Common Rules. The regulation of institutions for managing commons in Europe, 1100 - 1800

This database is created to enter, store, and analyze data on commons throughout Europe. It focuses on two kinds of data:

- general data on the commons (name, location, population, natural environment, et cetera). These data are being gathered from a wide range of sources, such as compendiums, atlases, archival documents, et cetera.

- data on the regulation of these commons. These data come from either original archival sources (such as the markeboeken for the Dutch commons) or from transcribed sources. The source texts are included in the original language (Dutch, Spanish, English) as well as in English translation.

For comprehensive information on used techniques, methodology, and choices made, consult the code book.

Background: The project 'Common Rules. The regulation of institutions for managing commons in Europe, 1100 - 1800' aims to understand how efficient and effective regulation can be developed, executed by well-functioning institutions. It focuses on commons, a certain type of institution that used collective action as a method to create economies of scale and to avoid risks—both natural and market-related, and to restrict outsiders from accessing scarce resources. Commons were created for the collective management and use of natural resources and could limit the impact of harvest failures due to unpredictable weather, floods, or diseases, while they saved on investments in, for example, fencing and drainage systems. Understanding the regulations of institutions for collective action is a key-aspect of the links between macro-social-economic changes and the day-today functioning of those institutions.