Abstract
I present a discussion on social dynamics in the north central european plains (NCEP) 600–900s CE that resulted in the emergence of a complex multi-agent dissipative polity, identified in this study as the tornow interaction sphere (TIS), a Carolingian-inspired (controlled) region-wide network of similar in size and construction ringwall forts and accompanying villages. The key question examined is: What archeological facts corroborate the rise of social complexity in this region? My analysis involves the data on spatial distribution and hierarchy of settlements, including the emergence of defensive settlements, distinction in social statuses and concentration of power, local and long-distance economic trade networks, the emergence of market places, and indirect evidence of group action and cooperation, management of common pool resources (commons), and participatory polycentric governance.
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Notes
- 1.
The catalog includes 168 archeological sites from seven NECP provinces: Greater Poland (N = 51), and Pomerania (N = 29) in present-day Poland, and Altmark (N = 9), Brandenburg (N = 36), Mecklenburg (N = 19), Schleswig–Holstein (N = 11), and Wendland (N = 13) in present-day Germany (Tables 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6, 3.7).
- 2.
I chose the North Central European Plains for its well-documented archeological records supported by absolute dating (C14 and dendrochronology).
- 3.
See the ethnographic studies on band and tribal-level societies, for example Pospisil (1963), Barth (1964), Leach (1964), Evans-Prichard (1971), Marshall (1976), Chagnon (1984), Barnard (1992) and Lee (1993). See Dunbar (1992); according to Dunbar 150 individuals was an optimal number for group cohesion, for instance acting together in defending a territory; for discussion on the Dunbar number see Gladwell (2000); American researchers (McCarty et al. 2000) suggested higher numbers, around 231–290; on the correlation between group size and collective action see also Agrawal and Goyal (2001).
- 4.
A compelling case was recently presented by Dominguez (2013).
- 5.
Including the choice described in ‘prisoner’s dilemma,’ see Hardin (1971) and Poundstone (1992).
- 6.
- 7.
An action by one individual produces response among others (or in the group). Fisher (2009) calls such behavior “swarm intelligence.”
- 8.
- 9.
Logistic difference equation (see May 1976) is used to describe the nature of all sorts of complexities controlled by positive and negative feedbacks, which are central to their emergence.
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Lozny, L.R. (2013). Introduction. In: Prestate Societies of the North Central European Plains. SpringerBriefs in Anthropology(), vol 1. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6815-8_1
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