<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">As an integral part of the Gadara-Region-Project, a survey of the Wādī al-‘Arab region was conducted during the years 2009-2012, by the Biblical-Archaeological Institute Wuppertal and the German Protestant Institute for Archaeology in order to achieve a better understanding of the hinterland of the main study site Tall Zirāʿa and to provide answers concerning settlement pattern, trade relationships and the importance of sites throughout time.On the basis of this survey we used ecological approaches to see what correlation might exist between archaeological sites and habitat. Since more than half the sites in this survey had Roman occupation, we asked what difference, if any, was there in the distribution of Roman sites compared to previous occupations. A comparison was made of “new” Roman sites (those not previously occupied in the Hellenistic period) with those that had both Roman and Hellenistic occupation.Open water, riverine habitats, and large archaeological sites all seemed connected. In addition, analysis indicated a correlation of older (more successful or established?) sites with open water and new Roman sites were less related to water. We knew that Roman engineering both of cistern systems and aqueducts opened new areas (such as plateaus) for settlement and exploitation. Hence the weaker correlation of new Roman sites with natural water was reasonable.</abstract>

As an integral part of the Gadara-Region-Project, a survey of the Wādī al-‘Arab region was conducted during the years 2009-2012, by the Biblical-Archaeological Institute Wuppertal and the German Protestant Institute for Archaeology in order to achieve a better understanding of the hinterland of the main study site Tall Zirāʿa and to provide answers concerning settlement pattern, trade relationships and the importance of sites throughout time.On the basis of this survey we used ecological approaches to see what correlation might exist between archaeological sites and habitat. Since more than half the sites in this survey had Roman occupation, we asked what difference, if any, was there in the distribution of Roman sites compared to previous occupations. A comparison was made of “new” Roman sites (those not previously occupied in the Hellenistic period) with those that had both Roman and Hellenistic occupation.Open water, riverine habitats, and large archaeological sites all seemed connected. In addition, analysis indicated a correlation of older (more successful or established?) sites with open water and new Roman sites were less related to water. We knew that Roman engineering both of cistern systems and aqueducts opened new areas (such as plateaus) for settlement and exploitation. Hence the weaker correlation of new Roman sites with natural water was reasonable.

Landscape Archaeology in the Wādī al-ʿArab Region

German Protestant Institute of Archaeology in the Holy Land (DEIAHL) Research Unit of the German Archaeological Institute

Department of Evolution, Systematics and Ecology and Center for Rationality and Interactive Decision Theory

Journal of Landscape Ecology

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

{"article-title":"Landscape Archaeology in the Wādī al-ʿArab Region"}

As an integral part of the Gadara-Region-Project, a survey of the Wādī al-‘Arab region was conducted during the years 2009-2012, by the Biblical-Archaeological...

Landscape Archaeology in the Wādī al-ʿArab Region

Published Online: Feb 06, 2018

Page range: 100 - 108

Received: May 10, 2017

Accepted: Sep 15, 2017

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/jlecol-2017-0028

Keywords
landscape archaeology, Jordan, Roman era, habitat, survey, multivariate analysis

© 2017 Katja Soennecken et al., published by De Gruyter Open

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Landscape Archaeology in the Wādī al-ʿArab Region

Published Online: Feb 06, 2018

Page range: 100 - 108

Received: May 10, 2017

Accepted: Sep 15, 2017

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/jlecol-2017-0028

Keywordslandscape archaeology, Jordan, Roman era, habitat, survey, multivariate analysis

© 2017 Katja Soennecken et al., published by De Gruyter Open

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
landscape archaeology, Jordan, Roman era, habitat, survey, multivariate analysis