Tracking Emergent Spatial and Social Patterns across Terraced Landscapes in Polynesia.

Successful settlement on Polynesian islands required the alteration of environments, and such alteration produced extensive cultural landscapes. While some of the characteristics of these landscapes are well-established, what drives the spatial and temporal structure of these settlements is not clear across the entire region. Here, we present data on the nature and structure of settlement along one geological substrate in the interior of Ta'ū Island, Manu'a Group, American Sāmoa. Our results suggest that variability in slope and soil fertility were key drivers of archaeological patterns. Early use of the area seems to meet expectations of an ideal free distribution wherein the community was dispersed and located in relatively optimal locations for settlement. Characteristics of the settlement in the 15th century a.d. and later are consistent with landscape packing and community integration, signaling a shift to an ideal despotic distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]