A Porous Line

This chapter introduces the Cross-Cultural Interaction Model (CCIM), which was designed to more clearly expose the processes that occur in the multicultural contexts of colonization, frontiers, and ancient borderlands. The model can visually represent simultaneous interactions by numerous participants and explores the various ways in which people interact and what motivates their participation in cultural exchanges. This chapter reviews the theoretical origins of the CCIM, describes how it works, and how it has changed since its inception. Second, the chapter briefly introduces each of the case studies in this volume which serve to showcase the versatility of the CCIM.