Historia urbana y discurso: una aproximación histórico-crítica a la ciudad de Liberia.

The city of Liberia is characterized by a local identity whose roots lie in its colonial origins in relation to the cattle ranches established in the area by people from Rivas, Nicaragua. However, by the end of the 19th century, the city was well established, and during the 20th century, various changes took place in its urban structure, which are recorded in documents preserved in the Archivo Nacional de Costa Rica (ANCR), including writings, maps, and plans, as well as in newspapers held by the Sistema Nacional de Bibliotecas (SINABI). At the same time, this evolution of urban space can also be studied through aerial photographs dating back to the 1940s, which are kept at the Instituto Geográfico Nacional (IGN). To complement this information, both the ANCR and social media have a significant number of historical photographs of Liberia.
Most of the sources cited have not been studied, and some of them were references for the definition of landscape units resulting from the extension project “La construcción social del Centro Histórico de Liberia como un insumo para su gestión sostenible”. These landscape units are precisely the starting point for this project, as they allow us to understand how urban fabric has grown from the late 19th century to the present.
Taking as references the nine landscape units identified in the aforementioned extension project, this research proposal aims to give continuity to this product, using the landscape units as a basis for developing a critical analysis of the urban history of Liberia.
The project is organized into three stages, each with a theoretical-methodological approach defined as follows. The first stage involves studying the historical documentation available at the ANCR and SINABI, using Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA). This approach allows for the study of the transmission of a message according to its sociocultural context and is characterized by the analysis of discourse in relation to power. In this way, we propose to examine historical documents that deal with decision-making that impacts the urban fabric of Liberia.
The second stage consists of urban analysis. This methodological approach allows us to understand the processes of origin, evolution, and permanence in urban fabric. In this way, we can identify the main axes of development, the formation of neighborhoods, and actions such as the installation of public services. All these situations entail changes in the city.
Finally, the third stage will be developed based on the methodological triangulation strategy, synthesizing the results of the previous two stages in a document that summarizes the urban history of Liberia with a critical approach. This document will form the basis of a future publication for the community.

Analizar la historia urbana de la ciudad de Liberia desde finales del siglo XIX hasta la actualidad mediante un enfoque que articule el Análisis Crítico del Discurso y el análisis urbano, para la comprensión de los procesos, decisiones y discursos que han incidido en la configuración, transformación y permanencia del tejido urbano de la ciudad.

Ciudad, territorio y paisaje.