A depiction of the first medieval settlers arriving inIceland, 1850
Asettler is a person who establishes or joins a permanent presence that is separate to existing communities. The entity that a settler establishes is asettlement. A settler is called a pioneer if they are among the first settling at a place that is new to the settler community.[1]
The process of settling land can be, and has often been, controversial: while human migration is a normal phenomenon by itself, it has not been uncommon throughouthuman history for settlers to have arrived in already-inhabited landswithout the intention of living alongside the native population. In these cases, the conflict that arises between the settlers and the natives (orIndigenous peoples) may result in the dispossession of the latter within the contested territory, usually violently.[2] While settlers can act independently, they may receive support from the government of their country or empire or from a non-governmental organization as part of a larger campaign. The lifestyle of a native population is often disturbed or destroyed if they come into contact with a settler population, particularly when the settler population seeks to mostly replace them.[3] As well as leading to a change in culture (or alteration of the existing culture) and traditions and beliefs brought in by the settlers which was previously not present among the natives.[4]
The process by which Indigenous territories are settled by foreign peoples is usually calledsettler colonialism.[5] It relies upon a process of often violent dispossession.[2]
In this usage, pioneers are usually among the first to an area, whereas settlers can arrive after first settlement and join others in the process ofhuman settlement.[citation needed] This correlates with the work ofmilitary pioneers, who were tasked with construction of camps before the main body of troops would arrive at the designated campsite.
Anthropologists record the tribal displacement of native settlers who drive another tribe from the lands it held, such as the settlement of lands in the area now calledCarmel-by-the-Sea, California, where theOhlone people settled in areas that were previously inhabited by theEsselen people.[8]
Early European settlers in North America often built crude houses in the form oflog cabins.
InCanada, the term "settler" is currently used to describe "the non-Indigenous peoples living in Canada who form the European-descended sociopolitical majority" and thereby asserting thatsettler colonialism is an ongoing phenomenon. The usage is controversial to some.[9][10][11]
In theMiddle East andNorth Africa, there are a number of references to various squatter and specific policies that are referred to as settler-oriented in nature. Among those:[citation needed]
Syria – In recent times, Arab settlers have also moved in large numbers to regions inhabited by Kurds and other ethnic minorities, such asnortheast Syria.[citation needed]
The reasons for the emigration of settlers vary, but often they include the following factors and incentives: the desire to start a new and better life in a foreign land, personal financial hardship, social, cultural, ethnic, or religious persecution (e.g., thePilgrims andMormons), penal deportation (e.g. of convicted criminals from England to Australia), political oppression, and government incentive policies aimed at encouraging foreign settlement.[19][20][21]
^Prehistoric Sources Technical Study, prepared for the city of Monterey by Bainbridge Behrens Moore Inc., 23 May 1977[verification needed]
^Denis, Jeffrey S. (February 2015). "Contact Theory in a Small-Town Settler-Colonial Context: The Reproduction of Laissez-Faire Racism in Indigenous-White Canadian Relations".American Sociological Review.80 (1):218–242.doi:10.1177/0003122414564998.
^Schneider, Jan (June 2008)."Israel".Focus Migration. 13. Hamburg Institute of International Economics. Archived fromthe original on 14 May 2019. Retrieved29 April 2013.
^Olsen, Daniel H., and Brian J. Hill. "Pilgrimage and identity along the mormon trail." Religious pilgrimage routes and trails: sustainable development and management. Wallingford UK: CAB International, 2018. 234–246.
^Lambright, Bri. "The Ainu, Meiji Era Politics, and Its Lasting Impacts: A Historical Analysis of Racialization, Colonization, and the Creation of State and Identity in Relation to Ainu-Japanese History." (2022).
