Nadire Aslan is a PhD student at Middle East Technical University since 2021. Completed master’s degree at Hacettepe University in 2019 on “The relationship between courtyard and cultural identity in Roman residential architecture: Ephesus, Priene, Aphrodisias, Kremna, Sia, Zeugma”. She accomplished her undergraduate education at Ankara University Classical Archaeology Department in 2013. She participated in Salamis Ancient City Excavations between 2010-2012 excavation seasons and Alexandria Troas City Excavations in 2011-2012 as an intern archaeologist. She took part in 2013 Arykanda Ancient City and 2016 Aspendos Ancient City Excavations as an archaeologist. Also, she has been working as a volunteer manager at the Sharing Circle Association/Paylaşım Çemberi Derneği, a non-profit organization focused on the rights of human, animal, and inanimate beings since 2019.
UNPACKING THE LEGACY OF ROMAN URBANIZATION: EXPLORING THE COMPLEX INTERACTIONS BETWEEN LOCALS AND NEWCOMERS
This research aims to examine the multifaceted dynamics between indigenous/local people and Roman settlers in urbanization processes within the context of some examples from Anatolia and to shed light on some approaches to the transformative impact of Roman urbanization on local communities and its legacy. This study will address the question of how we understand the
interaction of individuals with the society in which they live and interact. How have researchers addressed this question in the past, and how should we address it now?
Roman settlers refer to communities that arrived on administrative or military missions or were settled as part of Rome’s expansion policy. Research on Roman influence and urbanization processes has so far been assessed by focusing on the ruler’s impact and effect. The concept of “change” in the dominant territory has mostly analyzed community dynamics with the factors related to Roman’s powerful impact together. However, the change processes in urban and rural areas have not been comprehensively analyzed, considering their interconnectedness. Today,
interdisciplinary collaborations and recent social studies give us hope that new and different methodologies can be incorporated into archaeological research questions. In this study, I aim to discuss alternative methodologies through which we can address the question of how to understand not only top-down change brought about by the locus of power but also the bottom- up structure.