Session: #230

Theme & Session Format

Theme:
1. Artefacts, Buildings & Ecofacts
Session format:
Regular session

Title & Content

Title:
What Makes a Settlement? Comparative Perspectives on Settlement Structures and Patterns from Neolithic to Iron Age
Content:
In the broader context of prehistoric archaeology, settlement archaeology represents one of the most pivotal fields of research. The investigation of settlement structures, patterns and organization has developed into a field in which multiscale approaches are widely applied. Settlement structures, on the intra-site scale, and patterns, on the inter-site scale, are investigated at local, regional and supra-regional levels, with qualitative approaches playing an important role alongside statistical approaches. In this context, perspectives on and approaches to settlement archaeology have constantly changed and reflect the orientation of archaeological research.
Nevertheless, the question remains how to bring together the different levels of inquiry and how to describe and interpret the socio-political dimensions of settlement patterns and organization. The aim of the session is to lead discussions about the linkage of different scales of research, the importance of different methodological approaches, and the significance of theoretical approaches.
Within the session we want to address different questions with a focus on the cultural contexts from the Neolithic to the Iron Age in a comparative perspective:
- How do we perceive settlement structures and patterns and how can we describe and analyze the underlying functional, social, political and economic aspects?
- How can we integrate those aspects into a holistic view on settlement organization and systems?
- Can the analysis of settlement patterns and structures be seen as a tool that allows the study and interpretation of past social structures?
- How can we connect different scales of inquiry and research? Which theoretical frameworks and methodologies seem appropriate?
We invite contributions that focus on the aforementioned topics and which might focus on the different levels of inquiry cited above. We also encourage papers focusing on socio-cultural anthropological perspectives, as well as the theoretical frameworks connected to the study of settlement structures, patterns and organization.
Keywords:
Settlement archaeology, Comparative approaches, Social archaeology
Session associated with MERC:
no
Session associated with CIfA:
no
Session associated with SAfA:
no
Session associated with CAA:
no
Session associated with DGUF:
no
Session associated with other:

Organisers

Main organiser:
Maria Wunderlich (Germany) 1
Co-organisers:
Peter Tkáč (Czech Republic) 2,3
Alessio Palmisano (Italy) 4
Affiliations:
1. Institute for Pre- and Protohistoric Archaeology, Kiel University
2. Department of Archaeology and Museology, Masaryk University, Brno, CZ
3. Department of Vegetation Ecology, Institute of Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, CZ
4. Department of Historical Studies, University of Turin