Place is a meaningful site that combines location, locale,
and sense of place. Location refers to an absolute point in
space with a specific set of coordinates and measurable
distances from other locations. Location refers to the
‘where’ of place. Locale refers to the material setting for
social relations – the way a place looks. Locale includes
the buildings, streets, parks, and other visible and tangible
aspects of a place. Sense of place refers to the more
nebulous meanings associated with a place: the feelings
and emotions a place evokes.
While the word ‘place’ has been used as long
as geography has been written, it is only since the 1970s
that it has been conceptualized as a particular location
that has acquired a set of meanings and attachments