Archaeological research suggests that cultural changes in the Canadian Arctic are closely linked to environmental changes. Current knowledge of postglacial climate and marine conditions in the eastern Canadian Arctic-an area demonstrably sensitive to small fluctuations in these conditions-is reviewed in the context of the prehistoric cultural sequence. Most of the major cultural events since 4500 BP appear to correlate well with the paleoclimatic conditions inferred from environmental data, although specific causal mechanisms cannot be documented.The expansions of Arctic Small Tool tradition (ASTt) and later of the Thule people seem to be related to warmer climatic conditions, whereas the evolution and decline of Dorset culture seems to show an inverse relation to temperature trends. More work is required on the dating of environmental and cultural changes and on the precise nature of possible interactions between environmental factors and cultural response.
Radiocarbon dates from marine mammal tissue present Arctic archaeologists with some difficult interpretive problems. These problems are so serious that McGhee and Tuck have even advocated omitting all sea mammal dates from the Eastern Arctic radiocarbon chronology. A flexible approach to interpreting sea mammal dates will allow researchers to use existing dates more effectively and to make future dates more reliable. Solving the problems with sea mammal dates requires: (1) abandoning the assumption that radiocarbon assays are quasi-absolute chronological indicators; (2) recognizing and understanding the sources of variability that affect these dates; (3) correcting for these sources of variability; and (4) developing a more flexible strategy for interpreting the resulting date sequence. A large table of radiocarbon dates from the Eastern Arctic provides the basis for demonstrating how these four steps can be accomplished. Applying this flexible approach also suggests directions and guidelines for future research.
A brief survey of the Cape Dorset area, Baffin Island recovered surface collections from three very similar, but unusual quartz assemblages. This paper hypothesizes that these assemblages represent a consistent set of activities. In testing this hypothesis, the author uses an approach to functional analysis that has several important advantages over other methods. This approach can help solve problems in eastern arctic prehistory involving a relationship between environmental change and cultural change.
ABSTRACT. Northern Athabaskans with extensive knowledge of their traditional history and culture are increasingly interested in preserving their heritage. The authors are working with Allakaket area Koyukon people in Alaska to record data on important historic sites and events, but they are also using ethnoarchaeological approaches, particularly Binford's models of settlement systems and site mobility, to help make the information they gather more valuable to both local Native people and archaeologists. Drawing on their preliminary data, as well as existing research, they describe changes in the late winter part of the seasonal round, showing how, over time, the Koyukon become more logistically organized as they become more sedentary. These changes have interesting archaeological implications, including effects on site mobility patterns. The Koyukon belief system, with an intricate set of traditional beliefs and practices, has significant, though largely unexplored potential for influencing archaeological variability. Key words: Alaska, Athabaskans, archaeology, belief systems, boreal forest, ethnoarchaeology, historic archaeology, historic sites, Koyukon, Koyukuk River, landscape use, settlement patterns, Subarctic RÉSUMÉ. Les Athabaskans du Nord qui possèdent une connaissance approfondie de leur histoire et de leur culture traditionnelles, sont de plus en plus intéressés à préserver leur patrimoine. Les auteurs travaillent actuellement avec des gens de la tribu Koyukon de la région d'Allakaket en Alaska, à consigner des données sur d'importants sites et événements historiques, mais ils utilisent aussi des approches ethnoarchéologiques, en particulier les modèles de Binford se rapportant aux systèmes de peuplement et de migration d'un site à l'autre, pour rendre l'information recueille plus utile, àla fois à la population autochtone et aux archéologues. S'appuyant sur leurs données préliminaires ainsi que sur la recherche existante, ils décrivent les changements survenant chaque année à la fin de l'hiver, en montrant comment, avec le temps, les Koyukon sont devenus mieux organisés du point de vue logistique au fur et à mesure qu'ils devenaient plus sédentaires. Ces changements ont des implications intéressantes du point de vue archéologique, y compris des répercussions sur les schémas de déplacement d'un site à l'autre. Le système de croyances des Koyukon, constitué d'un ensemble complexe de croyances et de pratiques traditionnelles, pourrait bien -quoiqu'on n'ait pas encore exploré la question à fond -influencer la variabilité archéologique.
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