From Landa to Tuwanuwa, from Ikuwanija to Hupisna – Frontiers, Connectivity and Historical Geography in Southeast Konya between the 2nd and the 1st millennia BCE
Much is known about the historical geography of South Central Anatolia from primary sources dating to the 2nd and 1st Millenia BCE, however only very few sites can be located on the map and equated with archaeological sites. Specifically the Konya and Ereğli-Bor plains are important during the Bronze and Iron Ages. The accumulation of sites in this region dating to these periods is astonishing. The southeastern corner of the Konya plain, has been systematically surveyed between the years 2013-2021 (KEYAR survey project). One of questions during the KEYAR survey project was, if it is possible to equate surveyed sites with places mentioned in Hittite sources, specifically the ones on the Bronze Tablet, from Boğazköy. A second aim was to understand poltical dynamics and how the landscape and geoenvironment has affected the location of settlements. The results of the survey shed light on the Bronze and Iron Age settlement distribution, reasons for settlement locations, road networks, borders and raw material control and procurement, such as salt and metal, which will be discussed in this paper.