Cover Page The handle http://hdl.handle.net/1887/19857 holds various files of this Leiden University dissertation. Author: Mans, Jimmy Lou Johannes Andrée Title: Amotopoan trails : a recent archaeology of Trio movements Issue Date: 2012-09-26 “Amotopoan Trails: A recent archaeology of Trio movements” Proefschrift ter verkrijging van de graad van Doctor aan de Universiteit Leiden, op gezag van Rector Magnificus prof. mr. P.F. van der Heijden, volgens besluit van het College voor Promoties te verdedigen op woensdag 26 september 2012 klokke 11.15 uur door Jimmy Lou Johannes Andrée Mans geboren te Amsterdam, in 1982 Promotiecommissie Promotor: Prof. Dr. Corinne L. Hofman Co-promotor: Dr. Eithne B. Carlin Overige leden: Prof. Dr. Raymond Corbey, Universiteit Leiden & Universiteit van Tilburg Prof. Dr. Maarten E. R. G. N. Jansen, Universiteit Leiden Dr. Stéphen Rostain, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Université de Panthéon-Sarbonne, Nanterre, Frankrijk Dedicated to the Amotopoans. AMOTOPOAN TRAILS Sidestone Press AMOTOPOAN TRAILS A recent archaeology of Trio movements Jimmy Mans Mededelingen van het Rijksmuseum voor Volkenkunde, Leiden No. 41 Mededelingen van het Rijksmuseum voor Volkenkunde No. 41 ISBN 978-90-8890-098-3 © 2012 J.L.J.A. Mans and National Museum of Ethnology Published by Sidestone Press, Leiden www.sidestone.com Sidestone registration number: SSP SSP55960004 Published in Cooperation with the National Museum of Ethnology, Leiden www.volkenkunde.nl Head of Publications Committee: Fanny Wonu Veys Lay-out: P.C. van Woerdekom, Sidestone Press Cover design: K. Wentink, Sidestone Press Front cover photograph: Amotopoan men out on a day of hunting and fishing (2008). Back cover photographs from top to bottom: 1. Amotopoans relieving the heavy canoe of their weight, except for Atinio, who will motor it pass the rapids (2007); 2. The village of Amotopo seen from the south (2008); 3. Relaxing in the communal house (ST-01) and listening to the radio (2008); 4. Amotopoans on their way from Sandlanding to Wanapan (2007). Contents List of Figures xi List of Tables xiv Acknowledgements 1 1 Introduction 5 1.1 From migration and mobility to archaeological movements 6 1.2 A counter-chronological approach with interactive analogies 9 1.3 From the concept of mobility to a century of Trio movements 14 1.4 Brief structure of the thesis 17 2 Introducing the Trio and their environment 19 2.1 Regions inhabited by the present-day Trio 20 2.1.1 Trio agglomerations and groups 21 2.1.2 Amotopo and the Corentyne River as case study 23 2.2 Landforms of the Corentyne River 26 2.2.1 Sediment Basin 27 2.2.2 Precambrian Rolling Hills 27 2.2.3 Guiana Uplands 29 2.3 On hydrology and climate 30 2.3.1 Hydrological context of the Corentyne River 31 2.3.2 Trio land and its shifting climate boundaries 32 2.4 Forests of the Guiana peneplain 34 2.4.1 Upland floodplain forests 37 2.4.2 Upland dry forests 38 2.4.3 Forest ‘Islands’ 39 2.5 Summary of the Trio groups and their environment 40 3 The immobilia of Amotopo 43 3.1 A positive archaeological image: posts and stakes of Amotopo 44 3.2 Building a house in Amotopo, Part I: the foundation supports 47 3.3 From the post to the posthole and back 51 3.4 Building a house, Part II: the roof 54 3.5 The variety in the founded structures 57 3.5.1 The Communal Structures (CMSs) 59 3.5.2 The Habitation Structures (HSs) 62 3.5.3 The Cooking Structures (CSs) 65 vii 3.6 The supportive structures from core to periphery 69 3.6.1 The Support Structures (SS) and isolated posts 70 3.6.2 The peripheral structures (PSs) 75 3.6.3 Peripheral posts and stakes 78 3.6.4 The Refuse Deposits (RDs) 79 3.7 Amotopo composition 81 3.7.1 Distances between the structures 81 3.7.2 Vegetation boundaries 84 3.8 Concluding the positive archaeological image 86 4 Amotopoan mobilia and the village flux 89 4.1 The sphere of subsistence mobilia 90 4.1.1 Meet the Amotopoans 90 4.1.2 Task divisions of the Amotopoans 92 4.1.3 The procurement of subsistence mobilia 94 4.1.4 Observed flux of procured subsistence mobilia 97 4.1.5 Reported seasonal differences 98 4.2 The sphere of exchange mobilia 100 4.2.1 Observed flux of exchange mobilia 101 4.2.2 Reported flux of accumulated exchange mobilia 105 4.2.3 Reported information on different exchange objects 110 4.3 The sphere of residential mobilia 119 4.4 Conclusion 123 5 A history of Trio movements (1907-2008) 127 5.1 Amotopo: a fissioned Trio village (2007-8) 128 5.1.1 Leaving Kwamalasamutu 129 5.1.2 The