1
|
Cortell-Nicolau A, García-Puchol O, Barrera-Cruz M, García-Rivero D. The spread of agriculture in Iberia through Approximate Bayesian Computation and Neolithic projectile tools. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0261813. [PMID: 34962962 PMCID: PMC8714124 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0261813] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2021] [Accepted: 12/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
In the present article we use geometric microliths (a specific type of arrowhead) and Approximate Bayesian Computation (ABC) in order to evaluate possible origin points and expansion routes for the Neolithic in the Iberian Peninsula. In order to do so, we divide the Iberian Peninsula in four areas (Ebro river, Catalan shores, Xúquer river and Guadalquivir river) and we sample the geometric microliths existing in the sites with the oldest radiocarbon dates for each zone. On this data, we perform a partial Mantel test with three matrices: geographic distance matrix, cultural distance matrix and chronological distance matrix. After this is done, we simulate a series of partial Mantel tests where we alter the chronological matrix by using an expansion model with randomised origin points, and using the distribution of the observed partial Mantel test’s results as a summary statistic within an Approximate Bayesian Computation-Sequential Monte-Carlo (ABC-SMC) algorithm framework. Our results point clearly to a Neolithic expansion route following the Northern Mediterranean, whilst the Southern Mediterranean route could also find support and should be further discussed. The most probable origin points focus on the Xúquer river area.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alfredo Cortell-Nicolau
- Departament de Prehistòria, Arqueologia i Història Antiga, Facultat de Geografia i Història, Universitat de València, València, Spain
- Department of Archaeology, McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, Faculty of Human, Social, and Political Science, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
- * E-mail: (OGP); (ACN)
| | - Oreto García-Puchol
- Departament de Prehistòria, Arqueologia i Història Antiga, Facultat de Geografia i Història, Universitat de València, València, Spain
- * E-mail: (OGP); (ACN)
| | - María Barrera-Cruz
- Departament de Prehistòria, Arqueologia i Història Antiga, Facultat de Geografia i Història, Universitat de València, València, Spain
| | - Daniel García-Rivero
- Department of Prehistory and Archaeology, Faculty of Geography and History, University of Seville, Seville, Spain
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Youngblood M, Baraghith K, Savage PE. Phylogenetic reconstruction of the cultural evolution of electronic music via dynamic community detection (1975–1999). EVOL HUM BEHAV 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2021.06.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
|
3
|
The first quantitative assessment of radiocarbon chronologies for initial pottery in Island Southeast Asia supports multi-directional Neolithic dispersal. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0251407. [PMID: 34077445 PMCID: PMC8171956 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0251407] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2020] [Accepted: 04/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Neolithization, or the Holocene demographic expansion of farming populations, accounts for significant changes in human and animal biology, artifacts, languages, and cultures across the earth. For Island Southeast Asia, the orthodox Out of Taiwan hypothesis proposes that Neolithic expansion originated from Taiwan with populations moving south into Island Southeast Asia, while the Western Route Migration hypothesis suggests the earliest farming populations entered from Mainland Southeast Asia in the west. These hypotheses are also linked to competing explanations of the Austronesian expansion, one of the most significant population dispersals in the ancient world that influenced human and environmental diversity from Madagascar to Easter Island and Hawai‘i to New Zealand. The fundamental archaeological test of the Out of Taiwan and Western Route Migration hypotheses is the geographic and chronological distribution of initial pottery assemblages, but these data have never been quantitatively analyzed. Using radiocarbon determinations from 20 archaeological sites, we present a Bayesian chronological analysis of initial pottery deposition in Island Southeast Asia and western Near Oceania. Both site-scale and island-scale Bayesian models were produced in Oxcal using radiocarbon determinations that are most confidently associated with selected target events. Our results indicate multi-directional Neolithic dispersal in Island Southeast Asia, with the earliest pottery contemporaneously deposited in western Borneo and the northern Philippines. This work supports emerging research that identifies separate processes of biological, linguistic, and material culture change in Island Southeast Asia.
