| Variable | Definition |
|---|---|
| Polity | The Seshat Polity ID |
| Year(s) | The years for which we have the data. [negative = BCE] |
| Tag | [Evidenced, Disputed, Suspected, Inferred, Unknown] |
| Verified | A Seshat Expert has approved this piece of data. |
| Variable | Definition |
|---|---|
| settlement_hierarchy_from | The lower range of settlement hierarchy for a polity. |
| settlement_hierarchy_to | The upper range of settlement hierarchy for a polity. |
| # | Polity | Year(s) | Settlement Hierarchy from | Settlement Hierarchy to | Description | Edit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 262 |
(Zirids) |
Full Year Range of Zirids is assumed. [973, 1148] |
3 |
3 |
levels. 1. Capital 2. Towns 3. Small settlements Nomadic tribes |
|
| 263 |
(Early Wagadu Empire) |
Full Year Range of Early Wagadu Empire is assumed. [250, 700] |
None |
None |
None | |
| 264 |
(Cwezi Dynasty) |
Full Year Range of Cwezi Dynasty is assumed. [1450, 1699] |
4 |
4 |
levels. 1. Capital2. Seat of bakungu (great chiefs)3. Seat of bakongole (lesser chiefs)4. Lesser towns and/or villages "In the Nyoro state of the nineteenth century, as reconstructed by John Beattie (1971), all political authority was regarded as belonging to, and allocable by, the king (mukama) alone. Political authority was delegated by the mukama, usually in the form of grants of estates. There was a limited number of great chiefs (bakungu), who ruled over large areas subdivided amongst lesser chiefs (bakongole)." [Robertshaw 2010, p. 261] It seems reasonable to infer that this was the case in preceding centuries as well, given organisational continuity between the Babito dynasty and its predecessors: Uzoigwe [Uzoigwe 1972, p. 247] specifically notes that the Babito "do not seem to have introduced any fundamental economic changes" or "any revolutionaty social reorganization". |
|
| 265 |
(Gauda Kingdom) |
Full Year Range of Gauda Kingdom is assumed. [600, 625] |
None |
None |
levels. (1) Capital city (2) TownTowns were often emporiums of trade as well as political centres. What distinguished them from villages, according to Majumdar, was that while they may also have had some agricultural activity, they served a “wide variety of functions, commercial, industrial, political, judicial and military.” But the greatest distinction was the luxury and wealth of the towns and it’s citizens.” [Majumdar 1943] And van Schendel confirms that “the archaeological record indicates that urban centres came up as early as the fifth century bce. During the following centuries large towns would develop along major rivers rather than on the exposed sea coast.” [van_Schendel 2009] (3) VillageMajumdar writes that since the beginning of historical record for Bengal, there have been well-established villages, in which the fields, meadows and woodlands have been organised to serve the population’s needs. They varied in size but people tended to live in compact groups within them They would all generally include livestock. The villages also contained “pits and canals (garta and nala) which might have served the purpose of drainage, barren tracts (ushara), tanks, reservoirs and temples, besides cattle-tracks and ordinary roads and paths.” [Majumdar 1943] |
|
| 266 |
(Twelve Bhuyans) |
Full Year Range of Twelve Bhuyans is assumed. [1538, 1612] |
None |
None |
levels. (1) Capital city (2) TownTowns were often emporiums of trade as well as political centres. What distinguished them from villages, according to Majumdar, was that while they may also have had some agricultural activity, they served a “wide variety of functions, commercial, industrial, political, judicial and military.” But the greatest distinction was the luxury and wealth of the towns and it’s citizens, which the Ramacharita describes as “a city of rows of palaces” and as possessing ‘an immense mass of gems’.” [Majumdar 1943] “the archaeological record indicates that urban centres came up as early as the fifth century bce. During the following centuries large towns would develop along major rivers rather than on the exposed sea coast.” [van_Schendel 2009] (3) VillageMajumdar writes that since the beginning of historical record for Bengal, there have been well-established villages, in which the fields, meadows and woodlands have been organised to serve the population’s needs. They varied in size but people tended to live in compact groups within them They would all generally include livestock. The villages also contained “pits and canals (garta and nala) which might have served the purpose of drainage, barren tracts (ushara), tanks, reservoirs and temples, besides cattle-tracks and ordinary roads and paths.” [Majumdar 1943] (4) Hamlet [Furui 2020] |
|
| 267 |
(Egypt - Thebes-Hyksos Period) |
Full Year Range of Egypt - Thebes-Hyksos Period is assumed. [-1720, -1567] |
4 |
5 |
None | |
| 268 |
(Northern Maravi Kingdom) |
Full Year Range of Northern Maravi Kingdom is assumed. [1500, 1621] |
3 |
5 |
EMPTY_COMMENT | |