Osadnictwo społeczności kultury ceramiki sznurowej na obszarze Wysoczyzny Świeckiej. Przyczynek do studiów geograficzno-osadniczych

The main aim of this article is an attempt to reconstruct basic tendencies of settlements of development of CWC society, inhabiting the territory of Świecie Plauteau, located in the Brda and Vistula basin; as well as to detect certain dependency between allocation of known settlement sites and natural environments of spheres. In the way the topic is approached, the differential character of examined spheres required applying a breakdown, taking into account four landscape units: moraine plauteau, higher terrace, and meadow terrace and flood plain/valley bottom. The cartographic analysis, as well as data included in AZP (Archaeological Picture of Poland) cards indicates that the settlement of CWC society – from the territory that is of interest to us – was mainly connected with the zone of valley landscape. The slopes and edges of small river valleys were preferred; and capes at the lower level. Nearly all sites are located relatively low On the current level of settlement studies, it appears that the greatest part – next to the conditioning of social-economic or political-ideological nature – in taking up settlement decisions by pre-historical communities, it was the presence of desired elements of environmental surroundings such as: beneficial natural topography, developed water network, soil cover, types of communities of vegetation or the presence of stock that played role. However, it is necessary to remember that particular social groups, sometimes within the same cultural unit, were distinguishing the features of a given environment according to their own needs. Arguably, part of behaviours resulted from individual unit – human being. Basing on the multiaspect analysis of basic factors determining the progress of settlement of the said populations, it is worth emphasizing that many characteristic elements connected with occupying and making use of grounds is broadly reflected in the other areas situated on Polish Lowland. It can mean that Neolithic communities, including those representing CWC traditions, settling the region that is of interest to us, had similar development conditions as remaining human communities with maintaining characteristic settlement preferences. Existing works, covering the subject of settlement-cultural transformations in the time of functioning of CWC in relation to Polish Plain, often treated the research region marginally. The lack of interest in that territory, and the resulting weak progress of archeological research caused that, still in the 90. of the 20th century, that region was associated as episodically penetrated or eventually very poorly inhabited by Neolithic communities, including CWC24. In the light of new data, the above thesis expires. The research of recent years proved that human communities of CWC tradition, existing in that region in the Younger Stone Age, mediated in the process of spreading the idea of Neolithisation almost in all its development phases. Unfortunately, due to the state of source base, many issues were discussed generally or fragmentarily and the above conclusions are of initial character and require verification on the ground of further archaeological research. Moreover, we are unable to answer many crucial questions.