DOCSLIB.ORG

Archaeology and the Evidence for the Prehistoric Development of Eskimo Culture: an Assessment

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Archaeology and the Evidence for the Prehistoric Development of Eskimo Culture: an Assessment ARCHAEOLOGY AND THE EVIDENCE FOR THE PREHISTORIC DEVELOPMENT OF ESKIMO CULTURE: AN ASSESSMENT DOUGLAS D. ANDERSON ABSTRACT Differing views of scholars concerning given and the interrelations of various Eskimo origins and the prehistoric develop­develop- arctic traditions discussed. Population ment of Eskimo culture are presented,presented~ and an and linguistic interpretations are dif­dif- attempt is made to assess the degree to which ferentiated from technological ones and the artifactural evidence fits each parti-parti­ indications given as to what kind of in­in- cular view. With this <::tim,aim, an outline of ferences justly can be drawn from the the archaeological complexes in question is evidence we have. INTRODUCTION interpreting the entire span of arctic pre­pre- history. Still others content themselves to The prehistoricprehi~toric developmentnevelopmen~ o~of EskimoE~kimo cul­cul- mR.kemake only r-u1culturalturR.1 interpretations of arti­arti- ture has been a subject of continuing interest factualf actual materials, thereby precluding the for years. Each decade of archaeological ex­ex- opportunity of saying anything definitive cavation has brought to light new discoveries, about the origins of a population or a and our understanding of local sequences language from archaeological data except throughout the Arctic is steadily growing. We under some isolated.isolated, rigorously defined con­con- are at the point where we no longer need to ditions thR.tthat occur very rarely. One who rely on linking archaeological assemblages or accepts the premise that artifact styles-­styles - artifact styles through time and space by the regardless of antiquity--areantiquity - are markers of once common appeal to "cultural survivals" linguistically and racially identifiable or correspondences in widely separated areas, populations will make different conclusions and instead can now usually find contempo­contempo- from one who rejects such a premise. raneous counterparts in neighboring archaeo­archaeo- In the following outline of the current logical sequences. Despite these advances, thinking on the prehistoric development of disagreement continues on even the most basic Eskimo culture, I present views of scholars outline ufof Eskimo cultural development. Much representing several types of theoretical of this disagreement, I believe, is a result stances. I shall attempt to assess the degree of the investigators'investigators1 different theoretical to which the artifactual evidence fits each viewpoints which temper the kinds of analyses particular view (i.e., the particular they attempt andand. the conclusions they pro­pro- metaphormetaphor), ) , e.g., population movement,movement , pound. It sccmsseems to me that most of the con­con- linguistic spread, diffusion of ideas, that flicting views, where theyLhey are basedbaseu on the archaeologist has chosen as a means of detailed data, cannot be disproved by those presenting his data. who accept the premises on which they were founded; rather, they can only be countered by those who accept another set of premises. THETEE SEQUENCES For example, in reviewing the writings by arctic archaeologists of the last two decades, Summarized below and in Fig. 1 is a brief I find that several influential scholars feel outline of the archaeological complexes in comfortable in utilizing archaeological data question. Fig. 1 itself is a distillation of to make conclusions about racial (population) the vA.riousvarious interpretive sr-hemesschemes as presented history; others see no apparent logical in­in- by those archaeologists who have been most consistencies in utilizing present day active in the region, and includes my own linguistic distinctions as a framework furfor interpretation of the archaeological Arctic Anthropology XVI-XVI-1, 1, 1979 16 Anderson: Prehistoric E'skimoEskimo Culture 17 ... ~ 1000 .1-.-.. -.,-1T!u . .. ~ ..... ., ,.. t':"~_'~'~'~r,nhk ~i"" I1rnlr"'~~~~'!l''J.nUI.!!''~/77/Tj~ ~ ISO!) '" •••• .::' ---- Iplllt.Jtl; [/:0 lutna • vo 0 ...... I--r-l ./' /h)ed --..--.... "'\' <f.// . ,'-. t .t' Norton '000 ·····f /// ~~ .t7;~ ~ "'!,. ~ 0(/7C/,~~~ ~it:f . i~"':Z,/ v':;'(,' ~(. {t.: t.:.;. 1 ?~ V~ -j/ V /// ~~. y.:~ '.", ......, ... ~I"..t.'!" ••... 