Intermediate Area

Intermediate Area

The Intermediate Area is an archaeological geographical area of the Americas that was defined in its clearest form by Gordon R. Willey in his 1971 book "An Introduction to American Archaeology, Vol. 2: South America" (Prentice Hall: Englewood Cliffs, NJ). It comprises the geographical region between Mesoamerica to the north and the Central Andes to the south, including portions of Honduras and most of the territory of the republics of Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, and Ecuador. As an archaeological concept, the Intermediate Area has always been somewhat poorly defined.

Because it was not home to ancient state societies but was predominated by chiefdoms at the time of the Spanish conquest, it was sometimes regarded as a kind of "cultural backwater" that contributed little to the emergence of Pre-Columbian civilization in the New World. However, recent archaeological research has demonstrated that this part of the Americas had some of the earliest agriculture, pottery, and metallurgy in the hemisphere.Fact|date=October 2008 It is likely to have played a critical role in the transmission of culture both to and between neighboring regions to the north and south. Recently, concepts such as that of the Isthmo-Colombian Area have been offered as an alternative to the Intermediate Area with the intention of creating a positive identity based upon unique characteristics, rather than one defined by the "absence" of traits.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • intermediate area illumination — tarpinis ploto apšvietimas statusas T sritis Gynyba apibrėžtis Zonos apšvietimas nuo apšaudymo zonos pradžios (apie 2 000 m) iki didžiausio daugumos divizijos pabūklų šaudymo nuotolio (apie 10 000 m). atitikmenys: angl. intermediate area… …   Artilerijos terminų žodynas

  • intermediate area illumination — tarpinis ploto apšvietimas statusas T sritis Gynyba apibrėžtis Zonos, kuri eina į gilumą nuo apšaudymo zonos pradžios (apie 2000 m) ir tęsiasi iki maksimalaus daugumos divizijos artilerijos pabūklų šaudymo nuotolio (apie 10 000 m), apšvietimas.… …   NATO terminų aiškinamasis žodynas

  • Intermediate Unit — Intermediate Units are United States regional educational service agencies, established by the Pennsylvania General Assembly. Intermediate Units serve a given geographic area s educational needs and function as a step of organization above that… …   Wikipedia

  • area — 1. [TA] Any circumscribed surface or space. 2. All of the part supplied by a given artery or nerve. 3. A part of an organ having a special function, as the motor a. of the brain. SEE ALSO …   Medical dictionary

  • Intermediate Region — An established geopolitical model set forth in the 1970s by the Greek historian Dimitri Kitsikis, professor at the University of Ottawa, Canada, which is formally recognised by, among other institutions, the Royal Society of Canada. [Keyserlingk …   Wikipedia

  • Intermediate value theorem — In mathematical analysis, the intermediate value theorem states that for each value between the upper and lower bounds of the image of a continuous function there is a corresponding value in its domain mapping to the original.Intermediate value… …   Wikipedia

  • area navigation (RNAV) approach configurations — The approach configurations for area navigation are the standard T, modified T, standard I, and terminal arrival area. i. Standard T. An RNAV approach whose design allows direct flight to any one of three initial approach fixes (IAF) and… …   Aviation dictionary

  • intermediate approach segment — That segment of an instrument approach procedure between either the intermediate approach fix and the final approach fix or point, or between the end of a reversal, race track, or dead reckoning track procedure and the final approach fix or point …   Aviation dictionary

  • Intermediate Parakeet — The Intermediate Parakeet ( Psittacula intermedia (Rothschild, 1895)) or Rothschild s Parakeet was a kind of parakeet reported from the sub Himalayan region of India and was described on the basis of about seven undated specimens. Individuals… …   Wikipedia

  • Intermediate bulk container — An Intermediate bulk container (IBC) is a container used for transport and storage of fluids and bulk materials. The construction of the IBC container and the materials used are chosen depending on the application, i.e. there are various types… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”