Village Formation in the Netherlands during the Middle Ages (AD 800 – 1600). An assessment of recent excavations and a path to progress: Oogst voor Malta: Dorpsvorming in de Middeleeuwen (ca. 800 - 1600)

How old are our historical villages and how did they develop? Which factors contributed to their formation? And what have recent archaeological excavations contributed to our understanding of this process? The formation and development of villages is one of the current priorities on the Dutch Archaeological Research Agenda (NOaA). To increase our knowledge on the subject the National Heritage Agency (RCE) initiated the ‘Valletta Harvest’ programme, a stimulus programme aimed to synthesize recent data into new insights. This research was carried out by the department of Archaeology at the University of Amsterdam. The aim of the study was to determine what a decade of development-led archaeological (contract) research has yielded scientifically on the topic of ‘Village formation in the Netherlands during the Middle Ages (AD 800 – 1600)’. First we assessed the potential of excavated sites for synthesis (phase 1); next, relevant sites were confronted with new strands of knowledge (phase 2); and finally, we evaluated the present questions of the research agenda and made recommendations for an update (phase 3). The four case studies we analysed revealed that the processes of village formation were quite similar on an abstract level and correspond with current settlement models. At the same time, however, these cases illustrated a great variety in form and development. Comparison with villages in the wider region showed that none could be held as exemplary. This variety means that local factors and human agency played a key role in the development of our villages. Therefore, to advance our understanding of village formation, the primary aim of local and regional research should not be to compose a regional model, but rather to describe and understand the socio-historical development of local villages within the wider village territory. So far, systematic archaeological research in historical villages has been rare in the Netherlands. However, our case studies illustrate the great potential of archaeological observations (even small-scale) when undertaken within a municipal research agenda based on an historical-geographical framework. This scientific report is intended for archaeologists, other professionals and enthusiasts engaged in archaeology. Through knowledge and consultancy, the Dutch National Agency for Cultural Heritage offers the future a past