In circumpolar regions, coastlines offer rich constellations of diverse resources and have long been a focus of human habitation. Despite the rich archaeological records that are located along many northern coastlines, there is a relatively limited understanding of the range of factors that informed local settlement strategies. Northern Norway has one of the world’s longest and best-preserved archaeological records of coastal habitation due to post-glacial uplift. Occupation begins in the early Holocene and appears to peak in the mid-Holocene. Our aim in this paper is to investigate the constraints and opportunities that informed the mid-Holocene settlement patterns, between c. 5000 and 0 BC. We present new data that were generated by intensive field surveys and undertake a qualitative multi-scalar analysis of site-locational choices, evaluating the influences of geography, topography and seasonal resource availability. Having identified stretches of the rugged coast as uninhabitable, we proceeded with analyses of the rest of the coastline. Our results indicate that all major settlements were sited to provide safe boat landing, good vantage points and shelter from storms. From these habitation sites, boat technology would have provided flexible access to diverse resources that were available throughout the year, and within a limited travel radius. We also demonstrate that these settlement strategies contrast with the way that the same coastlines were inhabited by pioneering groups in the early Holocene but appear to have some similarities with mid-Holocene coastal settlement patterns in Newfoundland and the Aleutian Islands. Overall, our results suggest that the multiple resources available along northern coastlines often enabled populations to occupy relatively localized areas for long periods. Longer-range mobility and interaction may instead have been primarily driven by socio-political factors rather than subsistence needs.

在环极地区，海岸线提供了丰富多样的资源，长期以来一直是人类居住的重点。尽管位于许多北部海岸线的考古记录丰富，但对影响当地定居策略的各种因素的了解相对有限。由于冰川后隆起，挪威北部拥有世界上最长、保存最完好的沿海居住考古记录之一。占领始于全新世早期，似乎在全新世中期达到顶峰。我们在本文中的目的是调查在 c. 之间的全新世中期定居模式的限制和机会。公元前 5000 年和 0 年。我们提供了通过密集的实地调查产生的新数据，并对站点位置选择进行了定性的多标量分析，评估地理、地形和季节性资源可用性的影响。确定崎岖海岸的部分地区不适合居住后，我们继续分析海岸线的其余部分。我们的结果表明，所有主要定居点的选址都可以提供安全的船只着陆、良好的有利位置和避风暴的场所。从这些居住地点，船舶技术可以灵活地访问全年可用的各种资源，并在有限的旅行半径内。我们还证明，这些定居策略与全新世早期先驱群体居住在相同海岸线的方式形成对比，但似乎与纽芬兰和阿留申群岛的全新世中期沿海定居模式有一些相似之处。总体，我们的结果表明，北部海岸线沿线的多种可用资源往往使人们能够长期占据相对局部的区域。相反，更远距离的流动和互动可能主要是由社会政治因素而不是生存需求驱动的。