chose to preserve the remaining quarter of a million hectares of shallow sea with mudflats of the Waddensea as a nature reserve. The management objectives are at one hand to preserve all characteristic habitats and species with a minimal interference by human activities in geomorphological and hydrological processes, and at the other hand to guarantee the safety against the sea of the inhabitants of the adjacent mainland and islands and to facilitate certain economic and recreational uses of the Waddensea without jeopardizing the natural qualities. These objectives are being elaborated in managementplans.

Bottlenecks in the Implementation of On-Site Wastewater Treatment Plants on a Large Scale in The Netherlands

1990 ◽  
Vol 22 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 291-298
Author(s):  
Frits A. Fastenau ◽  
Jaap H. J. M. van der Graaf ◽  
Gerard Martijnse
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
The Netherlands ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Housing Stock ◽  
Research Work ◽  
Field Research ◽  
Domestic Wastewater ◽  
Research Programme ◽  
Definition Of

More than 95 % of the total housing stock in the Netherlands is connected to central sewerage systems and in most cases the wastewater is treated biologically. As connection to central sewerage systems has reached its economic limits, interest in on-site treatment of the domestic wastewater of the remaining premises is increasing. A large scale research programme into on-site wastewater treatment up to population equivalents of 200 persons has therefore been initiated by the Dutch Ministry of Housing, Physical Planning and Environment. Intensive field-research work did establish that the technological features of most on-site biological treatment systems were satisfactory. A large scale implementation of these systems is however obstructed in different extents by problems of an organisational, financial and/or juridical nature and management difficulties. At present research is carried out to identify these bottlenecks and to analyse possible solutions. Some preliminary results are given which involve the following ‘bottlenecks':-legislation: absence of co-ordination and absence of a definition of ‘surface water';-absence of subsidies;-ownership: divisions in task-setting of Municipalities and Waterboards; divisions involved with cost-sharing;-inspection; operational control and maintenance; organisation of management;-discharge permits;-pollution levy;-sludge disposal. Final decisions and practical elaboration of policies towards on-site treatment will have to be formulated in a broad discussion with all the authorities and interest groups involved.

scholarly journals Social Media in and Around a Temporary Large-Scale Refugee Shelter in the Netherlands

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 205630512110249
Author(s):  
Peer Smets ◽  
Younes Younes ◽  
Marinka Dohmen ◽  
Kees Boersma ◽  
Lenie Brouwer
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
The Netherlands ◽  
Crisis Communication ◽  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
State Policies ◽  
Refugee Crisis ◽  
Top Down ◽  
And Migration

During the 2015 refugee crisis in Europe, temporary refugee shelters arose in the Netherlands to shelter the large influx of asylum seekers. The largest shelter was located in the eastern part of the country. This shelter, where tents housed nearly 3,000 asylum seekers, was managed with a firm top-down approach. However, many residents of the shelter—mainly Syrians and Eritreans—developed horizontal relations with the local receiving society, using social media to establish contact and exchange services and goods. This case study shows how various types of crisis communication played a role and how the different worlds came together. Connectivity is discussed in relation to inclusion, based on resilient (non-)humanitarian approaches that link society with social media. Moreover, we argue that the refugee crisis can be better understood by looking through the lens of connectivity, practices, and migration infrastructure instead of focusing only on state policies.

scholarly journals How Does Diet Influence Our Lives? Evaluating the Relationship between Isotopic Signatures and Mortality Patterns in Italian Roman Imperial and Medieval Periods

Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (13) ◽  
pp. 3895
Author(s):  
Marica Baldoni ◽  
Alessandra Nardi ◽  
Flavio De Angelis ◽  
Olga Rickards ◽  
Cristina Martínez-Labarga
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Dietary Habits ◽  
Roman Period ◽  
Survivorship Analysis ◽  
Linear Effect ◽  
Isotopic Signatures ◽  
Carbon Isotopic ◽  
Religious Aspects ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Source Of Information

The present research investigates the relationship between dietary habits and mortality patterns in the Roman Imperial and Medieval periods. The reconstructions of population dynamics and subsistence strategies provide a fascinating source of information for understanding our history. This is particularly true given that the changes in social, economic, political, and religious aspects related to the transition from the Roman period to the Middle Ages have been widely discussed. We analyzed the isotopic and mortality patterns of 616 individuals from 18 archeological sites (the Medieval Latium sites of Colonna, Santa Severa, Allumiere, Cencelle, and 14 Medieval and Imperial funerary contexts from Rome) to compile a survivorship analysis. A semi-parametric approach was applied, suggesting variations in mortality patterns between sexes in the Roman period. Nitrogen isotopic signatures influenced mortality in both periods, showing a quadratic and a linear effect for Roman Imperial and Medieval populations, respectively. No influence of carbon isotopic signatures has been detected for Roman Imperial populations. Conversely, increased mortality risk for rising carbon isotopic values was observed in Medieval samples.

scholarly journals Implications of the COVID-19 Lockdown on Dengue Transmission in Malaysia

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 148-160
Author(s):  
Song-Quan Ong ◽  
Hamdan Ahmad ◽  
Ahmad Mohiddin Mohd Ngesom
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Moving Average ◽  
Human Movement ◽  
Population Movement ◽  
Sarima Model ◽  
Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average ◽  
Predominant Species ◽  
Lower Confidence ◽  
Dengue Transmission ◽  
Stage 1

We aim to investigate the effect of large-scale human movement restrictions during the COVID-19 lockdown on both the dengue transmission and vector occurrences. This study compared the weekly dengue incidences during the period of lockdown to the previous years (2015 to 2019) and a Seasonal Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (SARIMA) model that expected no movement restrictions. We found that the trend of dengue incidence during the first two weeks (stage 1) of lockdown decreased significantly with the incidences lower than the lower confidence level (LCL) of SARIMA. By comparing the magnitude of the gradient of decrease, the trend is 319% steeper than the trend observed in previous years and 650% steeper than the simulated model, indicating that the control of population movement did reduce dengue transmission. However, starting from stage 2 of lockdown, the dengue incidences demonstrated an elevation and earlier rebound by four weeks and grew with an exponential pattern. We revealed that Aedes albopictus is the predominant species and demonstrated a strong correlation with the locally reported dengue incidences, and therefore we proposed the possible diffusive effect of the vector that led to a higher acceleration of incidence rate.

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