Spatial statistics is divided into three data types: geostatistics, point patterns and areal data. This is the first book to focus on areal data. It summarizes the huge amount of research on areal data that has taken place over the last twenty years. The text presents an introduction to the statistical analysis of areal data, adopting a very practical approach with lots of real examples and providing R and WinBUGS code. It also covers both classical as well as Bayesian methodology. In addition, the authors include lots of exercises, both practical and theoretical, to enable its use as a course text or for self-study. A website provides all of the code, additional exercises, and solutions.