'y"~"b,c:d !' ~ ] t. Aldp" .. I h.d•• 60,. 7000 ",00_ -n..n;1I1 <000. Fig. 1. Chronological Chart for the Western American Arctic (Based on Radiocarbon Dated Sequences) . 18 Arctic Anthropology XVI-1 relationships in northwestern Alaska. Cook Inlet, and several (termed "periods") The most recent of the archaeological tra­tra- along Brooks River and Naknek River drainagcsdrainages dition::;;ditions has been termedl..ermed theLhe NorthernNor·l.henl MaritimeMarltllll€ on the northern side of theLhe Alaska Peninsula tradition (Collins 1964:91),1961+:9l) , characterized (Dumond 1911a).1971a). The earliest tradition to be primarily by culturescultures1 1 adapted to arctic sea discussed below, dated about 9000 to 10,000 mammal hunting in open water and, where years ago, is the American Paleo-Arctic,Paleo-Arctic , practicable, from fixed ice or an ice edge. originally defined from complexes in north-north­ Spanning the last two millennia, it contains western Alaska (Anderson 1910a1970a and b), but the archaeological complexes known as Okvlk,Okvik, now reported in several olherother regions of Old Bering Sea, Punuk, Birnirk, and ~hule,Thule, all Alaska (Dumond, Henn and ::ltuckenrathStuckenrath 1915).1975 )• of which exhibit rather clear relationships to each other. The next earlier tradition is the Arctic Small Tool tradition, defined by ESKIMOS AND THE NOKl'HERNNORTHERN Irving (1957, 1962) on the basis of his and MARITIME TRADITION Gldelings'Giddings1 collections of the Denbigh Flint complex in Alaska (Giddings 1949,19^9, 1967) and 'l'heThe distribution ot·of Eskimo language and contemporaneous complexes of Independence I culture from Greenland to ChukotkaChukot ka and from (Knuth 1954,195^, 1967) and Pre-Dorset (Taylor Labrador to the Pacific coast of Alaska 1962, 1968) in the eastern North American Peninsula and adjacent areas during the Arctic. Strictly spcaking,speaking, it is comprised of historic era has been characterized as re­re- only these three com1Jlexescomplexes (including Sarqaq, markably coincident: "No other·other primitive the Greenland variant orof Pre-Dorset), dating people anywhere in the world occupy so wide between about 4000UOOOand 3000 B.P. ± 200 years a territory and at the same time exhibit (Irving 1968).1968).' However, I favor the inclusion such remarkable uniformity of language, in the west~est of such complexes as Choris culture, and physical type" (Collins 1954:195^: (Giddings 1957), Norton (Giddings 1964)196U) and 12). Although few archaeologists seriously IpiutakIplutak (Larsen and Rainey 1940)19^-8) and treat question the "Eskimoness" of thelhe people each as a phase within the tradition. ::lomeSome responsible for the Northern Maritime tradi­tradi- archaeologists do not regard one or all three tion, particularly since the hypothesis re­re- as Arctic Small Tool tradition, and Dumond ceives substantial support from physical (Dumond, Henn and Stuckenrath, n.d.)n.d. ) views anthropology, there are enough exceptions in Norton as a separate tradition, derived from the historic period to make the link of the ArclicArctic Small Tool tradition. For eastern Eskimo race, language and culture of dubious Arctic North America 1I prefer to include all utility as a guiding principle for inter­inter- of the pre-Thule complexes--Independencecomplexes - Independence II, preting Arctic archaeology. For example, and Dorset as well as Independence I, Pre­Pre- where Eskimo and non-Eskimo (Indian) speakers Dorset, and Sarqaq--inSarqaq - in the Arctic Small Tool live along different parts of the same river tradition, based on the continuity of arti­arti- system there are commonly settlements in factual styles or types in successive complexes which a particular group is ethnically and in the same general region. Other archaeolo­archaeolo- linguistically one but materially the other gists, including some of those most active in (Townsend 1970). In other areas, even where the east consider the Arctic Small Tool there are more clear cut geographical boun-boun­ tradition to hebe distinct from Pre-Dorset and daries between ethnic groups, Eskimo material "anyany of the Dorset asscmblages,assemblages, a distinction culture is found as an important ingredient based on their assessment of the dirrer·encesdifferences of the material culture of non-Eskimo groups, in artifact complexes and styles (McGhee and vice versa (Morlan 1973, Clark 1974,197*1, 1976). Giddings 1952). These exceptions, of which Archaeological traditions in the southern there are many more, ought to