From the archaic states to romanization: a historical and evolutionary perspective on the Iberians Autors/ores Joan Sanmartí Resum In the middle of the first millennium BC small-scale societies (local or even family level communities) on the Eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula were rapidly transformed, socially and culturally, into complex ones of at least tens of thousands of people and endowed with centralised forms of political organization that controlled vast territories, often of several thousand square kilometres. From the beginning of the 4th century BC, the rapid expansion of writing suggests the establishment of an administrative system and the development of the institutional complexity particular to the archaic states. These states were governed by kings who emerged from the aristocratic ranks that dominated the diverse communities forming the bulk of the population. We know from Greco-Latin sources that the inhabitants of these territories were known by the name of Iberians, and that this ethnic group was divided into different peoples that in some cases corresponded to the afore mentioned political entities, whereas in other cases several of them must have been included. Epigraphy shows that the same language was used in the whole of this region, although perhaps not exclusively; in modern times it is known as Iberian, and cannot be deciphered. Incorporation into the Roman world around 200 BC meant a gradual integration into Latin culture, that was completed a little before the change of era. Descàrregues Text complet (English) Publicat 2009-12-21 Número Núm. 2 (2009): Catalan Historical Review Secció Sumari Llicència Submission of a manuscript to Catalan Historical Review implies: that the work described has not been published before, including publication on the World Wide Web (except in the form of an Abstract or as part of a published lecture, review, or thesis); that it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere; that all coauthors have agreed to its publication. The corresponding author signs for and accepts responsibility for releasing this material and will act on behalf of any and all co-authors regarding the editorial review and publication processes.If an article is accepted for publication in Catalan Historical Review, the authors (or other copyright holder) must transfer to the journal the copyright, which covers the right —not exclusive— to reproduce and distribute the article including reprints, translations, photographic reproductions microform, electronic form (offline, online) or any other reproductions of similar nature. Nevertheless, all articles in Catalan Historical Review will be available on the internet to any reader at no cost. The journal allows users to freely download, copy, print, distribute, search, and link to the full text of any article, provided the authorship and source of the published article is cited. The copyright owner’s consent does not include copying for new works, or resale.In these cases, the specific written permission of Catalan Historical Review must first be obtained.Authors are requested to create a link to the published article on the journal’s website. The link must be accompanied by the following text: ‘‘The original publication is available on LINK at http://revistes.iec.cat/chr/. Please use the appropriate URL for the article in LINK. Articles disseminated via LINK are indexed, abstracted, and referenced by many abstracting and information services, bibliographic networks, subscription agencies, library networks, and consortia. ISSN: 2013-4088 (electronic edition); 2013-407X (print edition)