
What is a liminal space called?
Liminal Space Definition You can define liminal spacein several different ways. It's talked about as a threshold, and indeed, the etymology of “liminal”comes from the Latin root word "limen," which means “threshold.” Liminal spaces are transitional or transformative spaces.
What is the most practical definition of liminal?
Because the word “liminal” can be used in so many different ways, the most practical definition of “liminal” is the shortest - “threshold” or “boundary.” Why is liminal space important? Liminal space is important because it is necessary.
What is liminal space aesthetic?
The aesthetic known as a Liminal Space is a location which is a transition between two other locations, or states of being. Typically these are abandoned, and oftentimes empty - a mall at 4am or a school hallway during summer, for example. This makes it feel frozen and slightly unsettling, but also familiar to our brains.
Why is liminal space important?
Liminal space is important because it is necessary. Imagine a train track without train stations, or a house without rooms or doorways. To get from one space to another, liminal spaces must be a part of the experience. What does liminal space mean?

What are examples of liminal spaces?
In architecture, liminal spaces are defined as "the physical spaces between one destination and the next." Common examples of such spaces include hallways, airports, and streets.
How do you identify a liminal space?
4 Key Features of Liminal Spaces It is an in-between space. It can be a literal space between two others. It can also be an abstract space between two states of mind. It is a space full of contradictory emotions.
What happens in liminal spaces?
Being in a liminal space means you're in between life phases. It's as if you're standing in a doorway between 2 rooms and you can't move forward or backward. (The word “limin” comes from the Latin word for threshold.) You're hovering between what was and what's next.
Do liminal spaces actually exist?
Liminal Spaces are perhaps, the unknowable, or unspeakable spaces that seem to be ever-present in our dreams. These are places in which appear real but because of their strange aura, we know for sure that they are indeed fictitious.
What is a synonym for liminal?
(also discernable), palpable, perceptible, ponderable, sensible.
Why are liminal spaces uncomfortable?
Examples Of Liminality Whenever we are at a place during a time that's not usual for that space, it can feel unsettling. Or if we're in a liminal space for longer than necessary to pass through to our actual destination, we may experience that same feeling of something being "off" that we can't quite pinpoint.
What best describes a liminal person?
What best describes a liminal person? Someone who has successfully undergone an important ritual. An adult member of a traditional society.
Why do I dream of liminal spaces?
But liminal dreaming is simply about the moments when you drift out of and back into consciousness; it's all about trying to prolong that wild brain state as much as possible. And it is something you could try right now, just by leaning back and taking a nap.
Why are liminal spaces popular?
Why are liminal spaces so popular? Karl Emil Koch, a Danish architect who has written about such spaces and their popularity for Musée Magazine, says that images of liminal spaces often express a feeling of transition, as well as a certain waiting for “something to happen”.
How do you create liminal space?
Getting In Your Liminal SpaceTake a different route to or from work.Get up an hour earlier than you usually do.Move your usual chair to the other side of the room.Rearrange the art on your walls.Venture to a new restaurant or coffee shop without looking it up first.Wander around an unfamiliar neighborhood.More items...•
Why are liminal spaces so nostalgic?
Some people find liminal spaces nostalgic because of the cultural significance of some of them. Most commonly, these spaces come from the mid late 80's and early 90's. The style of those times is in most pictures of liminal spaces.
When did liminal spaces become a thing?
The term “liminal space” was first used in the early 20th century by Arnold van Gennep and Victor Turner in studying the rites of passage that help humans move from one state of being or situation to another.
What makes a liminal space liminal?
Liminal space refers to the place a person is in during a transitional period. It's a gap, and can be physical (like a doorway), emotional (like a divorce) or metaphorical (like a decision).
How do you explain liminality?
Liminality is a term used to describe the psychological process of transitioning across boundaries and borders. The term “limen” comes from the Latin for threshold; it is literally the threshold separating one space from another. It is the place in the wall where people move from one room to another.
Why are people scared of liminal spaces?
Although they represent transition and transformation, liminal spaces are not viewed positively because they represent one of humanity's oldest fears: the fear of the unknown. For that reason, many people feel a sense of dread or anxiety within these spaces, although they may not always understand why.
What best describes a liminal person?
What best describes a liminal person? Someone who has successfully undergone an important ritual. An adult member of a traditional society.
What is a liminal space?
Liminal spaces are transitional or transformative spaces. They are the waiting areas between one point in time and space and the next. Often, when we are in liminal spaces, we have the feeling of just being on the verge of something. Liminal space is, of course, a literal space.
Which space has more liminal qualities?
Unfamiliar spaces tend to have more liminal qualities than those we see regularly.