Sf'rvf'serve as a part of AlaskaAla~ka (southwestern Alaska, the warning to any archaeologist who feels no Alaska Peninsula, and the AleutianAlcutian Islands) constraints about phrasing his archaeological include, first, the Aleut tradition, mostmosl findings in terms of such epiphenomena as thoroughly documented through the work of language change or populationpopUlation (racial) move­move- W. s.S. Laughlin (e.g., 1966).I966). Other early ment--especiallyment - especially when he is considering the traditions include Ocean Bay (Clark 1976) and archaeology of difff'rentdifferent ecological zones Kachemak (de Laguna 1934;193^; Clark 1971:26) on and of great time depths. Without physiologi­physiologi- the Pacific coast of the Alaska PeninGulaPeninsula and cal and ethnographic information
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Archaeology Resources
    Archaeology Resources Page Intentionally Left Blank Archaeological Resources Background Archaeological Resources are defined as “any prehistoric or historic district, site, building, structure, or object [including shipwrecks]…Such term includes artifacts, records, and remains which are related to such a district, site, building, structure, or object” (National Historic Preservation Act, Sec. 301 (5) as amended, 16 USC 470w(5)). Archaeological resources are either historic or prehistoric and generally include properties that are 50 years old or older and are any of the following: • Associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history • Associated with the lives of persons significant in the past • Embody the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction • Represent the work of a master • Possess high artistic values • Present a significant and distinguishable entity whose components may lack individual distinction • Have yielded, or may be likely to yield, information important in history These resources represent the material culture of past generations of a region’s prehistoric and historic inhabitants, and are basic to our understanding of the knowledge, beliefs, art, customs, property systems, and other aspects of the nonmaterial culture. Further, they are subject to National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) review if they are historic properties, meaning those that are on, or eligible for placement on, the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). These sites are referred to as historic properties. Section 106 requires agencies to make a reasonable and good faith efforts to identify historic properties. Archaeological resources may be found in the Proposed Project Area both offshore and onshore.
    [Show full text]
  • © 2009 by Richard Vanderhoek. All Rights Reserved
    © 2009 by Richard VanderHoek. All rights reserved. THE ROLE OF ECOLOGICAL BARRIERS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF CULTURAL BOUNDARIES DURING THE LATER HOLOCENE OF THE CENTRAL ALASKA PENINSULA BY RICHARD VANDERHOEK DISSERTATION Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology in the Graduate College of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2009 Urbana, Illinois Doctoral Committee: Professor R. Barry Lewis, Chair Professor Stanley H. Ambrose Professor Thomas E. Emerson Professor William B. Workman, University of Alaska ABSTRACT This study assesses the capability of very large volcanic eruptions to effect widespread ecological and cultural change. It focuses on the proximal and distal effects of the Aniakchak volcanic eruption that took place approximately 3400 rcy BP on the central Alaskan Peninsula. The research is based on archaeological and ecological data from the Alaska Peninsula, as well as literature reviews dealing with the ecological and cultural effects of very large volcanic eruptions, volcanic soils and revegetation of volcanic landscapes, and northern vegetation and wildlife. Analysis of the Aniakchak pollen and soil data show that the pyroclastic flow from the 3400 rcy BP eruption caused a 2500 km² zone of very low productivity on the Alaska Peninsula. This "Dead Zone" on the central Alaska Peninsula lasted for over 1000 years. Drawing on these data and the results of archaeological excavations and surveys throughout the Alaska Peninsula, this dissertation examines the thesis that the Aniakchak 3400 rcy BP eruption created a massive ecological barrier to human interaction and was a major factor in the separate development of modern Eskimo and Aleut populations and their distinctive cultural traditions.
