A GIS Approach to Settlement Patterns and Predictive Modeling in Chihuahua, Mexico

Summary

In this study I analyzed the pattern of settlement for known Medio period (A.D. 1200–1450) sites in the Casas Grandes region of Chihuahua, Mexico. Locational data acquired from survey projects in the Casas Grandes region were evaluated within a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) framework to reveal patterns in settlement and site distribution. Environmental and cultural variables such as elevation, topographic aspect, slope, soil, distance to nearest water, and distance to nearest known ballcourt were calculated for each site in this region. It was expected that the relationships of correspondence between known sites and these variables would provide a quantitative framework that could be used to model the locational probability of unknown sites in the region. Through the use of GIS and statistical analyses, the results of this study were used to produce an archaeological site sensitivity map for this region of northern Mexico.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 83rd Annual Meeting, Washington, DC (2018)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 21309