Social Change and Household Geography in Mumun Period South Korea

Abstract

The study of household remains not only provides insight into a social unit that is fundamental to all sedentary societies, it also elucidates the role of households in effecting broader social change. This paper examines Incipient Mumun to Middle Mumun period (c. 1500–400 bc) households in South Korea during a time in which social inequality developed. Two settlements, Pyeonggeo-dong and Baekseok-dong, are used as case studies of changes in household space and place. In the Incipient Mumun to Early Mumun period, households were organized as multifamily units living together in large, rectangular dwellings. Segmentation of space increased by the Middle Mumun period, with households organized into smaller, single-family structures. This spatial transformation contributed to greater competition among households and increased complexity overall. It also helped create a sociopolitical environment that unintentionally resulted in the emergence of incipient elites at larger Middle Mumun settlements.