Social Networks 193
Conclusion
This chapter has been dedicated to the description of Hanseatic networks
and the economic function of these social configurations. Unfortunately, the
number and quality of Hanseatic sources do not allow an application of more
sophisticated methods of social network analysis. The sociological concept
of network nevertheless helps identify clusters of persons and types of rela-
tionships. It has also been shown that kinship networks have evolved through
eastern bound migration, whereas friendship networks have developed from a
common economic interest. Interurban connections of family members, wills,
membership in societies, and the social topography of Hanseatic towns are
points of departure for reconstructing the social networks. It turns out that
commercial exchange networks and social networks overlapped to a great
extent. This result is significant because it proves that the Hanseatic trading
system relied mainly on a network pattern. Therefore, social networks should
not be viewed as a sociological phenomenon only, but also as an essential com-
ponent to make the typical Hanseatic system based on reciprocal trade rela-
tionships work.