Human and Environmental Interactions in the Archeology of the Islamic Period of Qorveh Plain, Northwest of Sanandaj-Sirjan Range

Qorveh plain is located in the southeast of Kurdistan province and it is considered as one of the highlands of Zagros. This plain is located in the Sanandaj-Sirjan Inclined zone. The most prominent feature of this plain is the difference in the geological structure and environment of its north and south. This factor has made the distribution of settlements in these two parts completely different. Qorveh plain was studied and archaeologically reviewed in 2018. The result of this survey is the identification of 243 sites that indicated the establishment and continuity of human habitation from the Middle Chalcolithic period Age to the present, in this survey, more than 100 sites were identified for the first time, of these, and the Islamic period has a larger share. The present study is based on the archaeological findings of the Islamic period resulting from this study and it is trying to reconstruct the settlements landscape of this period and land use by assessment of historical texts, Satellite imagery and Gis maps and geology. In this study, the identified sites of the Islamic period are divided into three periods: early, middle and late centuries. The aim of this study is to study human relation with the environment in the Islamic period of this region. Some of the questions in this study are: what factors caused the formation of settlements in the Islamic period? What is the settlement pattern of Islamic sites in Qorveh plain? Did Qorveh plain have an urban center in the Islamic period? Among the factors such as water resources and fertile land, roads and mines have played a significant role in the formation of settlement s in Qorveh plain. The north settlements at plain are mostly linear and formed on river terraces. On the other hand, in the south of the plain, factors such as agricultural lands, communication routes and water resources have been very important in the formation of these areas. It seems that role of larger sites in creating small, satellite habitats in the southern part - probably the Central place system - has not been ineffective