Collapse
|
4
|
von Cramon-Taubadel N, Lycett SJ. Assessing the relative impact of historical divergence and inter-group transmission on cultural patterns: a method from evolutionary ecology. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2018; 373:20170054. [PMID: 29440520 PMCID: PMC5812967 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2017.0054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/12/2017] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
In the study of cultural evolution, observed among-group affinity patterns reflect the effects of processes such as mutation (e.g. innovation and copying error), between-group interaction (culture flow), drift and selection. As in biology, cultural affinity patterns are often spatially correlated, making it difficult to distinguish between the opposing geographically mediated forces of divergence and interaction, which cause groups to become more distinct or similar over time, respectively. Analogous difficulties are faced by evolutionary biologists examining the relationship between biological affinity and geography, particularly at lower taxonomic levels where the potential for gene flow between lineages is greatest. Tree models are generally used to assess the fit between affinity patterns and models of historical divergence. However, factors driving lineage divergence are often spatially mediated, resulting in tree models that are themselves geographically structured. Here, we showcase a simple method drawn from evolutionary ecology for assessing the relative impact of both geographically mediated processes simultaneously. We illustrate the method using global human craniometric diversity and material culture from the northern coast of New Guinea as example case studies. This method can be employed to quantify the relative importance of history (divergence) and geographically mediated between-group interaction (culture flow) in explaining observed cultural affinity patterns.This article is part of the theme issue 'Bridging cultural gaps: interdisciplinary studies in human cultural evolution'.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Stephen J Lycett
- Department of Anthropology, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY 14261, USA
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
A theoretically-sufficient and computationally-practical technique for deterministic frequency seriation. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0124942. [PMID: 25923765 PMCID: PMC4414518 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0124942] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2014] [Accepted: 03/19/2015] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Frequency seriation played a key role in the formation of archaeology as a discipline due to its ability to generate chronologies. Interest in its utility for exploring issues of contemporary interest beyond chronology, however, has been limited. This limitation is partly due to a lack of quantitative algorithms that can be used to build deterministic seriation solutions. When the number of assemblages becomes greater than just a handful, the resources required for evaluation of possible permutations easily outstrips available computing capacity. On the other hand, probabilistic approaches to creating seriations offer a computationally manageable alternative but rely upon a compressed description of the data to order assemblages. This compression removes the ability to use all of the features of our data to fit to the seriation model, obscuring violations of the model, and thus lessens our ability to understand the degree to which the resulting order is chronological, spatial, or a mixture. Recently, frequency seriation has been reconceived as a general method for studying the structure of cultural transmission through time and across space. The use of an evolution-based framework renews the potential for seriation but also calls for a computationally feasible algorithm that is capable of producing solutions under varying configurations, without manual trial and error fitting. Here, we introduce the Iterative Deterministic Seriation Solution (IDSS) for constructing frequency seriations, an algorithm that dramatically constrains the search for potential valid orders of assemblages. Our initial implementation of IDSS does not solve all the problems of seriation, but begins to moves towards a resolution of a long-standing problem in archaeology while opening up new avenues of research into the study of cultural relatedness. We demonstrate the utility of IDSS using late prehistoric decorated ceramics from the Mississippi River Valley. The results compare favorably to previous analyses but add new details into the structure of cultural transmission of these late prehistoric populations.
Collapse
|
6
|
Saslis-Lagoudakis CH, Hawkins JA, Greenhill SJ, Pendry CA, Watson MF, Tuladhar-Douglas W, Baral SR, Savolainen V. The evolution of traditional knowledge: environment shapes medicinal plant use in Nepal. Proc Biol Sci 2014; 281:20132768. [PMID: 24523269 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2013.2768] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Traditional knowledge is influenced by ancestry, inter-cultural diffusion and interaction with the natural environment. It is problematic to assess the contributions of these influences independently because closely related ethnic groups may also be geographically close, exposed to similar environments and able to exchange knowledge readily. Medicinal plant use is one of the most important components of traditional knowledge, since plants provide healthcare for up to 80% of the world's population. Here, we assess the significance of ancestry, geographical proximity of cultures and the environment in determining medicinal plant use for 12 ethnic groups in Nepal. Incorporating phylogenetic information to account for plant evolutionary relatedness, we calculate pairwise distances that describe differences in the ethnic groups' medicinal floras and floristic environments. We also determine linguistic relatedness and geographical separation for all pairs of ethnic groups. We show that medicinal uses are most similar when cultures are found in similar floristic environments. The correlation between medicinal flora and floristic environment was positive and strongly significant, in contrast to the effects of shared ancestry and geographical proximity. These findings demonstrate the importance of adaptation to local environments, even at small spatial scale, in shaping traditional knowledge during human cultural evolution.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- C Haris Saslis-Lagoudakis
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Reading, , Reading RG6 6BX, UK, Imperial College London, , Silwood Park, Ascot, Berkshire SL5 7PY, UK, Centre for Macroevolution and Macroecology, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, , Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 0200, Australia, School of Culture, History and Language, ANU College of Asia and the Pacific, Australian National University, , Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia, Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, , Edinburgh EH3 5LR, UK, School of Divinity, History and Philosophy, King's College, University of Aberdeen, , Aberdeen AB24 3UB, UK, Department of Plant Resources, National Herbarium and Plant Laboratories, , PO Box 3708, Godawari, Lalitpur, Nepal, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew TW9 3DS, UK
