A strontium isotope analysis on the relationship between ritual tooth ablation and migration among the Jomon people in Japan

Abstract

a b s t r a c tDistinct patterns can be discerned in the extensive ritual tooth ablation found among the human skeletal remains of the Late-Final Jomon period (ca. 3200-2800 cal BP) in Japan. Based on comparative observations of sex and grave patterns in the skeletal remains, two major patterns in ritual tooth ablation, termed type 4I and type 2C, have been assigned to locals and immigrants, respectively. In order to test this hypothesis, strontium (Sr) isotope ( 87 Sr/ 86 Sr) analyses were performed on human skeletal remains from the Yoshigo shell mound in Aichi Prefecture, central Japan. Plants in the surrounding area were also examined to illustrate the geographic 87 Sr/ 86 Sr distribution. The Sr isotopic variation in human tooth enamel ( 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ¼ 0.70868-0.71028) was greater than that in human bones ( 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ¼ 0.70871-0.70943). Individuals with higher Sr isotope ratios in their tooth enamel than seawater Sr values of 0.7092 can be identified as immigrants (36% of population). The presence of these isotopically identified immigrants between both type 2C and type 4I individuals does not support the previous hypothesis. The intra-population 87 Sr/ 86 Sr distribution of tooth enamel of type 2C individuals showed a significantly higher mean ratio than that of type 4I individuals, suggesting a higher proportion of immigrants among the former.

Dental metric variability associated with human migration from skeletal remains of two Jomon sites (Yoshigo and Inariyama) in the Atsumi Peninsula area

“…The formation of the Yoshigo site covers the later part of the Late Jomon period and the Final Jomon period (c. 3500-2300 BP), based on the chronology of pottery types (Yamanouchi, 1952). This chronology was confirmed by radiocarbon dating of human bone collagen (c. 3200-2800 cal BP; Kusaka et al, 2009). The Inariyama shell mound is located on the Toyohashi Plain, Aichi Prefecture.…”

“…The radiocarbon dates of remains from the Inariyama shell mound have not been investigated. Age and sex, and the distinction between immigrant and local skeletal remains as well as cut-off values of local strontium isotope ratios are given in Kusaka et al (2009Kusaka et al ( , 2011. Figure 2 illustrates the strontium isotope ratios of tooth enamel of Yoshigo and Inariyama skeletal remains showing a distinction between locals and immigrants.…”

“…Kusaka et al (2009Kusaka et al ( , 2011 made distinctions between 'locals' and 'immigrants' in subsamples of the Yoshigo and Inariyama populations by strontium isotope analysis of the tooth enamel. Strontium isotope analysis is an effective tool to reveal prehistoric human migration patterns (e.g.…”

“…Therefore, when people migrate between geochemically contrasting residential areas, the Sr isotope signatures in the tooth enamel of immigrants are detectable (Bentley, 2006). In the Atsumi Peninsula area, the strontium isotope ratio exhibits little variation in each local area around the site, and large differences of regional strontium isotope ratio exist (Kusaka et al, 2009. Since the observed strontium isotope ratios in tooth enamel are sufficiently contrasted between locals and immigrants, immigrants of populations in the Atsumi Peninsula area can be successfully identified.…”

Environmental change and cultural dynamics of Holocene hunter–gatherers in Northeast Asia: Comparative analyses and research potentials in Cis-Baikal (Siberia, Russia) and Hokkaido (Japan)

“…The opposite, however, is true for the life history approach. The BAP has advanced this kind of work in Cis-Baikal much beyond the insights provided by a few studies completed so far on the Hokkaido materials (Chisholm et al, 1992;Kusaka et al, 2009;Minagawa and Akazawa, 1992) and the contribution of human bioarchaeological work to the current knowledge of Hokkaido"s Holocene hunter-gatherers is clearly incommensurate with its immense potential and remains a task for future research. Furthermore, what makes this program of work particularly attractive in the Hokkaido context is the additional knowledge that can be derived from integration of the rich data from habitation sites with the insights supplied by the life history approach in the ways that are not feasible in Cis-Baikal.…”