foundation of the Western Trio Group 130 5.1.3 Human mobilia of the Western Trio group 132 5.2 Alalapadu: the fusion of a Trio village (1963-1964) 136 5.2.1 The beginning of a fusion sequence: the village of Panapipa 136 5.2.2 The move to the missionary village of Alalapadu 140 5.2.3 Human immobilisation in Alalapadu 146 5.2.4 Alalapadu’s spheres of movement 147 5.3 ‘Anapi’: A state of deep Trio fission (1907-11) 154 5.3.1 Oral histories: the Samuwakan diaspora and the Okomoyana 155 5.3.2 Dutch expeditions in the Sipaliwini basin (1907-1942) 160 5.3.3 ‘Anapi’ spheres of movement 164 5.4 Discussions 172 5.4.1 Amotopo-Alalapadu discussion 173 5.4.2 Alalapadu-‘Anapi’ discussion 174 viii 6 Discussion and conclusions 177 6.1 Methodological considerations revisited 178 6.2 Spheres of mobilia and the Amotopoan immobilisation process 179 6.2.1 Sphere of residential mobilia 180 6.2.2 Sphere of subsistence mobilia 181 6.2.3 Sphere of exchange mobilia 182 6.3 A century of Trio movements 183 6.3.1 Changes in the sphere of residential mobilia 184 6.3.2 Changes in the sphere of subsistence mobilia 185 6.3.3 Changes in the sphere of exchange mobilia 186 6.4 Concluding remarks and future research 187 Appendices 191 Appendix A: Amotopoan posts, stakes and features by number and feature code 191 Appendix B: Feature Type 209 A: Communal Structures (Paiman) 209 B: Habitation Structures (Pakoroton) 209 C: Cooking Structures (Wëtërïhto Pakoro) 209 D: Dog Structures 210 E: Storage Structures 210 F: Drying Racks & Roofed Hearths 210 G: Isolated posts and stakes 210 H: Camp 211 I: Lavatory 211 J: Refuse Deposits 211 Appendix C: Timbers used in Amotopo 213 Appendix D: Photographs of the Amotopoan structures 217 1. The Communal Structures (CMSs) 217 2. The Habitation Structures (HSs) 218 3. The Cooking Structures (CSs) 221 4. Other Structures 224 5. Impressions 227 Appendix E: The horticultural band in Amotopo 233 Appendix F: Posts distances - floor area ratios 235 1.1 The Communal Structures (CMSs) 235 1.2 The Habitation Structures (HSs) 235 1.3 The Cooking Structures (CSs) 237 1.4 Comparison and average of post and floor distances 238 ix Appendix G: Key codes to the Trio of the Western Trio group exchange sphere 239 Appendix H: Observed Exchange in Amotopo during 2008 249 Appendix I: Reported exchange of the accumulated mobilia in Amotopoan structures 253 Appendix J: The Western Trio group and their geological signatures 265 Appendix K: Amotopoan perceptions on Rivière’s data of Alalapadu 269 Appendix L: Deceased fellow inhabitants of Alalapadu 277 Appendix M: Pepu Ipajari (RUS-01) speaks on the movements of the Okomoyana 279 Bibliography 285 Summary 303 Samenvatting 307 Curriculum vitae 311 List of volumes 313 x List of Figures Fig. 1.1: The perception of action and its justification from present to 12 past. Fig. 1.2: Sketch of differing spatial and temporal disciplinary foci and 14 of proposed archaeological orientation in recent periods. Fig. 2.1: Sketch of the ethno-linguistic group of the Trio and their 20 neighbours. (adapted from SIL maps for Suriname, Guyana and Guyane, ACT maps and ISA for the locations of Parques Terra Indigénas). Fig. 2.2: The six Trio agglomerations. (The agglomerations are shown 22 in dark grey and the connecting corridors in light grey. Map adapted from The Times Atlas, ACT 2000,Grupioni 2002 and Carlin 2009). Fig. 2.3: Simplified north-south section of Guiana (adapted from 26 Noordam 1993:15;Krook 1984). Fig. 2.4: The development of erosion and weathering of the undulat- 29 ing granitoid landscape (Kroonenberg & Melitz 1983:398) , reprinted with permission of the first author. Fig. 2.5: Köppen-Geiger Climate Classification for the Eastern Guiana 33 Shield. Fig. 2.6: Weather station’s annual averages on the Corentyne (data 34 adapted from Nurmohamed 2008: 67-8). Fig. 2.7: Map of the major forest and savanna regions in the Guianas 35 (adapted from ter Steege & Zondervan 2000:39). Fig. 3.1: The location of the Trio village of Amotopo. 44 Fig. 3.2: Number of posts and stakes and their diameter distribution. 46 Fig. 3.3: Number of posts and stakes and their height distribution. 46 Fig. 3.4: Recently cut wakapu posts left to rot along the border of a 48 newly cleared field. Fig. 3.5: Turning a wakapu post into a support by combining cutting 49 and breaking. Fig. 3.6: Posts and stakes placed into the soil. 50 Fig. 3.7: The foundation supports. 52 Fig. 3.8: Body-post depth-height relations. 53 Fig. 3.9: Post-posthole ratios of the habitation structures.