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
7
|
Collard M, Buchanan B, O'Brien MJ, Scholnick J. Risk, mobility or population size? Drivers of technological richness among contact-period western North American hunter-gatherers. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2013; 368:20120412. [PMID: 24101622 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2012.0412] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Identifying factors that influence technological evolution in small-scale societies is important for understanding human evolution. There have been a number of attempts to identify factors that influence the evolution of food-getting technology, but little work has examined the factors that affect the evolution of other technologies. Here, we focus on variation in technological richness (total number of material items and techniques) among recent hunter-gatherers from western North America and test three hypotheses: (i) technological richness is affected by environmental risk, (ii) population size is the primary determinant of technological richness, and (iii) technological richness is constrained by residential mobility. We found technological richness to be correlated with a proxy for environmental risk-mean rainfall for the driest month-in the manner predicted by the risk hypothesis. Support for the hypothesis persisted when we controlled for shared history and intergroup contact. We found no evidence that technological richness is affected by population size or residential mobility. These results have important implications for unravelling the complexities of technological evolution.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mark Collard
- Human Evolutionary Studies Program and Department of Archaeology, Simon Fraser University, , Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
8
|
O’Brien MJ, Collard M, Buchanan B, Boulanger MT. Trees, thickets, or something in between? Recent theoretical and empirical work in cultural phylogeny. Isr J Ecol Evol 2013. [DOI: 10.1080/15659801.2013.825431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Anthropology has always had as one of its goals the explanation of human cultural diversity across space and through time. Over the past several decades, there has been a growing appreciation among anthropologists and other social scientists that the phylogenetic approaches that biologists have developed to reconstruct the evolutionary relationships of species are useful tools for building and explaining patterns of human diversity. Phylogenetic methods offer a means of creating testable propositions of heritable continuity – how one thing is related to another in terms of descent. Such methods have now been applied to a wide range of cultural phenomena, including languages, projectile points, textiles, marital customs, and political organization. Here we discuss several cultural phylogenies and demonstrate how they were used to address long-standing anthropological issues. Even keeping in mind that phylogenetic trees are nothing more than hypotheses about evolutionary relationships, some researchers have argued that when it comes to cultural behaviors and their products, tree building is theoretically unwarranted. We examine the issues that critics raise and find that they in no way sound the death knell for cultural phylogenetic work.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Mark Collard
- Human Evolutionary Studies Program and Department of Archaeology, Simon Fraser University
| | - Briggs Buchanan
- Department of Anthropology, University of Missouri
- Human Evolutionary Studies Program and Department of Archaeology, Simon Fraser University
| | | |
Collapse
|
9
|
Towner MC, Grote MN, Venti J, Borgerhoff Mulder M. Cultural macroevolution on neighbor graphs : vertical and horizontal transmission among Western North American Indian societies. HUMAN NATURE-AN INTERDISCIPLINARY BIOSOCIAL PERSPECTIVE 2013; 23:283-305. [PMID: 22791406 DOI: 10.1007/s12110-012-9142-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
What are the driving forces of cultural macroevolution, the evolution of cultural traits that characterize societies or populations? This question has engaged anthropologists for more than a century, with little consensus regarding the answer. We develop and fit autologistic models, built upon both spatial and linguistic neighbor graphs, for 44 cultural traits of 172 societies in the Western North American Indian (WNAI) database. For each trait, we compare models including or excluding one or both neighbor graphs, and for the majority of traits we find strong evidence in favor of a model which uses both spatial and linguistic neighbors to predict a trait's distribution. Our results run counter to the assertion that cultural trait distributions can be explained largely by the transmission of traits from parent to daughter populations and are thus best analyzed with phylogenies. In contrast, we show that vertical and horizontal transmission pathways can be incorporated in a single model, that both transmission modes may indeed operate on the same trait, and that for most traits in the WNAI database, accounting for only one mode of transmission would result in a loss of information.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mary C Towner
- Department of Zoology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, 74078, USA.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
10
|
Steele J, Jordan P, Cochrane E. Evolutionary approaches to cultural and linguistic diversity. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2010; 365:3781-5. [PMID: 21041203 PMCID: PMC2981919 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2010.0202] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Evolutionary approaches to cultural change are increasingly influential, and many scientists believe that a 'grand synthesis' is now in sight. The papers in this Theme Issue, which derives from a symposium held by the AHRC Centre for the Evolution of Cultural Diversity (University College London) in December 2008, focus on how the phylogenetic tree-building and network-based techniques used to estimate descent relationships in biology can be adapted to reconstruct cultural histories, where some degree of inter-societal diffusion will almost inevitably be superimposed on any deeper signal of a historical branching process. The disciplines represented include the three most purely 'cultural' fields from the four-field model of anthropology (cultural anthropology, archaeology and linguistic anthropology). In this short introduction, some context is provided from the history of anthropology, and key issues raised by the papers are highlighted.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- James Steele
- AHRC Centre for the Evolution of Cultural Diversity, Institute of Archaeology, University College London, 31-34 Gordon Square, London WC1H 0PY, UK.
| | | | | |
Collapse
|