Teh, Tse-Hui;
Zhuang, Yijie;
Teh, Tse-Hui;
Radimilahy, Chantal;
Crossland, Zoë;
(2025)
Monsoonal habitats for the people: a pilot geoarchaeological and urban-planning study of land use and water management histories in the highlands of Madagascar.
Archaeology International
, 27
(1)
pp. 100-112.
10.14324/ai.27.1.12.
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Abstract
This article addresses one of the most significant research questions in the archaeology of Madagascar: when and how rice farming began to spread in the highlands. It also explores if it is possible to use this archaeological knowledge in urban codesign. Here we present preliminary geoarchaeological results and interview data from our two pilot field trips around several key archaeological sites along the Ikopa and Sisaony rivers in the Imerina region, near the capital city of Antananarivo. These first-hand data on land use and water management histories provide fresh insights to understand highly localised erosion events and other ecological consequences of farming, as well as the non-linear evolution of hillslope–valley environments and landscapes in the studied region. Our results suggest that while some erosion might have begun as early as 2000 bp, most erosion events occurred from 500 bp onwards, coinciding with clear evidence of severe soil slaking and increased presence of rice phytoliths. The impact of intensified land use practices on local environments varies significantly between different locations and sites, revealing that the relationship between local ecosystems and human activities was more complicated than generally assumed. In terms of present-day landscape impact, our pilot study also uncovered the ambiguities and discrepancies in policy-making, appreciation and implementation among different stakeholders, rendering communities unaware of the real causes of environmental degradation and vulnerable to future environmental crises. These findings highlight the great potential of integrating archaeological knowledge of ecological and land use histories with the diverse needs of stakeholders for sustainable development and better preparation for future climaterelated challenges.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Monsoonal habitats for the people: a pilot geoarchaeological and urban-planning study of land use and water management histories in the highlands of Madagascar |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.14324/ai.27.1.12 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.14324/ai.27.1.12 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © 2024, Yijie Zhuang, Tse-Hui Teh, Chantal Radimilahy and Zoë Crossland. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licence (CC-BY) 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. |
| Keywords: | Madagascar highlands, water management and land use, geoarchaeology, urban planning, erosion and hillslope–valley evolution, stakeholders |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of the Built Environment UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of the Built Environment > The Bartlett School of Planning UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Institute of Archaeology UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Institute of Archaeology > Institute of Archaeology Gordon Square |
| URI: | https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10203928 |
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