Migrants and the Making of the Urban-Maritime World: Agency and Mobility in Port Cities, c. 1570-1940

This book explores the mutually transformative relations between migrants and port cities, focusing on how migrants contributed to the construction of the urban-maritime world and how port cities conditioned the lives of these mobile people. It offers a wide geographical perspective, covering port cities on three continents, and deals with agency in a widened sense, considering the activities of individuals and collectives as well as the impact of sailing and steamboats, trains, the built environment, goods, or microbes.

Format: Hardback
Length: 294 pages
Publication date: 04 September 2020
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

This captivating volume delves into the intricate and mutually transformative relationships between migrants and port cities, spanning centuries of sail and steam. Throughout the ages, these bustling urban centers have served as vital nodes for the transmission and exchange of a diverse range of goods, people, animals, seeds, bacteria, and viruses. From commercial commodities to technological and scientific knowledge, and from fashion trends to cultural expressions, port cities have been the crossroads of global interactions. Migrants, too, have played a crucial role in shaping the urban-maritime world, contributing to the physical infrastructure, sociocultural milieu, and contemporary representations of these spaces.

In turn, port cities have exerted a profound influence on the lives of these mobile individuals, whether they be seafarers, traders, passers-through, or those seeking a new home. By centering their attention on the actions and experiences of migrants, the authors aim to capture the complex and contradictory nature of port cities. These cities embody a blend of mobility and immobility, acceptance and rejection, nationalism and cosmopolitanism, diversity and homogeneity, segregation and interaction.

The book offers a comprehensive geographical perspective, covering port cities across three continents. Its chapters explore agency in a broad sense, considering the actions of individuals, collectives, and the significant role played by sailing and steamboats, trains, the built environment, goods, and microbes in shaping urban-maritime spaces. Through a rich tapestry of narratives and analyses, this volume sheds light on the dynamic and ever-evolving nature of these urban centers, highlighting their pivotal role in shaping the world we live in today.

Weight: 572g
Dimension: 158 x 234 x 26 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780367543617