The problem with spatial identity: revisiting the “sense of place”

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is twofold: on the one hand, it is to contribute to a sound conceptualization of the notion of place identity in the context of geographical spatial approaches; on the other, it is to show the implications this has in place branding research. Design/methodology/approach – First, the paper draws from place branding literature to point out the lack of a conceptualization of place identity, second, it presents the case study of Prenzlauer Berg to show how place identity is constituted. Finally, these findings are linked to literature about the constitution of space and place. Findings – The concept of spatial identity suffers under the anthropomorphism of the term identity. Only in a sound conceptual framework and through a method mix it is possible to understand how the specificity of space is constituted. Research limitations/implications – The case study that is the base of this conceptual paper is a neighbourhood. There is a need to further discuss the issue of scale, i.e. whether the same rules apply for cities, regions or nations. Practical implications – Place branding/marketing is often based on a fuzzy notion of place identity. The above non‐essentialist approach of this identity deeply questions both the legitimacy and the efficiency of any place branding strategy. It thus asks for more sophisticated analytical methods by policy makers and consultants alike. Originality/value – Conceptualization of spatial identity is a rather vague concept and, though it is often used as a point of departure for several issues, it is usually taken for granted. This paper offers a new systematic approach to the disambiguation of the concept.