Effects of Roman rule on the settlement geography of Southern Iberia: A GIS-based approach

In the last years, the matter of the Romanization of Baetica has started to receive more attention, thus reactivating a topic largely assumed to be unproblematic in earlier approaches. Stemming from this interest, the present paper reviews theoretical and methodological approaches applied so far in the study of Roman rule in Baetica, before proposing new conceptualizations, research methods and insights that should clarify the development of this process of cultural change in this province. For this purpose, a GIS‐based approach combining archaeological and geographic data is used to explore the settlement patterns and their diachronic transformation in two designated study areas (west Sierra Morena and Lands of Antequera). This approach provides the basis for a fresh understanding on how the local communities were transformed following the Roman intervention in southern Iberia