Archaeological sites to which the rather indefinite term Archaic has been applied have been known from various areas throughout the eastern United States for a good number of years. At the outset, these sites were defined as Archaic primarily by their lack of evidence for agricultural practices and pottery, although more positive traits were also used in such definitions. The term Archaic has now come to be used in two major ways: as a time period in a local sequence, and as a cultural stage in general preceding the development of agriculture and settled communities.