Transforming the Upper Mesopotamian Landscape in the Late Neolithic

Abstract

The Late Neolithic period in Upper Mesopotamia is generally associated with a surge in human settlement, in terms of their number, geographic distribution, and organizational complexity. In archaeological discussion, the “advanced farming village” is often seen as the logical “end product” of the agricultural transformations that began in the Early (“Pre-Pottery”) Neolithic. However, the complex later prehistoric landscape did not emerge overnight. Current evidence suggests that this profound transformation took about one and a half millennia, and showed much localized variability. Over the past decades, regional surveys have resulted in a rich body of evidence that stimulates the exploration of long-term trends in settlement through the Neolithic period. Here we present a synthesis of this exploration. We highlight some important methodological and conceptual challenges to interpreting these data, and we point out a number of possible shifts in the ways Late Neolithic communities inhabited the landscape.