An Analysis of Natural Factors Affecting the Dispersal and Establishment of Iron Age III (800-550 B.C) Settlements in the Western Zayandeh-Rud River Basin (West and Northwest of Isfahan)

Humans are always lenders to their surroundings which makes it possible to create habitable environments and create habitat patterns that fit the surrounding environment. In this research, settlement patterns of Iron Age III sites in the west and northwest of Isfahan was studied via GIS. The area studied is one of the most important but unknown areas of archaeological research due to its location in the center of the Iranian plateau and a link between the north-west and the south-west of the country. The environmental characteristics of the studied area have attracted the attention of humans since ancient times. Therefore, it was considered necessary to conduct archaeological excavations. To achieve this goal, the area was first studied archaeologically. As a result of this survey, approximately 50 ancient sites were identified which included the statistical population used for analysis. The effect of environmental variables on the distribution of settlements in the study area was investigated including altitude, slope (percentage and direction), climate, geological structure, distances and proximity to water resources, distance to and land use, and the proximity to communication paths. Through analytical-descriptive method, the factors affecting the formation and distribution of the establishment patterns of the period in question was studied. After analyzing the information and maps, the results indicated that among all the factors, three environmental factors were the most important in the formation of ancient settlements of the Iron Age III era in the west and northwest of Isfahan: factors relating to water resources, proximity to communication paths, and slope percentage and direction.