MIGRATIONS AND MALTHUSIAN DEMOGRAPHICS AMONGST TWO PIONEERING PALEO-INUIT TRADITIONS

Author

Skyla Moyer, The University Of MontanaFollow

Year of Award

2025

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Type

Master of Arts (MA)

Degree Name

Anthropology (Cultural Heritage Option)

Department or School/College

Department of Anthropology

Committee Chair

Anna Marie Prentiss

Commitee Members

Kyle Bocinsky, Douglas MacDonald

Subject Categories

Archaeological Anthropology

Abstract

Understanding the ways in which resource variability, environmental conditions, and cultural behavior impact population movements has been a central concern both within the subfield of arctic archeology and within anthropology as an overarching discipline. To provide insights into these questions in Greenlandic contexts, Saqqaq and Independence I occupation movements have been examined through an analysis of broad trends in the radiocarbon record throughout the duration of these two cultural traditions. While the ultimate goal of this analysis is to recognize patterns in occupational progressions as indicated by the radiocarbon record, the demographic and environmental forces of change involved in the colonization of Greenland have been addressed through comparisons with Holocene paleoclimate reconstructions and the use of Summed Probability Distributions (SPDs) of radiocarbon dates in conjunction with insights provided by the archeological record. Recognizing that questions of human ecology and adaptation cannot be answered adequately without examining the role of demographic variables, the contributions of Malthusian demographic theory in directly connecting ecological factors of production and distribution to the demographic history of a settlement offer further insights into the cycles of resource/population abundance and decline that may have contributed to hunter-gatherer migration decisions. Through the statistical and spatial analysis of radiocarbon dates and an analysis of environmental pressures within Malthusian frameworks, a better understanding of the environmental and demographic factors that may have informed the migration behavior of these highly mobile hunter-gather groups may be achieved.

Recommended Citation

Moyer, Skyla, "MIGRATIONS AND MALTHUSIAN DEMOGRAPHICS AMONGST TWO PIONEERING PALEO-INUIT TRADITIONS" (2025). Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers. 12456.
https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd/12456