    [Show full text]
  • Alaska Journal of Anthropology
    Alaska Journal of Anthropology Volume Three, Number 2 2005 ALASKA ANTHROPOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION TABLE oF CoNTENTS lmRouuenoN: THE Allene SMALL TooL TRADITION fmy YEARS ON- DANIEL Om,;s .......................................................................................................... 5 Toms BUT NOT TooLKITs: TRACES or THE Allene SMALL ToOL TRADITION IN THE KoDIAK AllcHJPELAGO- AMY F. SrEFFIAN AND PATRicK G. SAI:I'ONSTAI.L ............................................ 1 7 EVIDENCE FOR THE ARCTic SMALL ToOL TRADITION IN THE EAsrERN ALEUTIANs- RicHARDS. DAVIS AND RICHARD A. KNEcHT .................................................................. 51 THE Allene SMAI.L ToOL TRADITION IN SoUTHE\lN AlAsKA- DoN E. DUMOND ................................................................................................... 67 THE DENBIGH FLINT CoMPJ.IiX IN NoR!lTWF.<;T Au1KA: A SrATIAI ANALYSIS - DouGUIS D. ANDERSON ............................................................................................ 81 TnE DENBIGH FuNT CoMPLEX AT PUNYIK PoiNT, ETIVI.IK LAKE, AlASKA - MICHAEL KUNZ .. " .. "."." .. "." .... " ...... ".".".""." .. "."."" ...... "."." .. ""." .. "."."."." .. 10 1 RADIOCARBON DKI'ING THE Allene SMAI.I. ToOL TRADITION IN AI.ASKA- DAI.E c. SLAUGHTER ............................................................................................... 117 OCCUPATIONAL HisTORY oF THE Ow WHALING Srrur CAPE KRuSENSTERN, AlASKA- JonN DARwmr AND CHRIS'ru\NN DAIRWENT ................................................................... 13 5
    [Show full text]
  • APPENDIX B Archaeological Report
    APPENDIX B Archaeological Report preserving the past for future generations 2019 CULTURAL RESOURCES INVESTIGATION AND SECTION 106 RECOMMENDATIONS AND FINDINGS FOR THE DENALI COMMISSION DILLINGHAM WASTEWATER LAGOON RELOCATION STUDY, LOCATED IN DILLINGHAM, ALASKA Prepared for: Bristol Engineering Services Company, LLC Prepared by: Robert L. Meinhardt, MA and Amy Ramirez TNSDS, LLC OCTOBER 2019; REVISED JANUARY 2020 Dillingham Wastewater Lagoon Relocation Study 2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The City of Dillingham (City) obtained federal funding from the Denali Commission to improve the existing sewage and wastewater treatment system in Dillingham, Alaska. The Dillingham Wastewater Lagoon Relocation Study is de- signed to look at a range of potential sites for sewage lagoon relocation and rehabilitation, and construction of a new wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). Bristol Engineering Services Company, LLC, (BESC) was contracted by the City to complete the study as part of the preliminary engineering design. Given the project is funded by the Denali Commission, consultation pursuant to Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (NHPA) and its implementing regulations (36 CFR §800) will be required prior to construction to determine whether or not historic properties will be adversely affected by the undertaking. BESC does not have staff meeting professional qualification standards for assessing whether or not the undertaking will result in such effects pursuant to the Act. As such, True North Sustainable Development Solutions, LLC, (TNSDS) was subcontracted by BESC to carry out a cultural resources investigation for providing recommendations to the lead federal agency for issuing a finding per 36 CFR §800. Three alternatives were identified as possible sites for improvement to the existing sewage and wastewater treatment system: the first alternative is east of Dillingham, the second is directly in Dillingham, and the thirds is south of Dill- ingham and towards the Kanakanak Hospital.
