Summary

The open lecture “Historical Cycles of Settlement and Processes of Urbanisation in Cape Verde, 15th–19th Centuries” examined the different phases in the formation and consolidation of the Cape Verdean territory, exploring how processes of settlement contributed to the construction and organisation of space. The lecture considered the specificities of the archipelago, including its geographical location, climatic and ecological conditions, territorial discontinuity, and the fact that the islands were uninhabited at the time of European arrival, as well as the role of the different European and African actors involved in their occupation and transformation.

Drawing on historical sources and the identification of successive settlement cycles, the lecture explored the relationship between these processes and the emergence and transformation of settlements and towns. It thus approached the urbanisation of Cape Verde between the 15th and 19th centuries as part of a broader process of territorial formation, shaped by the archipelago’s insular condition, successive historical transformations, and the actions of diverse communities and agents.