Landscapes and Societies: Crossed Perspectives on AlUla and Hegra

Organised by Mounia Bouali and Hussein Madina, postdoctoral researchers in the programme, the scientific meeting brought together researchers and specialists to explore the relationships between societies, resources, environments and landscapes in north-western Arabia through a range of complementary approaches.

The day began with an introduction by Pauline Piraud-Fournet, followed by a presentation by Géraldine Chatelard on recent developments from the Hegra Archaeological Project (HAP) and the Hegra Ethnographic Sub Project.

Through studies focusing on AlUla and Hegra, the discussions brought together different scales of analysis and created a dialogue between archaeological, environmental, architectural and historical data. These complementary perspectives contribute to a better understanding of how societies have used, shaped and transformed their environment over time.

Three areas of discussion

Natural resources, water and landscapes

The first session explored, in particular, water management and sharing in the AlUla oasis during the Islamic period, based on the results of the UCOP project, as well as different approaches to interpreting the landscape of Hegra, with contributions from Julien Charbonnier and Laure Piraud.

Plant resources: from the past to the present

The discussions then focused on agrobiodiversity at Hegra, the domestication of desert plants, and the relationships between vegetation, societies and agricultural practices around the archaeological site of Hegra. This session brought together Charlène Bouchuad, Léo Marty and Hussein Madina.

Archaeology of the built environment, settlement and toponymy

The final session examined settlement forms and their integration into the landscapes of AlUla and Al-Hijr. Yasmin Kahnoush presented a study of houses in the AlUla palm grove, Mounia Bouali offered a typological analysis of settlement at Al-Hijr, and Géraldine Chatelard discussed toponymy and geographical vocabulary as tools for studying the uses and representations of landscapes.

The day concluded with a general discussion focusing on the research perspectives opened up by these cross-disciplinary approaches.
This meeting forms part of the scientific priorities of the Jaussen & Savignac Programme, whose activities are structured around six major themes, including “Environmental Heritage: Oasis Landscapes.”

It also reflects the programme’s commitment to fostering scientific exchanges between researchers, postdoctoral researchers, students, and Saudi and French academics. This collaboration is a structuring element of the programme.