Urban Migration in the Later Middle Ages

Abstract

This article deals with migration to urban centers in the late Middle Ages. Contrary to still existing popular views, medieval society was marked by a high degree of mobility in social and geographic terms. This was especially the case for urban centers. Due to a number of demographic reasons, such as low birth rates and high death rates, medieval cities depended on a constant influx of people from the outside for long-term growth and prosperity. This turns migration into one of the key phenomena to understand medieval urban society. At the same time, it is often difficult to identify migrants, especially from the lower classes of society. The sources give us only a limited number of indications of the origin and individual migration history of the urban population. This article gains insight into different forms of research into medieval urban migration history. It presents an overview of the different types of sources, the information they can provide, and the remaining problems and limitations. Tax lists or Bürgerbücher can shed light on the origins of the inhabitants of a city. Criminal registers or notary acts can help us to gain knowledge about the individual migration history of the people mentioned, and new methodologies in archaeology can provide further valuable hints. With the help of some examples from recent research, this text outlines the available options to get an insight into one of the most important phenomena of late medieval urban society. However, the problems related to dealing with urban medieval migration should not be forgotten. Information is often scarce, and our knowledge remains in many cases limited, especially, concerning lower layers of society. In addition, a certain city was only one step in a longer migration history of the individual. People often moved back and forth, bringing new ideas and techniques with them.