    [Show full text]
  • PREHISTORY and PROTOHISTORY Vocabulary PREHISTORY and PROTOHISTORY Vocabulary Version 1.1 (Last Updated : Jan
    - Institute for scientific and technical information - PREHISTORY and PROTOHISTORY Vocabulary PREHISTORY and PROTOHISTORY Vocabulary Version 1.1 (Last updated : Jan. 22, 2018) This resource contains 3093 entries grouped under 86 collections. Controlled vocabulary used for indexing bibliographical records for the "Prehistory and Protohistory" FRANCIS database (1972-2015, http://pascal-francis.inist.fr/ ). This vocabulary is browsable online at: https://www.loterre.fr Legend • Syn: Synonym. • →: Corresponding Preferred Term. • FR: French Preferred Term. • ES: Spanish Preferred Term. • SC: Semantic Category. • DO: Domain. • BT: Broader Term. • NT: Narrower Term. • RT: Related Term. • Note: Scope Note. • URI: Concept's URI (link to the online view). This resource is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license: LIST OF ENTRIES List of entries English French Page • 3D modelling modélisation 3D 111 • A-Group Groupe A 112 • Abashevo Culture d'Abashevo 112 • Abbevillian Abbevillien 112 • Aborigine Aborigène 112 • abrasion abrasion 112 • abrasive abrasif 112 • abscess abcès 112 • absence of grave absence de sépulture 112 • absorption spectrometry spectrométrie d'absorption 112 • Abu Dhabi Abou Dhabi 112 • acceptance réception 112 • access accès 112 • acculturation acculturation 112 • Acheulean Acheuléen 112 • activity report rapport d'activité 112 • adaptation adaptation 112 • additional structure structure annexe 112 • Adena Adena 112 • adhesive adhésif 112 • Adriatic Adriatique 112 • adult education formation permanente
    [Show full text]
  • Data F Ile 85-63 the ARCHAEOLOGY of the MANOKINAK SITE
    Public-data File 85-63 THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE MANOKINAK SITE: A STUDY OF THE CULTUEUL TRANSITION BETWEEN LATE NORTON TRADITION AM) HISTORIC ESKIMO 1 Robert Dane Shaw Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys December 1985 THIS REPORT HAS NOT BEEN REVIEWED FOR TECHNICAL CONTENT (EXCEPT AS NOTED IN TEXT) OR FOR CONFORMITY TO THE EDITORIAL STANDARDS OF DGGS. 794 University Avenue, Basement Fairbanks, Alaska 99709 '~laskaDivision of Geological and Geophysical Surveys, Pouch 7-028, Anchorage, AK 99510 THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE MAPOKIVFK SIT?,: .\ STlJDY OF THE CXLPRAL TRANSTTION RETWEEN L4TF ?JORTOP,I TRADITIOY AYD HISTORIC CSKI?IO BY 9ORERT DANE SHAW A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY WASHINGTON STATE [JNIVERSITY Department of Anthropology @ Copyright by ROBERT DANE SHAW 1983 All Rights Reserved To the Faculty of Washington State University: The members of the Committee to examine the dissertation of ROBERT DAME SHAW find it satisfactory and recommend that it be accepted. Field work on which this document is based was initiated with a Doctoral Dissertation Grant from the National Science Foundation and Sigma Xi. Field logistic support was provided for the entire project by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service through the management of Clarence Rhode National Wildlife Range. In addition to those organizations I would like to thank the officials of the Calista Corporation and Munam Kitlutsisti along with the citizens of Hooper Bay, Chevak, and Newtok, for their interest and encouragement to perform archaeological research on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. Ricky Hoff, William Sheppard, Steven Klingler, and Steven Hosking actually excavated the material.
    [Show full text]
  • Alaska Native Artifacts; Eskimos and Aleuts of the Bering Sea Rhythm of the Sea Collection
    Western Michigan University ScholarWorks at WMU Master's Theses Graduate College Spring 2017 Alaska Native Artifacts; Eskimos and Aleuts of the Bering Sea Rhythm of the Sea Collection Marcia Sue Taylor Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses Part of the Archaeological Anthropology Commons, and the Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons Recommended Citation Taylor, Marcia Sue, "Alaska Native Artifacts; Eskimos and Aleuts of the Bering Sea Rhythm of the Sea Collection" (2017). Master's Theses. 909. https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/909 This Masters Thesis-Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate College at ScholarWorks at WMU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at WMU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ALASKA NATIVE ARTIFACTS; ESKIMOS AND ALEUTS OF THE BERING SEA RHYTHM OF THE SEA COLLECTION by Marcia Sue Taylor A thesis submitted to the Graduate College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Anthropology Western Michigan University April 2017 Thesis Committee: Bilinda Straight, Ph.D., Chair Vincent Lyon-Callo, Ph.D. José António Brandão, Ph.D. ALASKA NATIVE ARTIFACTS; ESKIMOS AND ALEUTS OF THE BERING SEA RHYTHM OF THE SEA COLLECTION Marcia Sue Taylor, M.A. Western Michigan University, 2017 “Only his artifacts provide his earthly testimony” (Thiry 1977, p. 5). The purpose of the research is to catalogue Eskimo and Aleut artifacts that comprise an unprovenienced (anonymous) collection in the Anthropology Department at Western Michigan University, and provide a corresponding ethnography.
