Background, aim, and scope Understanding the relationships among humans, climate, and ecosystem is one of the focuses of the PAGES. The Mid-Holocene was a significant period for germination and development of human civilization. During this time, the human tribe was thriving. Thus, it is valuable to study the temporal and spatial patterns of Mid-Holocene settlement sites because it can help refine strategies for future changes from past patterns. Therefore, it has become a hot topic in the study of the relationships between humans and earth in the Mid-Holocene period. Materials and methods In this work, the elevation, slope, slope direction, degree of riverside, and other indicators of Mid-Holocene settlement sites in the Weihai area were studied using the ArcMap software. Results The study produced three main findings. (1) The cultural sequence of Mid-Holocene settlement sites in the Weihai region is the Houli Culture, Dawenkou Culture, Longshan Culture, and Yueshi Culture. Compared with the Neolithic Culture sequence in Shandong Province, the Beixin Culture is absent, and the number of sites shows a right-tilted N-type trend, which increases, decreases, and then increases again. (2) The Mid-Holocene settlement sites in the Weihai region have some regularity in elevation, slope, slope direction, and degree of riverside. They are mainly distributed on flat terrain with a slope between 0° and 4° and an elevation greater than 30 m. In terms of slope direction, those settlement sites are mostly distributed on sunny slopes with directions of southeast, south, and southwest, which account for 58.1% of the total. For degree of riverside, all settlement sites are less than 1.5 km from the river. Discussion If these are facts, it will be inferred that the suitable nature conditions promoted the prosperity of Dawenkou Culture (6.3 4.6 ka BP) because of the arrival of the Mid-Holocene megathermal period which brought the relatively warm climate. In addition, the marine transgression incurring in 5.0 ka BP to 4.0 ka BP might be the main reason for the decline of Dawenkou Culture, and also the limitation of the development of Longshan Culture (4.6 4.0 ka BP) in the later period. What's more, human's dependence on nature conditions and the advanced thought of conforming to nature, seeking advantages and avoiding disadvantages have been developed, as the time passed. Conclusions Human activities of the Weihai area began to appear in the early Mid-Holocene (Houli Culture, 8.5 7.5 ka BP). With the arrival of the great warming period in the Mid-Holocene, the climate generally entered a warm period and was relatively mild. These natural conditions contributed to the Dawenkou Culture (6.3 4.6 ka BP). The transgression during 5.0 4.0 ka BP might be the main reason for the decline of Dawenkou Culture and also limited the development of the Longshan Culture (4.6 4.0 ka BP). Recommendations and perspectives Although the climate began to deteriorate from 4.0 ka BP, sea levels decreased, which provided a more spacious area and fertile soil for the development of humans in Weihai. Furthermore, the ancient river provided a solid foundation for the human culture in that period. All of these superior natural conditions were conducive to the development of Yueshi Culture (4.0 3.5 ka BP)
