Iron Age sites associated with the Toutswe tradition in Eastern Botswana date between CE 700-1300 and share a variety of settlement patterns, economic features and material culture. The presence of domestic fauna, settlement structures and concentrations of vitrified dung provide archaeological evidence for herding economies. However, due to factors of preservation and past retrieval techniques, evidence for plant remains is still somewhat limited for the Toutswe sites in Botswana. Additionally, archaeological remains such as flora, fauna and material culture often provide only indirect evidence for their contributions to diet. This study provides new evidence for the diet of individuals from the Toutswe tradition. Given the large numbers of animal remains and residues at Toutswe sites, the expectation is that animal domesticates were also an integral part of the diet. Stable isotopic analysis of human remains indicates that even though domestic cattle and sheep occur in great abundance at Toutswe sites, their contribution to the diet may be minimal. The main source of protein for individuals at Kgaswe and Taukome comes from C4 plants such as sorghum and millet and to a lesser extent, animal products. The practice of maintaining large domestic herds for economic and social reasons rather than for primary subsistence in southern Africa today may have its roots in the Iron Age populations of the region.

Burials were examined from the late Viking Age early medieval Christian cemetery at the farm of Keldudalur in the Skagafjörður region, Northern Iceland. The cemetery likely served a single household for about 100-120 years, from the beginning of the 11th century AD to the turn of the 12th century. Cemetery inhabitants represent a population that lived through the transitional period when Christianity was established in Iceland. The changes are visible in the mortuary record with the changeover from outlying pagan graves to enclosed Christian cemeteries situated on the farmsteads. Keldudalur is one of the numerous early Christian family cemeteries that littered the 11th century Skagafjörður landscape. The burials included 53 well-preserved skeletons of 27 adults and 26 subadults. Various factors such as fluctuating climate and environmental conditions, and seasonal or periodical availability of resources have the potential for impacting human diet and health over time. To assess the health status of the burials, data were collected for a number of health status indicators such as stature estimation, developmental enamel defects, porotic hyperostosis, infectious disease, trauma, degenerative joint diseases, dental caries, calculus and tooth loss. Results suggest that inhabitants of Keldudalur experienced periodic stress and rigorous living conditions. Infant mortality was great, although if individuals survived childhood, the age expectancy was fairly high. There was no obvious evidence for interpersonal violence or endemic infectious disease. However, the common occurrence of growth disturbances, generalised periostitis, trauma and degenerative joint disease all point to a number of stressors in the lives of the people at Keldudalur, which is suggestive of a resilient people living and adapting to a harsh and periodically resource scarce subarctic environment.

Human burials, dated AD 1100-1500, were examined from the Iron Age site of Simbusenga, located some 35 miles northwest of Victoria Falls in Zambia. Pedal polydactyly was discovered in the fragmentary remains of a young adult of indeterminate sex aged 14-25. The preaxial form of polydactyly is indicated with bilateral involvement of the first metatarsals. There is incomplete hypoplastic duplication of both first metatarsals with broad heads for the metatarsal-phalangeal joints. No digital malformations were found in the other seven individuals with feet and/or hands from the site. Several studies point to autosomal dominance for cases of isolated polydactyly, but inheritance and patterning of preaxial polydactyly are still incompletely understood. The condition is also found in conjunction with genetic malformation syndromes such as Acrocephalypolysyndactyly, Lambotte, Oro-facio-digital, and VATER. High frequencies of polydactyly are reported for African and African-American populations, but further analysis reveals that the bulk of previously reported cases of polydactyly are representative of the postaxial form as opposed to the preaxial expression seen here.

Histologically based age of occurrence estimates for developmental defects of enamel (DDE) are raising questions about the continued utility of traditional macroscopic methods; however, the new techniques are not appropriate for use on living populations. This study, using methodology suitable for noninvasive use on living populations, compares assignment of defect timing using a histologically informed macroscopic method (HIMM) versus traditional methodology (TM). For this Southern African population, TM estimates later median age of DDE occurrence than HIMM (Z-score: -13.565, P < 0.000) and modal age is 1 year earlier. HIMM allows for continued collection of DDE in living populations with the added benefit of more precise timing of enamel development. Accuracy for estimating general stressors during childhood is necessary for construction of diachronic analyses.

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