Dispersed settlement

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A dispersed settlement is one of the main types of settlement pattern used by landscape historians to classify rural settlements found in England and other parts of the world. In a typical dispersed settlement, there are a number of separate farmsteads scattered throughout the area^[1]. A dispersed settlement contrasts with a nucleated village.

Dispersed settlements are often found outside the central region of England in the areas of ancient enclosure such as Essex, Kent and the west country^[2]. An example of a dispersed settlement given by W G Hoskins is Middle Barton in Oxfordshire.^[3] The farmsteads which make up the dispersed settlement are often surrounded by small irregular shaped fields. Arthur Young's description of the view from Langdon Hills - "dark lanes intersected with numberless hedges and woods"^[4] - is a typical description of the landscape in an area of dispersed settlements. The French term Bocage is sometimes used to describe the type of landscape found in those parts of the south of England where dispersed settlements are common.

In some parts of England, the pattern of dispersed settlement has remained unchanged for many hundreds of years. It is sometimes possible to identify documentary references to farmsteads in the 18th or 19th centuries with entries in Domesday ^[5].

In areas of Kent and Essex close to London, development of residential housing during the 20th century has often disguised the dispersed nature of the original settlement.

[edit] Notes

1. ^ Richard Muir, The NEW Reading the Landscape, University of Exeter Press
2. ^ Roberts & Rathmell, An Atlas of Rural Settlement in England, English Heritage
3. ^ The Making of the English Landscape. However, he uses the term "fragmented village".
4. ^ Arthur Young, A Six Weeks' Tour through the Southern Counties of England and Wales
5. ^ W G Hoskins, Fieldwork in Local History