README
Name of data package: Final Iron Age forts and settlement in Estonia
Author: Kristo Siig
School of Humanities, Tallinn University
Contact information: kristosg@tlu.ee

Year: 2024
Version: 1
This is a data package containing data and scripts on forts and different proxies of settlement (fertile soils, recorded villages, settlement sites, burial sites, early modern manors) in 11th-13th century Estonia. The dataset was created by Kristo Siig in 2024 as part of my PhD dissertation work on locational aspects of Iron Age forts in northern Estonia and, more specifically, an article about the hill-fort of Varbola and other 11th to 13th century strongholds in Northwestern Estonia. The basics of the research applications are described in the following paper:
Siig, K. 2022. What does location say about function? Using computational methods for analysing how Late Iron Age fortified sites in Estonia are located in the landscape. – Fortifications in their Natural and Cultural Landscape: From Organising Space to the Creation of Power. Papers presented at the International workshop ‘The location of hillforts in their natural and cultural landscape’, organised by the EAA Community on Fortification Research (COMFORT) Schleswig, March 5th/6th, 2020 and the EAA-session #448 (Budapest 2020) ‘Just a demonstration of power? The setting of strongholds within their landscape’ August 29th, 2020. Eds. T. Ibsen; K. Ilves, B. Maixner, S. Messal, & J. Schneeweiß. (Schriften des Archäologischen Landesmuseums, Ergänzungsreihe, Band 15) Habelt-Verlag, Bonn, 119–140.
Coordinate data is given in Estonian Coordinate System of 1997 (EPSG 3301), if not stated otherwise.

The data package has been formed based on existing databases and datasets:
1. Data on protected archaeological sites by the Heritage Board of Estonia
2. Data on archaeological sites in the database "Muistised ja pärimuspaigad" by the Centre for Archaeological Research and Infrastructure (Arheoloogia kabinet) at University of Tartu (coordinate data is not shared due to heritage management concerns)
3. Soil map of Estonia by Kmoch et al 2019
Kmoch, A., Kanal, A., Astover, A., Kull, A., Virro, H., Helm, A., Pärtel, M., Ostonen, I., and Uuemaa, E.: EstSoil-EH: a high-resolution eco-hydrological modelling parameters dataset for Estonia, Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 13, 83–97, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-13-83-2021, 2021.
4. Source publication of the large Estonian list in the Liber Census Daniae:
Johansen, P. 1933. Die Estlandliste des Liber Census Daniae I–II. Kopenhagen; Reval.
5. Source publications of the 1725-1726 land revision in the Governorate of Estonia:
Einpaul, A. & Naaber, V. 1988a. Eestimaa 1725–1726. a. adramaarevisjon. 1. kd., Harjumaa: allikpublikatsioon. Eesti NSV Riiklik Ajaloo Keskarhiiv, Tartu Riiklik Ülikool, Tallinn.
Einpaul, A. & Naaber, V. 1988b. Eestimaa 1725–1726. a. adramaarevisjon. 2. kd., Harjumaa: allikpublikatsioon. Eesti NSV Riiklik Ajaloo Keskarhiiv, Tartu Riiklik Ülikool, Tallinn.
Kähr, K. & Naaber, V. 1990 Eestimaa 1725–1726. a. adramaarevisjon: Läänemaa: allikpublikatsioon = Estländische Hakenrevision von 1725 bis 1726: Wieck: Quellenpublikation. Eesti Ajalooarhiiv, Tartu Ülikool, Tallinn.

Contents of the package are described in the file “Contents.pdf”. The package includes three notebooks with R scripts describing how the data was used. Datasets on settlement sites and burial sites, while used in the analysis and referred to in the notebooks, are not shared in this package because of heritage protection concerns.

The data is free for reuse with attribution. The author sees value for others in using the datasets and/or scripts for analyses in settlement archaeology / spatial archaeology.