The Social Dynamics Team presents

Streetonomics

A form of computational social science that studies human behavior and cultural trends through the quantitative analysis of street names.
Being aware of the origin of street names can transform a simple neighbourhood walk into a trip back through time.

No, first tell me more about it.

How does it work?

The city can be thought of as an archeological site - all the historical layers are there, you just have to know how to access them.
Computer scientists and cartographers have now associated thousands of street names with corresponding Wikipedia pages and have data mined these pages to investigate cultural phenomena reflected in naming streets after historical figures.

Users searching for shocking details of the life led by, for example, Karl Marx can click on the street named after him and be taken to Karl's Wikipedia page.
As with any project of this scope, there are bound to be inaccuracies. It is hope that these will not detract from the pleasures of exploring a city in a new way.

Denomination before:

Map gallery

Explore the variety of street name patterns. Click any of the thumbnail buttons to download the high resolution maps.


Occupations

Streets in Paris by occupation of the honoree
Paris
Streets in London by occupation of the honoree
London
Streets in Vienna by occupation of the honoree
Vienna
Streets in New York by occupation of the honoree
New York

Gender

Streets in Paris by gender of the honoree
Paris
Streets in London by gender of the honoreer
London
Streets in Vienna by gender of the honoree
Vienna
Streets in New York by gender of the honoree
New York

Nation of origin

Streets in Paris by country of origin of the honoree
Paris
Streets in London by country of origin of the honoree
London
Streets in Vienna by country of origin of the honoree
Vienna
Streets in New York by country of origin of the honoree
New York

Historial period

Streets in Paris by denomination year
Paris
Streets in London by denomination year
London
Streets in Vienna by denomination year
Vienna
Streets in New York by denomination year
New York

Publications

Melanie Bancilhon, Marios Constantinides, Edyta Paulina Bogucka, Luca Maria Aiello, Daniele Quercia

Streetonomics: Quantifying Culture Using Street Names

PLOS ONE, 2021


Edyta Paulina Bogucka, Marios Constantinides, Luca Maria Aiello, Daniele Quercia, Wonyoung So, Melanie Bancilhon

Cartographic Design of Cultural Maps

IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications, 2020


Press coverage

'Streetonomics': What our addresses say about us | BBC Future | PDF

Street names show why great cities are worlds apart | The Times (and radio interview) | PDF

How streets in New York, London, Paris, and Vienna got their names, according to 'streetonomics' | Fast Company | PDF


Data

Download


More info: team@social-dynamics.net