An Unusual Case? Hunter-Gatherer Adaptations to an Island Environment: A Case Study from Okinawa, Japan

Takamiya, Hiroto

doi:10.1080/15564890600585855

Cited by 24 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 22 publications

(23 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In addition, the frequency of severe caries (C3 + C4) in the earlymodern Kumejima (25.3%) was high, but not significantly different from that in the prehistoric Okinawa series (17.4%). This constancy of rate through time is surprising, given the change of basic subsistence from foraging to farming, in the Ryukyu Islands, across a time span of over 2000 years (Takamiya, 2006). It is surprising that caries rate apparently did not change diachronically, even if we consider that all the AMTL resulted from dental caries.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

Dental diseases of human skeletal remains from the early-modern period of Kumejima Island, Okinawa, Japan

Irei

Doi

Fukumine

et al. 2008

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

Dental diseases of human skeletal remains from the early-modern period of Kumejima Island, Okinawa, Japan

Irei

Doi

Fukumine

et al. 2008

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Two chronological systems are frequently used to describe the prehistory of the Ryukyu Islands (Takamiya, 2006). The first divides the prehistoric Ryukyu Islands into early and late Shell Midden Periods.…”

Section: Archaeological Sites and Specimensmentioning

confidence: 99%

Morphological and molecular phylogenetic characteristics of dwarf <i>Sus</i> specimens from the Noguni shell middens in the Ryukyu Islands

Takahashi

Ishiguro

Matsui

et al. 2012

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

We analyzed the morphological and molecular phylogenetic characteristics of Sus bone and tooth specimens excavated from the Noguni shell midden and the Noguni B shell midden (c. 7200-4400 uncal. BP), in Okinawa main island. They were compared with those of Sus remains from later sites on the Okinawa Islands (c. 4800-1400 uncal. BP) as well as modern Ryukyu wild boar (Sus scrofa riukiuanus). Based on the length and breadth of lower third molars, Sus specimens from the Noguni shell middens were distinctly smaller than those from modern Ryukyu wild boar. Lower third molars from the Noguni shell middens also show a different size range from those of other ancient sites in the Okinawa Islands. Some haplotypes from the Noguni B shell midden belong to a different cluster from modern Ryukyu wild boar based on the analysis of mitochondrial DNA D-loop region, although nucleotide sequences are fragmentary. The morphological and molecular phylogenetic analyses indicate that Sus from the Noguni shell middens included different populations from modern Ryukyu wild boar. We suggest two possible hypotheses: first, the Sus from the Noguni shell middens were introduced to Okinawa main island from elsewhere; second, prehistoric wild boar that inhabited the Ryukyu Islands had a larger morphological and genetic variability than modern Ryukyu wild boar.

show abstract

“…On the other hand, Doi (2003), as well as Takamiya (1996Takamiya ( , 2005Takamiya ( , 2006 and Takamiya and Obata (2002), have pointed out spatial, temporal, and morphological distinctions between the Minatogawa specimens and those of the Late Jomon (4000-3000 BP).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Metric dental diversity of Ryukyu Islanders: a comparative study among Ryukyu and other Asian populations

Toma

Hanihara

Sunakawa

et al. 2007

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Mesiodistal and buccolingual crown diameters were examined to describe and compare patterns of metric dental variation in five modern samples from the Ryukyu Island chain (Miyako, Ishigaki, Tokunoshima, and two samples from Okinawa Island). Principal component analysis applied to two separate datasets, raw measurement and standardized (C-score) data, for 32 Asian and Pacific samples, including the five Ryukyu Islander series, produced an overall size factor and three shape factors (relative size of mesiodistal diameters versus buccolingual diameters and two kinds of front-back polarity). Ryukyu Islanders have similar crown dimensions as those of the predominant eastern Asian groups, characterized by mesodont dentition. In terms of shape factors, Ryukyu Islanders are distinctive among eastern Asian population groups on the one hand, and show diversity among themselves on the other hand. The inter-regional variation of Ryukyu Island groups estimated by F st falls within the range of 4-6% of the total variance, which is greater than those of Arctic population samples (Aleuts and Eskimos). The average within-group variance of the Ryukyu Island series measured by the R-matrix method (intra-regional variation) is compatible with those of East and Northeast Asians, Micronesians, and Polynesians. These findings suggest that differential patterns of long-term gene flow from an outside source, geographical isolation, and genetic drift in each island of the Ryukyu Island chain has produced the morphological diversification of modern Ryukyu Islanders.

show abstract

An Unusual Case? Hunter-Gatherer Adaptations to an Island Environment: A Case Study from Okinawa, Japan

Cited by 24 publications

References 22 publications

Dental diseases of human skeletal remains from the early-modern period of Kumejima Island, Okinawa, Japan

Dental diseases of human skeletal remains from the early-modern period of Kumejima Island, Okinawa, Japan

Morphological and molecular phylogenetic characteristics of dwarf <i>Sus</i> specimens from the Noguni shell middens in the Ryukyu Islands

Metric dental diversity of Ryukyu Islanders: a comparative study among Ryukyu and other Asian populations

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About