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Encyclopedia of Geoarchaeology pp 47–57Cite as

Archaeoseismology

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Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series ((EESS))

Synonyms

Earthquake archaeology; Seismic archaeology

Definition

The study of ancient earthquakes at archaeological sites.

Introduction

Earthquakes have disrupted human societies throughout history and prehistory. Whereas hunter-gatherer cultures may have been relatively little affected by seismic events, the built environment of sedentary societies can be quite vulnerable to collapse of structures by earthquake-induced ground motion. Understanding the severity and frequency of past earthquakes is important for understanding the history, consequences, and responses of past societies to these seismic disasters, as well as the hazards posed to modern populations. In many parts of the world, the recurrence of earthquakes is so infrequent that modern instrumental seismic data do not adequately represent the earthquake potential. Therefore, other methods to document the history of earthquakes are needed.

Various sources of data provide evidence of earthquake occurrence and magnitude, albeit...

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geosciences, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, 64110, USA

    Tina M. Niemi

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  1. Tina M. Niemi
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Correspondence to Tina M. Niemi .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Fordham University, Bronx, NY, USA

    Allan S. Gilbert

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Niemi, T.M. (2017). Archaeoseismology. In: Gilbert, A.S. (eds) Encyclopedia of Geoarchaeology. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-4409-0_59

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