ABSTRACT
The question of identity is central to this chapter, in particular whether the peri-urban has an identity of its own and what this identity might look like. Identity has been a focus of many disciplines, and the geographical literature in particular provides significant insight into the characteristics, nomenclature, language and values of particular places (Soja 1986, Jacobs 1996, Bonyhady and Griffiths 2002, Pedroli, et al. 2007). But while this literature is important, it doesn’t often consider the identity of places that are neither urban nor rural (Lewis 2007), something which the research seeks to change. The identity of ‘… a place besieged can and does overcome divides and even provides bridges …’ (Peel in Bonyhady and Griffiths 2002: 182), and so, whilst not an end in itself, the search for identity in the peri-urban may provide clues to centre thinking on an appropriate response to its challenges.
