Rural youth culture:

sheds in The Netherlands

Tialda Haartsen&

Dirk Strijker

Cultural GeographyFaculty of Spatial Sciences

Groningen UniversityThe Netherlands

Defining sheds

Places for young rural people, organized by themselves, to meet and do all kinds of activities (listening to music, drinking beer, chilling out, and socializing) in groups of 5-20 persons with ages of 13-22 years old

Sheds, caravans, parts of barns, etc Illegal or tolerated (‘gedoogd’) estimated number:

– 1,500 (STAP, 2004)– 3,000 (Kon. Horeca Ned., 2006)

www.keeteexterveen.nl

www.dedoellozecaravan.tk

Sheds and rural youth

Literature on rural youth: educational and and economic position of youth is dominant

The attractivity of the rural for young people decreases with increasing age

The rural offers options for a place of your own, and it offers not so many other options for entertainment

Main questions

1. Do sheds have distinctive geographical characteristics, such as regional differentiations in occurrence, or in the behaviour and activities of their members?

2. Are there specific sheds-culture(s) with specific rules and symbols, including and excluding certain groups of rural youngsters?

Geography of sheds; the geography of ‘In-between’

Geographies of home -> escape from parents but not too far..

Geographies of street/hanging out -> although not in public but in private space

Geographies of party-ing -> but not in disco’s or nightclubs

Aspects of the research

Macro-geographies (distribution) Activities Inclusion & exclusion Gender Symbols

‘Shed-densities’ per municipality, 2007 (n=253)

Explanation of the distribution

Which variables do explain the density?

@@correlaties met andere aspecten.

Correlations shed-densities & variablesAge group (absolute numbers) in 2006 10-15 years -0,089

15-20 years -0,10620-25 years -0,103

Income (average per person) in 2003 disposable income -0,016Services (number of establishments in 2006) culture, recreation and remaining -0,159Agriculture (% of total area agriculture) in 2005 arable farming -0,314

horticulture -0,055grazing lifestock 0,276non-grazing lifestock 0,376combinations -0,075

Land use (%) in 2003) built up -0,267woodland & nature 0,113recreation -0,217agriculture 0,186

Number of farm holdings of size (%) in 2005 no area 0,0470.01-1 ha -0,0901-5 ha 0,1545-10 ha 0,32310-15 ha 0,37215-20 ha 0,29720-30 ha 0,30430-50 ha 0,10150-100 ha -0,448>= 100 ha -0,326

Landscape marine clay -0,032river clay -0,060(former) peat -0,240sand 0,298

Shed-symbols

Analysis of shed-names Analysis of websites Analysis of shed-logo’s Analysis of ‘merchandize’ (t-shirts, lighters,

caps)

Shed names

Reference in name to 8 attributes

References in shed-names to … (n=277)

type of building 50%– e.g. het Jumphokke, Moskeet, ‘t Zolderke

dialect 32%– e.g. Keet Onwies, Ruw en Onbesoest, Moat FM

region 21%– e.g. Keet-Froubuurt, Metslabier, Keet Eexterveen

alcohol 16%– e.g. Tapvat, ‘t Krattie, Tankstation, Zoeptent Uffelte

countryside and agriculture 7%– e.g. Maiswichte, ‘t Kalverhokke, Superboeren Zuidwolde

Shed websites

Beer is everywhere (Heineken logo as button)

Location is vague Strong exposure of individual members

(name, school, work, hobbies, favourite drinks) → individual is probably more important than the group → sheds play a role in the individual growth process

Inclusion & exclusion

Prominent place for the members on the website stells something about ‘who’s in and who’s out’.

Intwerviews show strong sentiments against the urban part of the Netherlands, and even against youth from nearby urban centres– To be elaborated

Concluding remarks

Distinctive geographical spread– Landscape/society aspects– missing: Other aspects?

Sheds fit into the idea of ‘a place of your own’ Identify with place and region, not with rural. But: anti-The Hague, anti-urban, anti-authority

– addition of interviews shed-members needed Drinking is important, is not included in the name, but

is dominant in the websites Exposure of individual members: the shed as a

vehicle to grow-up?

Tialda haartsen/Dirk Strijker – Ru Groningen Sheds in the Netherlands