Understanding aspects of population and sedentism is a critical step in grasping the dynamics of small-scale agricultural societies in human history.  However, confusion between “mobility” – essentially the organization of resource exploitation at different scales – and “movement ” – patterns of travel through a particular landscape – have complicated this process.  The issue is also empirical. Mobility can be evaluated through proxy data, such as the distribution of artifacts, but studying movement via archaeological evidence is more challenging.  GIS-based “cost path” analysis is overly reliant on topographic variables and discounts critical social/cultural parameters.  Recent efforts to evaluate “landscapes of movement” through the study of physical paths/trails with specific cultural associations suggest both that the gap between these concepts can be bridged and insight into associated societies obtained.  This presentation will explore the mobility/movement dynamic in the context of two ongoing field projects, one concerning Ancestral a Pueblo trails in the North American Southwest and the other on the Micronesian island of Yap.