ABSTRACT
Cultural and social geographers are traditionally interested in the spatial differentiation of societies and cultures. Their related research interests are in defining socio-cultural regions (cf. Bartels 1968), in order to indicate clearly defined cultural spaces. However, this research encounters a major problem: only material things can be unequivocally localized within a physical space; ‘immaterial’ social norms and cultural values cannot. Any social or cultural research which embarks upon the use of territorial categories (area, region, etc.) without beforehand refuting the above argumentation remains unconvincing (cf. Werlen 1989a). By the same token, any attempts at reconstructing so-called ‘regional identities’ are questionable. If only material things can be spatially localized, then the argument for the existence of regional identities would mean that the inhabitants of a certain area could have an identity with material entities. The empirical demonstration of this proposition would pose a real problem for any regional analyst.
