The Return to the Public Square: A Case Study in Concepción (Chile)

The Plaza symbolizes the connection between society and space, and defines "place" as permanence, beyond territoriality itself. The incidents experienced in the city of Concepcion during the mega-earthquake of February 2010 have evidenced the role of the plaza or public square as a symbolic element that guarantees the identity of a place. A detailed analysis of the evolution of the roles played by Plaza Peru at the moment of the earthquake and the subsequent days makes it possible to empirically illustrate the territorial permanence of the symbolic concept of place. According to this analysis, place and citizenship are bound together by identity in the plaza, which makes possible the survival of the place and of a cohesive collective identity.