A Suitability Analysis of Dona Ana and El Paso Phase Settlement Patterns in the Jornada Mogollon Region of New Mexico

Abstract

The goal of this project is to use raster-based GIS analytical methods, specifically suitability analysis, to identify and model landscape characteristics associated with archaeological site placement in southeastern New Mexico. This analysis focuses particularly on the environmental variables influencing the transition from mobile hunter-gatherer lifeways in the Jornada Mogollon/Doña Ana phase to increasingly sedentary agricultural settlements typical of the later El Paso phase. By integrating factors such as proximity to streams, slope, aspect, precipitation, soils, and landcover into a suitability model, this research aims to better understand how these variables influenced settlement decisions.

During the Late Formative (AD 1000 – 1450), Jornada Mogollon populations adopted a mixed subsistence strategy characterized primarily by horticulture focused on indigenous plant species (e.g., chenopods), supplemented by maize agriculture. This adaptive approach would have had important implications for where communities established their settlements, likely emphasizing areas suitable for small-scale agriculture and resource-rich environments. Identifying landscape characteristics associated with semi-sedentary to sedentary residential sites will help clarify the environmental criteria guiding site selection and reveal broader patterns in prehistoric settlement decisions. This research offers insights into how environmental constraints shaped cultural adaptations and landscape utilization in the Jornada Mogollon region.