Associations between Agricultural Intensification and Social Complexity: An Example from the Prehistoric Ohio Valley

Many different theories have been advanced to explain the existence of non-state complex societies (often described as chiefdoms). Explanations of the appearance or decline of chiefdoms have historically emphasized the relations between a society's productive base and its social organization, but more recently, studies of the dynamics of chiefdoms have shifted away from economic or material explanations. This study examines the relationship between social complexity and human stable carbon-isotope ratios as a measure of agricultural intensification for late prehistoric (after A.D. 1000) tribal and chiefdom-level societies of the Ohio Valley of eastern North America. We show that there is a strong association between social complexity and agricultural intensification (reflected in increased maize consumption) in this region during the late prehistoric period.