Earliest evidence of sedentism in the Antilles: Multiple isotope data from Canímar Abajo, Cuba
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View abstract on PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.Early Antillean populations show evidence of reduced residential mobility, with isotopic analysis indicating a shift from sedentary lifeways to increased population movement and diverse traditions over time. This study offers the earliest isotopic evidence for low mobility in the Antilles.
Area Of Science
- Archaeology
- Bioarchaeology
- Isotope Geochemistry
Background
- Early Antillean populations were traditionally viewed as highly mobile hunter-fishers/gatherers.
- Recent findings suggest some groups cultivated domestic plants, but their residential mobility remains debated.
- Understanding sedentism is key to interpreting social relations, complexity, and adaptations of past communities.
Purpose Of The Study
- To investigate mobility patterns of early Antillean groups using stable isotope analysis.
- To determine if the adoption of domesticates correlated with decreased residential mobility.
- To examine changes in population movement and lifeways at the Canímar Abajo site.
Main Methods
- Analysis of enamel strontium (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr), oxygen (δ¹⁸Oen), and carbon (δ¹³Cen) isotopes.
- Examination of 44 human teeth from the Canímar Abajo site, containing the oldest human remains in the insular Caribbean.
- Comparison of isotopic data from different funerary periods within the site.
Main Results
- Homogeneous strontium isotope values in older funerary remains (cal. BC 2237-790) suggest a sedentary population relying on local, coastal resources.
- Later reuse of the mound (cal. AD 403-1282) revealed increased population mobility, with nonlocal individuals and diverse dietary/burial practices.
- Isotopic data indicate a transition from low-level residential mobility to greater movement over time.
Conclusions
- The earliest Antillean populations at Canímar Abajo exhibited low residential mobility, challenging traditional views.
- Later periods at the site show increased mobility and the presence of nonlocal individuals.
- Isotope analysis provides crucial insights into the changing lifeways and mobility of early Caribbean populations.
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