Extreme Village Makeover
En studie om religionsskiftets betydelse för byarna Kyrkheddinge och Fjälkinge.
This essay revolves around the Christianisation of the Danish kingdom during the middle ages. Issues like; the length of the Christianisation process and the influence it had on thevillages? structural appearance in the Danish kingdom. A special case study of the villages Kyrkheddinge and Fjälkinge, Scania, is an essential part of the essay. Through writtenmaterial and excavation reports from the both villages the study enlightens the structural appearance of the village and the hierarchy of the farms in the village. To add more aspects tothe study, the essay delves into burial rituals and pottery in Scania during the time of the Christianisation process. The results presented in the paper are that the several events during the course of history have affected the reasons why the Christian mission reached the Danish kingdom and why it established. The Christianisation process played its part in the history of the Danish kingdom during the years circa 800-1200. Most of the new traditions that are introduced into the social structures take time to be accepted, this is calculated that it takes about three or four generations before it is a fully accepted new tradition. That means that the villages of the casestudy were most likely Christianised far before the year 1200, but even so the year marks the end of the process. When a church was established in the village it will change the entirehierarchy and the appearance of the village. That means that together with the lord's farmstead, the church became the central hub of the village.