SETTLING SELECTION PATTERNS IN THE SUBCARPATHIAN AREAS OF ROMANIA. SALT RESOURCES AS A DETERMINING FACTOR FOR PREHISTORIC OCCUPATION.

The paper presents a number of methodological aspects, based on GIS (Geographic Information System) applications, useful in complex studies of prehistoric economies, or, more specifically, of subsistence strategies employed by prehistoric agrarian communities. The study provides arguments for the existence of an economic potential in the Subcarpathian areas of Romania, and at the same time focuses on determining, by means of landscape analyses, a model of habitation of the prehistoric settlements from this area. Relying on a series of case studies, the main natural resources available in the area were identified, with a focus on the salt springs, which undoubtedly played a key role and should be considered a decisive factor in selecting the occupation areas. Directly related to this, a detailed characterisation of the terrain, by describing its main morpho-hydrometric characteristics, is provided. For the Subcarpathian area of Romania, the ethnoarchaeological investigations conducted recently as part of two research projects, alongside the archaeological researches performed throughout time, interpreted conjointly in a GIS environment, support the hypotheses regarding the archaeological potential of the area directly conditioned by the presence of salt resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]