Figure 1
Belval site as a case study: City of Science and selected square location.
Source: author’s contribution based on a map delivered by https://earth.google.com.
Table 1
Linguistic review: ‘square’ as a term in the Indo-European Family
| Language subfamily | European country | Official language (alphabetical order) | Word | Connotation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Etymological | Semantic | ||||
| 1. Greek language | *Greece/Cyprus | Greek | πλατεία (plateia) | Greek | |
| 2. Indo-European languages of Balkans | North Macedonia | Macedonian | плoштaд (ploštad) | Greek, Latin | |
| Albania/North Macedonia | Albanian | shesh | [–] | [–] | |
| 3. Romance languages | Andorra | Catalan | plaça | Greek, Latin | |
| France/Monaco/Switzerland/Luxembourg/Belgium | French | place | Greek, Latin | ||
| Italy/San Marino/Vatican/Switzerland | Italian | piazza | Greek, Latin | ||
| Portugal | Portuguese | praça | Greek, Latin | ||
| Romania/Moldova | Romanian | piața | Greek, Latin | ||
| Spain | Spanish | plaza | Greek, Latin | ||
| 4. Celtic languages | Ireland | Irish | cearnóg | Geometric figure | |
| 5. Germanic languages | Denmark | Danish | plads, torv | Greek, Latin | Marketplace |
| Netherlands/Belgium | Dutch | plein | Greek, Latin | ||
| United Kingdom/Malta/Ireland | English | square | Geometric figure | ||
| Austria/Germany/Switzerland/Luxembourg/Belgium/Liechtenstein | German | platz | Greek, Latin | ||
| Norway | Norwegian | plass, torg | Greek, Latin | Marketplace | |
| Sweden/Finland | Swedish | torg | Marketplace | ||
| Iceland | Icelandic | torg | Marketplace | ||
| Luxembourg | Luxembourgish | plaz | Greek, Latin | ||
| 7. Baltic languages | Lativa | Latvian | laukums | Area (math) | |
| Lithuania | Lithuanian | aikštė | Geometric figure | ||
| 6. Slavic languages | Bulgaria | Bulgarian | плoщaд (ploshtad) | Greek, Latin | |
| Czech Republik | Czech | náměstí | Geometric figure | ||
| Croatia/Bosnia-Hercegovina | Croatian | trg | Marketplace | ||
| Poland | Polish | plac | Greek, Latin | ||
| Russia/Belarus | Russian | плóщaдь (ploščadʹ) | Area (math) | ||
| Serbia/Bosnia-Hercegovina | Serbian | trg | Marketplace | ||
| Slovakia | Slovak | námestie | Geometric figure | ||
| Slovenia | Slovenian | trg | Marketplace | ||
| Ukraine | Ukrainian | плoщa (ploshcha) | Area (math) | ||
| Belarus | Belarusian | плoшчa (plošča) | Area (math) | ||
| Bosnia-Hercegovina | Bosnian | trg | Marketplace | ||
| Montenegro | Montenegrin | trg | Marketplace | ||
[–] different connotation.
Table 2
Reference study: 15 selected historical squares
| Site | Plan | Tower | Covered passageway | Opening | Monument | Fountain | Prominent building | Gate | Greenery |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Romanesque style [1,000–1,200] Early and High Gothic [half XII – half XIII] Late Gothic [1,250–1,500] | |||||||||
| Piața Cetății Sighișoara/Romania |
| No | No | Yes (6) | No | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Largo da Oliveira Guimarães/Portugal |
| Yes | Yes | Yes (5) | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Nardoni Trg Zadar/Croatia |
| Yes | No | Yes (6) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Place des Cornières Monpazier/France |
| No | Yes | No | No | No | No | Yes | No |
| Place Des Arcades Monflanquin/France |
| No | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Renaissance and mannerism [1,420–1,600] | |||||||||
| Campo di San Silvestro Venice/Italy |
| Yes | No | Yes (4) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Piazza della Repubblica Urbino/Italy |
| No | Yes | Yes (5) | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
| Baroque [1,600–1,760] | |||||||||
| Märetplatz Solothurn/Switzerland |
| Yes | No | Yes (4) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Stortorget Stockholm/Sweden |
| No | No | Yes (4) | No | No | Yes | No | No |
| Piazza del Municipio Caltagirone/Italy |
| Yes | No | Yes (7) | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| England and France [XVI–XVIII] | |||||||||
| Abbey Green/Bath/ England |
| No | No | Yes (4) | No | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Kingston Parade Bath/England |
| Yes | No | Yes (6) | No | No | Yes | No | No |
| Romanticism [1760–1914] | |||||||||
| Pl. du Marché Sainte-Catherine Paris/France |
| No | No | Yes (4) | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Plaça de la Concòrdia Barcelona/Spain |
| Yes | No | Yes (8) | No | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Place du Tertre Paris/France |
| No | No | Yes (3) | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Selected post-industrial revitalised square | |||||||||
| Square in Belval Esch-sur-Alzette/Luxembourg |
| Yes | Yes | Yes (4) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Figure 2
Case study: Belval square 2D analysis.
