Cartographie animée de la diffusion spatiale. Application à la migration des patronymes de la moyenne vallée du Rhône depuis 1891

This contribution provides an animated mapping to represent the concepts of spatial diffusion as applied to a demographic variable: rare patronymics. The patronymics are used as markers of migration. Initially, the elementary rules of the diffusion are expressed on a map in a theoretical way as regular and hierarchic networking processes. Then they are projected on the French space of “départements” taken in its distances, its limits and its hierarchies. Combination of the elementary rules, constrained by the spatial and temporal expression of the migration of the patronymics, leads to a model that is then compared with the observation. The cartographic representation of one scenario of combinations allows the visualization of the assumptions and the experimentation on the space. In this context, the animated map allows the transition from illustration to experimentation