A chronology for unenclosed settlements in early medieval Ireland: settlement patterns in the late first millennium AD

Abstract

The remains of various early medieval enclosed settlements—earthen and stone-built ringforts, non-circular enclosures, and lake-side crannógs—dominate the Irish landscape. Other settlements from this period lacked an enclosing element and our understanding of these is poor, especially their chronology. This paper provides an overview of the archaeological evidence for unenclosed settlements and other non-enclosure settlement types and analyses associated radiocarbon (14C) data to provide a preliminary chronology for this collective of sites. Temporal trends indicate that settlement peaked between the eighth to mid-ninth centuries before an ostensible reduction in activity at the end of the first millennium AD. This paper then reflects on the latter pattern, acknowledging that this may represent past settlement change or be partly influenced by excavation and research biases. Future avenues of research in the study of unenclosed settlements are also suggested.