Aug 7: Nomosphere

An interesting article by Maurice Yip in the 'Geographical Journal' (the membership journal of the RGS-IBG which is received by Fellows) 

It can be downloaded as a PDF.

It explores the impact of the pandemic on our travels and experiences. It uses the term nomosphere. 

The term ‘nomosphere’ was coined by David Delaney (2010) as a means of developing new theoretical tools at the intersection of law and geography. Laws were different in different territories, which led to different behaviours and interactions for people.

“the culturalmaterial environs that are constituted by the reciprocal materialization of ‘the

legal,’ and the legal signification of the ‘sociospatial,’ and the practical, performative engagements through which such

constitutive moments happen and unfold” (Delaney, 2010,

“the culturalmaterial environs that are constituted by the reciprocal materialization of ‘the

legal,’ and the legal signification of the ‘sociospatial,’ and the practical, performative engagements through which such

constitutive moments happen and unfold” (Delaney, 2010,

During the lockdown in many countries, people were all grounded and bounded by the territory of their homes. Work from home, online shopping, and virtual gathering became ordinary activities of everyday life, which produce the territorial consequence for us to be grounded and bounded under different pandemic control measures. Most of us have never been so bounded for such a long time period in our life. Yet, while teleworking has become a norm for some people, many others still need to take the risk to continue their essential work in hospitals, grocery stores, or gas stations.

Some interesting everyday observations which become something different when looked at through a partcicular geographical lens:

During the lockdown and the most recent time, wearing face masks indeed performs territorial boundary work. Consider where we put on a mask and take it off – it happens at the boundary. Wearing masks, in some jurisdictions, is not mandatory in the streets and public open spaces, but it is necessary when we walk into social spaces such as restaurants, shops, malls, commercial buildings, libraries, museums, and schools, regardless of whether they are private property or not. Some drivers would hang their face mask on the rear-view mirror, and when they leave the vehicle (a more individual space) to enter the store at the gas station (a more social space where we might meet people and we need to wear masks for protecting everyone), they would put it on. Some pedestrians would just tie the face mask on their arm, and when they need to enter a shop, they wear it. Their practices of wearing the mask and taking it off actually alert us of our movement between places.