Human-induced vegetation change in the Turaida vicinity during the Iron Age and the medieval period
Volume 31 (2024), pp. 83–97
Pub. online: 27 December 2024
Type: Article
Open Access
Open Access
Received
18 July 2024
18 July 2024
Revised
1 October 2024
1 October 2024
Accepted
30 October 2024
30 October 2024
Published
27 December 2024
27 December 2024
Abstract
A lack of detailed information on pollen from the Gauja River valley potentially limits the
strength of various reconstructions (vegetation composition, human impact, dominant agricultural
activities) for this territory. This study seeks to examine the human-induced changes on
vegetation, in particular with regard to the arrival of the Livs in the Turaida vicinity during the
Late Iron Age. Here, we present the first analyses of pollen data, macroscopic plant remains and
macroscopic charcoal undertaken in the lower Gauja River valley (territory inhabited by Gauja
Livs). The gathered sediment record, or the Roči bog, points to the appearance of the Livs in the
territory during the 10th century. Our results show an accelerating shift in the landscape from
dense forest coverage to inclusion of more open areas, which would be consistent with the clearing
of areas for cultivation.
The human-induced change resulted in a decrease in forest coverage, an increased presence of
cultivated plants and an acute intensification of fire-related events. The sediment record shows
that oat cultivation was dominant during the Late Iron Age and other crops (barley, wheat, rye)
came into sustained use only at the beginning of the medieval period. The sudden decline in all
cultivated crops (barley, oats, rye and wheat) in the mid-14th century could be due to sudden
environmental changes or to the Black Death, but as this data contradicts research from other
parts of Latvia, further study is advisable.