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Contending with Contemporaneity in Settlement-Pattern Studies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Keith W. Kintigh*
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-2402

Abstract

Settlement-pattern studies are plagued by the problem of analyzing site distribution maps for time periods during which not all sites are contemporaneous. In a key insight, Dewar (1991) used counts of sites occupied at the beginning and end of a period to estimate, through simulation, the number of simultaneously occupied sites. While Dewar's treatment is an important contribution, drawbacks to his method are identified and remedies proposed. First, an equation that obviates the need for the simulation is provided. It is then shown that Dewar's method fails to take into account those sites that are both established and abandoned during the period. Finally, this problem is remedied through a modification of the equation that incorporates the single-period sites in the estimate of the number of contemporaneous sites. Application to Valley of Mexico settlement data suggests larger numbers of simultaneously occupied sites and shorter site use spans than were obtained by Dewar.

Resumen

Resumen

Los estudios de patrón de asentamiento están plagados por el problema de analizar los mapas de distribución de sitios para períodos de tiempo durante los cuales no todos los sitios son contemporáneos. En una contribución clave, Dewar (1991) usó los números de sitios ocupados al comienzo y al final de un período para estimar, a través de simulación, el número de sitios ocupados simultaneamente. Aunque el tratamiento de Dewar es una contribución importante, en este trabajo se identifican las desventajas de su método y se proponen soluciones. Primero, se provee una ecuación con la que se obvia la necesidad de usar simulación. Se demuestra entonces que el método de Dewar no toma en consideración aquellos sitios que son establecidos y abandonados durante el período. Finalmente, este problema es remediado a través de una modificación de la ecuación que incorpora los sitios de un solo período en las estimaciones del número de sitios contemporáneos. La aplicación de esta ecuación a los datos de asentamientos del Valle de México sugiere un mayor número de sitios ocupados simultaneamente y una duración de sitio más corta que los obtenidos por Dewar.

Type
Comments
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for American Archaeology 1994

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References

References Cited

Dewar, R. E. 1991 Incorporating Variation in Occupation Span into Settlement-Pattern Analysis. American Antiquity 56 : 604620.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Parsons, J. R., Kintigh, K. W., and Gregg, S. A. 1983 Archaeological Settlement Pattern Data from the Chalco, Xochimilco, Ixtapalapa, Texcoco, and Zumpango Regions, Mexico. Technical Report No. 14. Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.Google Scholar