这里所说的早期城址,指处于中国古代城址发展最初阶段的先秦时期的城址。城址属于聚落形态的范畴,可定义为带有垣墙之类防御性设施的聚落。中国古代城址的主流,是夯筑城垣及环壕围起的中心性聚落,进入文明时代后,它往往成为城市乃至都城之所在。鉴此,城址(waued site)与属社会发展形态范畴的城市遗址(site of city)既有区别,又有密切的关联。作为聚落形态演进序列中较高阶段的产物以及城市的物化载体,城址在中国古代历史发展进程中的作用是不言而喻的。关于城址的研究也一直是中国考古学中的龙头 Here refers to the early city site, referring to the ancient city site in China during the initial stages of the pre-Qin Dynasty site. The site of a settlement belongs to the category of settlements and can be defined as a settlement with defensive facilities such as a wall. The mainstream of ancient Chinese city sites is to consolidate the central settlements encircled by the walls and the moat. After entering the civilized age, it tends to become the city and even the capital. In view of this, the waued site is different from and closely related to the site of city which belongs to the category of social development. As the product of the higher stages of the settlement evolution sequence and the materialized carrier of the city, the role of the city site in the development of ancient Chinese history is self-evident. Research on the city site has also been a leader in Chinese archeology