Abstract

Previous analyses of settlement data from Gwaii Haanas revealed noticeable differences in the size and number of settlements for the region. Large multi-lineage villages were unlikely to have existed at earlier times on Haida Gwaii and much smaller, widely dispersed settlements were probably the rule for the late pre-contact period. Previous settlement analyses correlated settlement size and location, number and size of houses, the presence or absence of an historical component for all identified 'village' sites, combined with consideration of Haida oral traditions and family histories. In this paper we build on previous approaches by integrating an analysis of biophysical variables in relation to settlements and other site types in Gwaii Haanas. The quality of the inventory data, the extensive GIS mapping of marine-edge variables, and the fact these data entirely cover Kunghit territory, provides for an analysis rarely possible in coastal settlement archaeology.