The word pa (pronounced pah) traditionally refers to a Maori village or settlement. In contemporary Western (and especially archaeological) usage, it has come to refer to a Maori hillfort from the 17th - 19th centuries, that was fortified with palisades and earthworks such as defensive terraces. Prior to the 1960s, any Maori settlement, fortified or not, might be called a pa. This usage fell out of favour following the publication in 1964 of a controversial book Washday at the pa by Ans Westra,[citation needed] but older settlements may still bear the name. In Maori society, a great pa represented the mana of a tribal group, as personified by a chief or rangatira. Nearly all pa were built in defensible locations to protect dwelling sites or gardens, almost always on prominent, raised ground which was then terraced; as for example in the Auckland region, where dormant volcanic cones were used. While built for defence, many were also primarily residential, and often quite extensive. Maori pa played a significant role in the New Zealand Land Wars, though they are known from earlier periods of Maori history. They were mostly absent, however, until around 500 years ago, suggesting scarcity of resources through environmental damage and population pressure began to bring about warfare, leading to a period of pa building