Wittfogel's dilemma: heterarchy and ethnographic approaches to irrigation management in Eastern Africa and Mesopotamia

Abstract Both ethnographic and archaeological studies have been used to critique Wittfogel's hydraulic theory. These, however, often present data that are contradictory and in need of reformulation. In particular, while ethnographic studies emphasize the management of irrigation in the absence of both socio-political hierarchies and marked social stratification, archaeologists continue to see irrigation agriculture as a key influence on the development of personal accumulation and increased social stratification. Through two East African ethnographic case studies, this paper addresses the mechanisms through which irrigation agriculture might contribute to increased social stratification and cautions against the making of simplistic assumptions. I argue that both ethnographic and archaeological lines of critique have resulted in a hasty rejection of the role played by irrigation management in the formation of loci of authority in early complex societies.