The Landscape of Austronesian Speakers in South and West Sulawesi, Indonesia

Abstract

The aim of this research is to assist scholarly appreciation of the potency of the landscape in South and west Sulawesi for the Austronesian speakers. This investigation proceeded with a review of the literature and previous research by the authors so as to assess the data obtained from survey and excavation in the Mallawa area. This research applied spatial analysis, technological analysis of the artifacts, and analysis of site function. The research results indicate that the Mallawa Austronesians occupied caves as well as open sites, during the period 3.725-2070 cal BP. Natural features such as hilltops and caves provided the potency of the landscape for the Austronesian speakers' settlement of Mallawa, Maros for approximately 1500 years. For the Austronesian speakers, this was a suitable landscape not just for occupation, but also for embedding the local features such as hills and caves (liang) with meaning.