    [Show full text]
  • Vegetables and Fruits
    NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL LIBRARY ARCHIVED FILE Archived files are provided for reference purposes only. This file was current when produced, but is no longer maintained and may now be outdated. Content may not appear in full or in its original format. All links external to the document have been deactivated. For additional information, see http://pubs.nal.usda.gov. Alternative Farming Systems Information Center of the National Agricultural Library Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture ISSN: 1052-536X Vegetables and Fruits A Guide to Heirloom Varieties and Community-Based Stewardship. Volume 1, Annotated Bibliography Special Reference Briefs Series no. SRB 98-05 Volume 2, Resource Organizations Special Reference Briefs Series no. SRB 98-06 Volume 3, Historical Supplement Special Reference Briefs Series no. SRB 98-07 September 1998 Electronic versions were slightly revised, March 1999 Compiled By: Suzanne P. DeMuth Alternative Farming Systems Information Center, Information Centers Branch National Agricultural Library, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture Beltsville, Maryland 20705-2351 A Note About the Electronic Files for Each Volume The publication Vegetables and Fruits: A Guide to Heirloom Varieties and Community-Based Stewardship was published in three printed volumes. The following sections were repeated in each volume: 1) Table of Contents for 3 volumes, 2) Introduction (including Notes and References) to 3 volumes, 3) Acknowledgements, 4) Alternative Farming Systems Information Center overview, and 5) document access instructions. To reduce duplication in the electronic versions, these sections have been extracted and placed in this document. The remainder of each volume is contained in a separate file which includes its respective citations, indices, and table of contents.
    [Show full text]
  • Mid to Late Holocene Population Trends, Culture Change and Marine Resource Intensification in Western Alaska Andrew H
    ARCTIC VOL. 70, NO. 4 (DECEMBER 2017) P. 365 – 380 https://doi.org/10.14430/arctic4681 Mid to Late Holocene Population Trends, Culture Change and Marine Resource Intensification in Western Alaska Andrew H. Tremayne1 and William A. Brown2 (Received 16 February 2017; accepted in revised form 12 June 2017) ABSTRACT. The goal of this project is to understand the influence of population size on human adaptation processes and culture change during the Mid to Late Holocene in Western Alaska. We use a database of 1180 radiocarbon dates ranging from 6000 to 1000 14C years BP and drawn from 805 archaeological components in Alaska to construct a proxy record for relative change in regional and Alaskan metapopulation sizes over time. Our analysis indicates that a major population crash coincided with the disappearance of the Arctic Small Tool tradition (ASTt) and the subsequent emergence of the Norton tradition. The ASTt population began to decline around 3600 cal BP, and by 3500 cal BP it had disappeared almost completely from northern tundra habitats, though it persisted in coastal areas in Northwest and Southwest Alaska for another 500 years. The reduction in human population across Alaska after 3600 cal BP appears linked to a reduced carrying capacity that was perhaps driven by a caribou population crash. Such a shock would have increased population pressure and fostered increased reliance on marine resources, precipitating cultural changes associated with an increasingly complex maritime economy. The sharp decline in ASTt population size reduced the number of cultural role models for this population, resulting in the loss of some of the tradition’s characteristic cultural traits, while the influence of neighboring populations in southern Alaska and across the Bering Strait apparently increased, counteracting this attrition of cultural traits.
