Plazas domeñadas. Impactos de la turistificación sobre el espacio público urbano1

Abstract

This paper analyses the processes of modification with a view to tourism that are currently taking place in the most emblematic public squares in the centre of Seville (Spain). These spaces have historically constituted the preeminent meeting places for collective use. However, as in other cities that are specialised in the tourist sector, Seville is undergoing a radical process of transformation of the public space embodied in its squares. The research, based on a bibliographical and documentary review and ethnographic fieldwork, reveals that the expansion of tourism has altered the secular multifunctional character of the squares anal‑ ysed as places of expression of life and social diversity. It finds that the intensification of tourism is eroding the traditional meanings, social uses and functions of these central spaces. To varying degrees, the increas‑ ing specialisation in tourism is gradually transforming the squares into “tamed” spaces, that is to say subject to the service of tourist activity. At the same time, this process is triggering new uses and functions, leading to newly shaped socio‑cultural dynamics.