Quantifying Land Use in Past Societies from Cultural Practice and Archaeological Data
Quantitative reconstructions of past land use facilitate comparisons between livelihoods in space and time. However, comparison between different types of land use strategies is challenging as land use has a multitude of expressions and intensities. The quantitative method presented here facilitates...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2018-01-01
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| Series: | Land |
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| Online Access: | http://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/7/1/9 |
| _version_ | 1811274945176535040 |
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| author | Ryan E. Hughes Erika Weiberg Anton Bonnier Martin Finné Jed O. Kaplan |
| author_facet | Ryan E. Hughes Erika Weiberg Anton Bonnier Martin Finné Jed O. Kaplan |
| author_sort | Ryan E. Hughes |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Quantitative reconstructions of past land use facilitate comparisons between livelihoods in space and time. However, comparison between different types of land use strategies is challenging as land use has a multitude of expressions and intensities. The quantitative method presented here facilitates the exploration and synthetization of uneven archaeological and textual evidence from past societies. The approach quantifies the area required for habitation, agriculture, arboriculture, pasturage, and fuel supply, based on a combination of archaeological, historical, ethnographic and modern evidence from the relevant geographical region. It is designed to stimulate discussion and can be used to test a wide range of hypotheses regarding local and regional economies, ancient trade and redistribution, and the resilience and/or vulnerability of past societies to environmental change. The method also helps identify where our gaps in knowledge are in understanding past human–environment interaction, the ecological footprint of past cultures and their influence on the landscape in a transparent and quantitative manner. The present article focuses especially on the impact of dietary estimates and crop yield estimates, two main elements in calculating land use in past societies due to their uncertainty as well as their significant impact on calculations. By employing archaeological data, including botanical, zoological and isotopic evidence, alongside available textual sources, this method seeks to improve land use and land cover change models by increasing their representativeness and accuracy. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-12T23:28:05Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-4c32d74aa83646b19bf13e0eb345b11e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-445X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-12T23:28:05Z |
| publishDate | 2018-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Land |
| spelling | doaj.art-4c32d74aa83646b19bf13e0eb345b11e2022-12-22T03:12:21ZengMDPI AGLand2073-445X2018-01-0171910.3390/land7010009land7010009Quantifying Land Use in Past Societies from Cultural Practice and Archaeological DataRyan E. Hughes0Erika Weiberg1Anton Bonnier2Martin Finné3Jed O. Kaplan4Institute of Earth Surface Dynamics, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, SwitzerlandDepartment of Archaeology and Ancient History, Uppsala University, 752 36 Uppsala, SwedenDepartment of Archaeology and Ancient History, Uppsala University, 752 36 Uppsala, SwedenDepartment of Archaeology and Ancient History, Uppsala University, 752 36 Uppsala, SwedenARVE Research Sàrl, 1009 Pully, SwitzerlandQuantitative reconstructions of past land use facilitate comparisons between livelihoods in space and time. However, comparison between different types of land use strategies is challenging as land use has a multitude of expressions and intensities. The quantitative method presented here facilitates the exploration and synthetization of uneven archaeological and textual evidence from past societies. The approach quantifies the area required for habitation, agriculture, arboriculture, pasturage, and fuel supply, based on a combination of archaeological, historical, ethnographic and modern evidence from the relevant geographical region. It is designed to stimulate discussion and can be used to test a wide range of hypotheses regarding local and regional economies, ancient trade and redistribution, and the resilience and/or vulnerability of past societies to environmental change. The method also helps identify where our gaps in knowledge are in understanding past human–environment interaction, the ecological footprint of past cultures and their influence on the landscape in a transparent and quantitative manner. The present article focuses especially on the impact of dietary estimates and crop yield estimates, two main elements in calculating land use in past societies due to their uncertainty as well as their significant impact on calculations. By employing archaeological data, including botanical, zoological and isotopic evidence, alongside available textual sources, this method seeks to improve land use and land cover change models by increasing their representativeness and accuracy.http://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/7/1/9agriculturepasturewoodlotpopulationsubsistenceland usearchaeology |
| spellingShingle | Ryan E. Hughes Erika Weiberg Anton Bonnier Martin Finné Jed O. Kaplan Quantifying Land Use in Past Societies from Cultural Practice and Archaeological Data Land agriculture pasture woodlot population subsistence land use archaeology |
| title | Quantifying Land Use in Past Societies from Cultural Practice and Archaeological Data |
| title_full | Quantifying Land Use in Past Societies from Cultural Practice and Archaeological Data |
| title_fullStr | Quantifying Land Use in Past Societies from Cultural Practice and Archaeological Data |
| title_full_unstemmed | Quantifying Land Use in Past Societies from Cultural Practice and Archaeological Data |
| title_short | Quantifying Land Use in Past Societies from Cultural Practice and Archaeological Data |
| title_sort | quantifying land use in past societies from cultural practice and archaeological data |
| topic | agriculture pasture woodlot population subsistence land use archaeology |
| url | http://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/7/1/9 |
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