Is a liminal space a physical space?
Liminal spaces are often physical places. In some cases, the same place may be at one time liminal and at other times not. Other places may feel like a liminal space regardless of the time of day or year you visit them. Whenever we are at a place during a time that's not usual for that space, it can feel unsettling.
Is a parking lot an in between place?
A parking lot is most certainly an in-between place. It only functions in conjunction with another space-the space you are going to. So usually, the parking lot itself is not your destination, but the place adjoining or nearby the lot. Learn To Recognize When You're In A Liminal Space.
Is liminal space uncomfortable?
Often, these uncomfortable spaces turn out to be liminal spaces. Fortunately, there's a reasonable explanation for why liminal space feels different. Once you know the source of your feelings about liminal spaces, you can better deal with the feeling when a place makes you a bit unsettled.
What is liminal space?
A liminal space is the time between the ‘what was’ and the ‘next.’. It is a place of transition, a season of waiting, and not knowing. Liminal space is where all transformation takes place, if we learn to wait and let it form us.
What is the purpose of liminal guide?
Our goal as your Liminal Guide is to help you gain deeper understanding of the change and with it find a clear path forward. It’s a bit counter-intuitive, but we believe life’s most turbulent moments are where the best and most enduring transformation occurs. Immense growth happens here, if you learn how to listen to your life.
Where does transformation take place?
Liminal space is where all transformation takes place, if we learn to wait and let it form us.
What Is Liminal Space?
Maybe you’ve never heard of the phrase “ liminal space ,” but you’ve been there, and it's possible you didn't like it.
What is the metaphor for liminal space?
Metaphorically, a liminal space exists any time there are two ideas that someone is vacillating between. A trapeze makes an excellent metaphor for this. Once you jump off the platform, you are literally swinging through the air, waiting to transition from where you came from to where you are going.
What happens when liminal space is perceived as a danger, uncertainty, or a stressor?
When liminal space is perceived as a danger, uncertainty, or a stressor, the feelings can lead to anything from anxiety to depression to suicidal ideation. 2
Why don't we notice liminal spaces?
You are in physical liminal spaces all the time, but typically you often don’t notice them because you're only there for fleeting moments.
Who first wrote about the concept of liminality?
Anthropologist Arnold van Gennep first wrote about the concept of liminality when he developed the idea of the rites of passage. 1 He defined a “rite of separation” (preliminary rite), rite of transition (liminal rite), and rite of incorporation (post-liminal rite). This transition theory explained that changes in people's life stages follow this pattern.
Is liminality an opportunity?
Liminality can also be an opportunity for transformation. 3 It might not have been the path you would have chosen, but it is the path you are on now.
Can liminal spaces be harmful?
Liminal spaces can have harmful effects on mental health —if you let them. It is inevitable that you might encounter various liminal spaces throughout your life. In fact, life is just one liminal space between birth and death.
What is a liminal space?
True to its etymology ("limina the Latin word limen, meaning "threshold"), the concept of a liminal space classically encompasses physical spaces that, due to their function, are transitional - hallways, waiting rooms, parking lots and rest stops are the archetypical examples of such places. Liminal space aesthetics relate to the unique and combined feeling of eeriness, nostalgia, and apprehension one gets when presented with such places outside of their designed context. Most notably, their function as intermediary points between origin and destination. For instance, an empty stairwell or hospital corridor at night might appear as sinister or uncanny because these places are usually brimming with life and movement. Therefore, the absence of external stimuli (such as conversations, people moving around, or any kind of dynamism) creates an otherworldly and forlorn atmosphere.
What are some examples of liminal spaces?
Despite this, however, possibly the best-known example of a liminal space is The Backrooms; an entry into the pantheon of creepypasta that is described as "what you see when you no-clip out of reality" The Backrooms has been adapted into a variety of media, but has been a particularly popular topic in the realm of video games, where no less than 5 games are based on the concept. In videos on YouTube discussing liminal spaces, The Backrooms are a popular point of reference to use when describing the aesthetic as a whole.
Is liminal space subjective?
Liminal spaces are also quite subjective. What appears nostalgic to one person may be more unsettling to another, while some may find the same image bland with no emotions attached to it. There is even debate as to whether it should even be conisdered an aesthetic.
What is the liminal of a space?
You might think of a space, entity, state or time of year as liminal. Anything that is in-between; neither one thing or another, but both.
What is a liminal?
The definition of a liminal, in this context, is “of, relating to, or being an intermediate state, phase, or condition : IN-BETWEEN, TRANSITIONAL ” (Merriam-Webster).
Is a graveyard a liminal space?
Graveyards, crossroads, the time between waking and sleep are all liminal spaces
