Paleoeskimo subsistence and settlement in the High Arctic
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1989
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Abstract
This dissertation examines the ecological basis for Paleoeskimo subsistence and settlement in the Jones Sound region of the Canadian High Arctic. The early prehistory of the Eastern Arctic is characterized by overall low population densities, which are uneven and patchy with respect to both spatial distribution and continuity within local sequences. An understanding of the relationship between environmental factors and prehistoric demographic patterns is sought within (1) information on the characteristics of the physical environment, (2) archaeological evidence for Paleoeskimo subsistence and settlement and (3) a theoretical framework based on ecological models of descisionmaking for inferring systemic relationships between environmental parameters and human behavior. The High Arctic environment is distinguished by low primary productivity, low ecological diversity and high instability. Short-term and long-term variance in the availability of the most important resources (ringed seal and caribou) is linked to changes in precipitation, spring storm patterns and sea ice conditions. Along the northern coast of Devon Island, a series of lowland zones offer locally longer growing seasons, higher available moisture and larger and more stable populations of terrestrial resources. The archaeological data are derived from a five-year project centered on the Devon Lowlands which yielded site survey data and collections of well preserved fauna! and artifact collections from twelve excavated Paleoeskimo tent ring features. Resource selection is dominated by ringed seal with lesser, but consistent, numbers of caribou, bearded seal and birds. The settlement pattern is characterized by small coastal camps which are located to maximize access to both marine and terrestrial resources. An informal model of Paleoeskimo adaptation is offered which identifies several distinctive features. First, the low diversity and low predictability of the High Arctic resource base results in a subsistence system with a high susceptibility to risk yet limited flexibility to allow an effective response to variance in resource availability. Second, the differential ability of certain resources to satisfy the full spectrum of dietary and material needs creates added stress on the economic system. The effects of the instability of critical resources and the limited capacity for economic response are reflected in the settlement pattern by low population densities and a high dependence on residential mobility. Based on the expected effects of long term climatic trends on the resource base, a set of predictions for temporal changes in subsistence and settlement is derived from this model and compared to the archaeologically documented changes in Jones Sound through the early Paleoeskimo period. It is suggested that the cooling trend which dominates most of this sequence resulted in a progressive narrowing of the resource base and probably an increased unreliability of terrestrial resources . Despite the likelihood that the main food resource (ringed seal) would have become more productive through time, the reduced flexibility of the economic system and its increased susceptibility to risk ultimately led to the abandonment of Jones Sound at the end of this cooling trend.
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Bibliography: p. 306-330.
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Citation
McCartney, P. H. (1989). Paleoeskimo subsistence and settlement in the High Arctic (Doctoral thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/18764