    [Show full text]
  • Ancient World.Indb
    T C Publisher’s Note v Contributors xix Editor’s Introduction ix List of Maps liii Key to Pronunciation xvii V 1 A N E O Ancient Near East Government 5 The Ancient Warka (Uruk) 67 Ancient Near East Literature 10 Ancient Near East Trade 72 Ancient Near East Science 17 Ancient Near East Warfare 77 Ancient Near East City Life 24 Ancient Near East Women 84 Ancient Near East Country Life 29 Ancient Near East Royals 89 Ancient Near East Food & Agriculture 34 Ancient Near East Artists 93 Ancient Near East Family Life 39 Egyptian Soldiers 97 The Hurrian People 44 Near Eastern Soldiers 101 The Mamluks 50 Ancient Near East Tradesmen 105 The Sāsānid Empire 54 Ancient Near East Scribes 109 The Kassites 61 Ancient Near East Slaves 113 P, P E ‘Abd Allāh ibn al-’Abbās 119 Arameans 131 ‘Abd Allāh ibn az-Zubayr 119 Ardashīr I 132 ‘Abd Allāh ibn Sa‘d ibn Abī Sarḥ 120 Argishti I 133 ‘Abd al-Malik 120 Armenia 133 Abraha 121 Arsacid dynasty 135 Abū Bakr 121 Artabanus I-V 135 Achaemenian dynasty 122 Artavasdes II of Armenia 136 Ahab 123 Artemisia I 136 ‘Ā’ishah bint Abī Bakr 124 Artemisia II 137 Akiba ben Joseph 124 Astyages 137 ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭ ālib 125 Atossa 138 Amos 125 Attalid dynasty 139 ‘Amr ibn al-‘Āṣ Mosque 126 Avesta 140 Anatolia 126 Bar Kokhba 141 Aqhat epic 128 Bathsheba 141 Arabia 129 Ben-Hadad I 142 xxxiii AAncientncient WWorld.indborld.indb xxxxiiixxiii 112/12/20162/12/2016 99:34:28:34:28 AAMM xxxiv • Table of Contents Bible: Jewish 142 Kaska 184 Canaanites 144 Labarnas I 185 Christianity 145 Luwians 185 Croesus 148 Lycia 186 Cyaxares 148 Lydia
    [Show full text]
  • A Note on Labret Use Around the Bering and Chukchi Seas Don E
    a note on labret use around the bering and chukchi seas Don E. Dumond Department of Anthropology, 1218 University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403-1218; [email protected] abstract In the earliest contacts with the widely spread speakers of Eskimoan languages, European observers noted an obvious contrast in the wearing of lip ornaments or labrets, with the practice spread over what is now the coast of Alaska but absent in most of Canada and in Greenland as well as on the northeast coast of Asia. In addition, archaeological studies have provided indications of differences in the history of labret use between those American areas to the north and to the south of the Bering Strait, and although some scattered and ancient uses are in evidence for north Asia, the northeastern Asian coast has apparently been labret-free for the past three to four millennia. Some archaeologists have attempted to use the prehistoric presence or absence of labrets as markers of people specifically of western American or of Asian heritage. Examination suggests that these attempts have been only partially successful—some reasonably compelling, others less so, in part because of conclusions drawn on the basis of insufficient evidence. keywords: labrets, northwest Alaska, northeast Asia, arctic prehistory At the time of early European contacts with Native people indicated by the first three examples in Fig. 2. In brief, the of arctic North America, one of the major if superficial ornaments more nearly round in cross-section were com- contrasts among Eskimoan peoples was in “labretifery,” monly inserted in pairs, each one near and slightly below to use the coinage of William H.
    [Show full text]
  • Ethnography, Analogy, and Arctic Archaeofaunas: Assessing the Limits of Zooarchaeological Interpretation
    Ethnography, Analogy, and Arctic Archaeofaunas: Assessing the Limits of Zooarchaeological Interpretation by Lauren E.Y. Norman A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Anthropology University of Toronto © Copyright by Lauren E. Y. Norman 2015 Ethnography, Analogy, and Arctic Archaeofaunas: Assessing the Limits of Zooarchaeological Interpretation Lauren E. Y. Norman Doctor of Philosophy Department of Anthropology University of Toronto 2015 Abstract The use of analogy to infer past lifeways from archaeological material is integral to many types of archaeological investigation. There are many sources for analogy, but the ones that offer some of the richest interpretations use ethnographic and ethnohistoric records to understand archaeological materials and their patterns. The use of these documentary records has been particularly beneficial in places where contemporary people can be linked to their archaeological ancestors through material culture using the direct-historical approach. However, the use of documentary sources in constructing past lifeways has been critiqued, with questions raised about the use of a synchronic, subjective record of a rapidly changing historical present to infer the normally fragmentary and palimpsestic archaeological material. This study aims to clarify the use of the documentary record in interpreting dwelling activities from the archaeofaunal record. By testing which ethnographically and ethnohistorically documented practices are visible archaeozoologically, archaeologists can identify activities, practices, and behaviours that can be accurately interpreted from the archaeological record using the documentary record. The Arctic is an ideal location to study the use of the analogy in the archaeological record as it has both a detailed documentary record and a well-preserved archaeological record.
    [Show full text]