Summary The landscape around us is largely the result of man-made transformations. It consists of villages, farmsteads, cities, fields, ditches, and roads. This book examines how the landscape of the Mediterranean country of Catalonia was created and transformed. Although Catalonia's history goes back before the Middle Ages, it was during the medieval period that it saw significant development, which has continued ever since. Understanding the landscape helps us understand political, social, economic, and cultural changes. In this book we discover how the settlements built around a castle or a church were created, and what the open villages and new towns were like, both in Catalonia and in neighbouring territories. The book also explores the formation of cities and towns as well as the significance of hamlets and farmsteads, based on data provided by written documents and archaeological excavations. It also explores the formation of fields, ditches, and irrigated areas, and shows the importance of understanding the boundaries and demarcations that enclose valleys, villages, castles, and parishes. Finally, special attention is devoted to place names and cartography, as these shed light on numerous historical realities. TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1: Introduction Chapter 2: Houses Become a Village: The Villages of the Pyrenees Chapter 3: Churches, Monasteries, and Villages: In Each Village a Church Chapter 4: Castles and Castral Villages: The incastellamento of the Landscape Chapter 5: New Towns and Complex Settlements Chapter 6: Hamlets and Farmsteads: The Dispersal of the Population Chapter 7: The Medieval Towns and Cities: The Other Side of the Medieval Landscape Chapter 8: Cultivated Land: The Relevance of Pre-Medieval Past Chapter 9: Coombs, Terraces, Concentric Forms, and Land Strips Chapter 10: Irrigated Land, Rivers, and Lakes Chapter 11: The Importance of Mills, Iron, and Salt Chapter 12: Woodland and Pastureland: Changes in Vegetation and Environment Chapter 13: Roads and Pathways, the Network that Organizes the Landscape Chapter 14: Boundaries and Territories: A Country Full of Old Borders Chapter 15: The Importance of Toponymy Chapter 16: Mapping the Historical Landscape Conclusion: Studying Historic Landscapes Bridges Gaps Between the Past and the Present Glossary Works Cited Index of Personal Names Index of Place Names Index of Subjects