Nonmetric cranial variation of the Ryukyuans, including the Kumejima population, and their neighboring peoples was investigated. Among the populations compared, incidences of supernumerary ossicles in the Ryukyu series were high. The frequency of the supraorbital foramen of the Kumejima series was shown to be intermediate between those of the East Asians and Ainu. Mean measures of divergence (MMDs) based on 16 nonmetric traits showed that Kumejima is closest to Okinawa, Sakishima, and Amami, as well as to the Philippine and Yayoi groups. The four Ryukyu groups were the most distant from the Hawaii population. Multidimensional scaling and neighbor-joining methods were applied to the distance matrix to represent the relationships among populations. The four Ryukyu groups grouped together with the Yayoi to form a cluster, which was positioned between the East and Southeast Asians and the Jomon-Ainu populations. This suggests that there were not only northern, but also southern influences on the Ryukyu Islands during prehistoric and historic times, as suggested by recent genetic studies.
Human skeletal remains from the early-modern period (17th-19th centuries AD) of Kumejima Island, the Ryukyu Islands, were examined for dental disease, including dental caries, linear enamel hypoplasia (LEH), antemortem tooth loss (AMTL), and dental calculus. The materials used in this study consisted of 386 adult individuals, 105 male, 89 female, and 192 of unknown sex. The highest rate of dental caries occurred in the adult females. Female physiological events, such as pregnancy and menopause, as well as differences in food preference may have led to this sex difference, as suggested by isotopic analysis. The high incidence of AMTL in the older females indicate that the actual rate of dental caries must have been even higher. There were no significant differences in the rate of dental caries between prehistoric foraging and early-modern farming Ryukyu Islanders, probably because of similar dietary composition of C3 plant and fish. Adult females tended to be more affected by LEH, indicating that they experienced greater physiological stress during early childhood.
We investigated the influence of squatting posture on 343 adult human tali and 227 adult tibiae of the earlymodern period from Kumejima, Okinawa, Japan. The prevalence of medial squatting facets (malleolar and trochlear surface extensions) in the Kumejima series was as high as that in recent main-island Japanese. Right medial squatting facets were more frequent than left ones, especially in females. However, we found only lateral squatting facets at the lower end of the tibia in the Kumejima series, while the frequency was quite low, especially in females, among East Asians. This finding corresponded to the low frequency of lateral extension of the trochlear surface of the talus. The prevalence of these facets was significantly higher among males than among females, suggesting that males habitually assumed a squatting position more frequently than females did in the early-modern period. These studies suggested that peoples of the early-modern Kumejima Island did not have as many customs involving a squatting position as the early-modern and modern mainland Japanese.
We examined 396 talar joint facets of the calcaneus and talus of early-modern human remains from Kumejima, Okinawa to classify into 4 types of articular facet (Continuous Type/Demarcated Type/Separate Type/ No Anterior facet Type); using the standard by Tanaka et al. (2004a). Significant correlations between right and left facet types were recognized. The frequency of the demarcated type was significantly higher in males, while that of the continuous type was higher in females. The respective appearances of the continuous type and smooth type, demarcated type and angular type, no-anterior facet type and no-anterior facet type of the calcaneus and talus were correlated. The appearance of the calcanean separate facet type corresponded to those of the angular type and grooved type in the talus. Analysis of variance showed that there were significant differences in length between the anterior and middle talar articular facets of the calcaneus among the continuous, demarcated and separate types. The demarcated type had a significantly longer articular surface length (AB) than the continuous type. The separate facet type showed a significantly deeper depth (C) than the continuous type. The separate facet type had a significantly higher depth index (C/AB) than the consecutive models. The Kumejima Island and central Kyushu groups of the modern period showed a high frequency of calcanean separate facet type among Japanese Islanders, while prehistoric and historic East Japanese showed rather lower frequencies.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.