Identifying and Studying the Cultural Distribution of Southern Roudbar Plain, Halil Roud Cultural Area from the Chalcolithic to Islamic Period

The southern Rudbar plain is located in the southeast of the Halilrud cultural area southeastern Iran; this region has been many potentials for human communities due to suitable environmental conditions, including permanent water of the Halilrud, and a vast and fertile plain. Archaeological research in this area has been very low, this research has been done on the basis of questions about the pattern of distribution and different types of settlements in different period, factors effecting on this pattern and cultural interations with other adjacent areaes and hypothesises including impact of Halilroud and natural conditions of Rudbar plain and mountainous areas on way of distribution and the size of the sites. The purpose of these surveys is to recognizance the settlements status and interations of this area with other parts of Halilroud area and identify the way of cultures distribution over time. The research methodology was field survey and documenting the sites. These surveys cover an area of more than 6,000 square kilometers, resulting in the identification of 279 sites of various periods; these sites, in terms of nature and morphology, fall into five general categories: 1- tell sites and ancient areas 2- cemeteries 3- castles 4- water mills 5- rock carvings. These sites are attributed to different periods based on relative chronology: 95 of them include Prehistoric sites, 145 Historical sites, and 50 Islamic period sites. According to the surveys, the earliest settlements found the area dates back to the Chalcolithic period; identifying settlements of the bronze age, historical and islamic periods, indicates the sequence of settlements of region. The distribution patterns of sites, which are formed along Hailirud banks, the slopes and the subtropical and intermediate mountains, show a cluster pattern; according to available evidence such as the location, extent, and density of the surface effects of the sites, they can be attributed to permanent or seasonal settlements. This paper tries to present meanwhile introducing the settlements of different periods the general perspective of the past cultural changes in this region.