Networking and Social Structure in the Iron Age Central Balkans

In this paper, I employ social networking and connectivity perspectives to initiate an alternative interpretation of the Central Balkans in the 7th–1st c. BC. Rather than projecting ethnic conflicts and changes onto the distant past, I argue that the major shifts witnessed in archaeological record and echoed in ancient written sources can be better approached by contemplating the social structures within the protohistoric Central Balkan populations: how they may have been built, and how they might have functioned, fluctuated and transformed. In particular, I delve into what kind of relationalities may have existed within and beyond these Central Balkan communities, and what types of social interactions and entities they might have produced. Although the detailed analysis of these problems is not possible due to the modest scale of evidence obtained through previous research, I will attempt to establish a rough basis for further inquiry and review.