Visibility Analysis and Ancient Settlement Strategies in the Region of Tall al-'Umayri, Jordan

"Geographic information systems (GIS) are proven tools for discerning the relationship between ancient humans and their environment. This has led to an emphasis in GIS circles on environmental models for explaining ancient settlement strategies. Less common are GIS approaches that include socio-cultural factors in settlement strategies. This study applies one such approach, visibility analysis, to data from the Umayri regional survey. The results suggest that visible communication played an important role in local settlement strategies throughout antiquity."