Applications of SNA to interpret archaeological evidence have been increasing dramatically, as has an interest in identifying communities and neighborhoods. Social Network Analysis (SNA) can be a lens and a tool to explore neighborhoods and communities with archaeological datasets from a range of temporal periods and regions. The spatial distribution of material culture facilitates the creation of spatially located networks that demonstrate social linkages between individuals or communities. Yet, limitations exist in using archaeological data; we cannot directly ask individuals who they interacted with or for how long – and we must work to combine data and theory in reconstructing emic perspectives. Communities exist interstitially at multiple scales through a combination of relational and categorical identities. Neighborhoods represent a specialized form of community (one of spatially co-located residents with frequent face-to-face interaction that exhibit a union of relational and categorical identity). The articles in this special edition use network theory to identify, reconstruct, and test the presence and extent of communities and neighborhoods in the past, and in doing so they open avenues of research with applicability beyond archaeology.

中文翻译：

---

人与空间考古学：空间背景下社区和邻里的社交网络分析


SNA 在解释考古证据方面的应用急剧增加，对识别社区和社区的兴趣也越来越大。社交网络分析 (SNA) 可以成为利用一系列时间段和区域的考古数据集探索邻里和社区的镜头和工具。物质文化的空间分布有助于创建空间定位网络，展示个人或社区之间的社会联系。然而，使用考古数据存在局限性；我们不能直接询问个人与谁互动或互动了多长时间——我们必须努力将数据和理论结合起来重建主位观点。社区通过关系身份和类别身份的组合以多种尺度存在。邻里代表了社区的一种特殊形式（空间上同处一地的居民，经常面对面互动，表现出关系和类别身份的结合）。本特刊中的文章使用网络理论来识别、重建和测试过去社区和邻里的存在和范围，并在此过程中开辟了具有考古学之外的适用性的研究途径。