Paleoeskimo subsistence and settlement in the High Arctic ...

• Main Author: McCartney, Peter H.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: University of Calgary 1989
• Subjects: GN 885 M162 1989a; Land settlement patterns, Prehistoric - Arctic regions; Excavations Archaeology - Arctic regions; Anthropology - Research - Arctic regions; Paleolithic period - Northwest Territory - Jones Sound; Arctic; ringed seal
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.11575/prism/18764; https://prism.ucalgary.ca/handle/1880/21872

Bibliography: p. 306-330. ... : 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 ...