Social identity in early Medieval Britain.

Social identity in early Medieval Britain. WILLIAM O. FRAZER & ANDREW TYRELL (ed.). Social identity inearly Medieval Britain. xiii+283 pages, 19 figures. 2000. London:Leicester University Press; 0-7185-0084-9 hardback 45 [pounds sterling]. The Scottish Burgh BURGH. A borough; (q. v.) a castle or town. Survey began in 1976 and, in 1999, aquestionnaire was circulated in order to assess awareness of the Surveyand the pressures of forthcoming development among Scotland'soldest towns. The new report summarises the findings and concludes thatthere is a strong case for maintaining and developing the Survey. Mr FRAZER introduces 11 substantial papers in history, archaeology,art history and physical anthropology which show the enlivening effectof cultural anthropology and social studies. Individual, social,political, regional, ethnic and national identities are explored. ManyANTIQUITY readers will be drawn first to two pieces: T. Saunders'consideration of settlement planning and early towns in England This is a link page for towns and cities in England. Traditionally, in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, a town is any settlement which has received a charter of incorporation, more commonly known as a town charter, approved by the monarch. , whichtakes the risk of assessing feudalism feudalism(fy`dəlĭzəm), form of political and social organization typical of Western Europe from the dissolution of Charlemagne's empire to the rise of the absolute monarchies. as relations of social class; andS.T. Driscoll's study of Christian monumental sculptures inScotland. However, the book succeeds in drawing the attention tosuggestions from other disciplines -- do not be put off by C. Knusel& K. Ripley on the shamanism shamanism/sha��man��ism/ (shah��-) (sha��mah-nizm?) a traditional system, occurring in tribal societies, in which certain individuals (shamans) are believed to be gifted with access to an invisible spiritual wagon in their sturdy account ofparadoxical associations of gender in graves. B. Yorke'scontribution on historical evidence for pragmatic political affiliationscould also profitably be read by students of other societies (cf. HANSENin `World history', above). Viking Age England is a substantialrevision of Dr RICHARDS' book of 1991, updating with newinformation (NB the passage on the cemeteries at Heath Wood and Repton)and theory (new emphases on political, economic and cultural identity --`Viking England was a melting pot' (p. 169)). The text has beenreorganized and jazzed up a bit; references have been introduced; andsome of the pictures are different or improved along with more colourplates. (See also `Reissued', below.)