Understanding hunter–gatherer cultural evolution needs network thinking

Pablo, Javier Fernández‐López de; Romano, Valéria; Derex, Maxime; Gjesfjeld, Erik; Gravel-Miguel, Claudine; Hamilton, Marcus J.; Migliano, Andrea Bamberg; Riede, Felix; Lozano, Sergi

doi:10.1016/j.tree.2022.04.007

Cited by 10 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…An important argument in favour of such hypothesis, is the geographic distribution of Mesolithic sites reported during our TS1 and the fact that a significant number of them show trapeze assemblages during the TS2. New studies adopting a social network approach can be used to test such a hypothesis (Lozano et al 2020; Romano et al 2021; Fernández-López de Pablo et al 2022). Other suite of novel statistical techniques such as Bayesian Computation Analysis (Cortell-Nicolau et al 2021) and Bayesian hierarchical Gaussian Process Quantum Regression can equally shed light on the spatio-temporal patterns by comparing different origin points, diffusion mechanisms, dispersal routes and diffusion rates (Crema et al 2022).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatiotemporal Patterns on the Appearance of the First Trapeze Industries in the Late Mesolithic of the Iberian Peninsula

Gómez-Puche,

Fernández-López de Pablo

2024

Radiocarbon

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The spread of trapeze industries (the creation of trapeze-shaped flint tips) during Late Mesolithic is one of the most disruptive phenomena of technological change documented in the European Prehistory. Understanding the chronological patterns of this process requires (i) a critical evaluation of stratigraphic relationship between trapeze assemblages and radiocarbon samples, and (ii) considering different levels of chronological uncertainty according to the inbuilt age of the samples and the calibration process. In this paper, we critically evaluate and analyze the radiocarbon record of the first trapeze industries in the Iberian Peninsula. A dataset of 181 radiocarbon dates from 67 sites dated to 8800–8200 cal BP was collected and evaluated following a strict data quality control protocol, from which 135 dates of 53 sites were retained and classified according to a reliability index. Then, three different phase Bayesian chronological models were created to estimate the duration of the first spread of trapezes across Iberia, considering different levels of chrono-stratigraphic resolution. We find that trapeze industries appeared in the eastern half of Iberia, over an area of 330,000 km2 between 8505–8390 and 8425–8338 cal BP, spanning 0–85 yr (95.4% CI). When the oldest evidence of trapezes from Portugal are considered, the probability distribution expands (8943–8457 and 8686–7688 cal BP), due to the chronological uncertainty of human samples with marine diet and regional ΔR values applied. For the eastern half of Iberia, the current evidence indicates a very rapid spread of trapeze industries initiated in the Central-Western Pyrenees, suggesting cultural diffusion within Mesolithic social networks as the main driving mechanism.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatiotemporal Patterns on the Appearance of the First Trapeze Industries in the Late Mesolithic of the Iberian Peninsula

Gómez-Puche,

Fernández-López de Pablo

2024

Radiocarbon

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“…New studies adopting a social network approach to analyse cultural transmission processes in hunter-gatherers' socio-spatial structures can be used to test such a hypothesis (Lozano et al 2020;Romano et al 2021;Fernández-López de Pablo et al 2022a).…”

Section: -Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatiotemporal patterns on the appearance of the first trapezes industries in the Late Mesolithic of the Iberian Peninsula

Gómez‐Puche¹,

Pablo²

2022

Preprint

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The first appearance and subsequent spread of trapeze industries in Western Europe has been recurrently addressed in connection to Neolithization processes and grounded in techno-typological analysis focused on the opposition between two technological systems. However, the precise chronology of its onset as well as the underlaying mechanism of their diffusion remains as an open question. Comprehensive previous works have systematized the archaeological information and radiocarbon dates available, demonstrating the speed of the process. In this paper, we critically evaluate and analyze the lithic assemblages and radiocarbon record of the Iberian Peninsula to identify the spatiotemporal pattern of the appearance of Late Mesolithic blade and trapeze lithic industries. We find that trapezes industries appeared in the Iberian archaeological record in between 8600-8400 cal BP, spreading from the Western Pyrenees, following a northeast-southwest geographic gradient, to subsequently reach Central Portugal at c.8300 cal BP. The high diffusion rates for this dispersal process advocates for the hypothesis of social diffusion of technologies within Mesolithic socio-spatial structures as the main driving mechanism.

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“…In our view, these stances are not mutually exclusive. Generally, human social systems seem to self-organize in hierarchical, self-similar structures over successive scale levels, probably as the result of an evolutionary process optimizing acquisition and redistribution of energy and information (Zhou et al, 2005;Hamilton et al, 2007;Fernández-López de Pablo et al 2022). This process results in a sequence of ever-larger social units, which are both discrete and flexible with regard to group membership (Hamilton et al, 2007).…”

Section: Spatial Social and Taxonomic Scale Levelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the following, social connectedness therefore refers to groups rather than individuals, particularly at scale levels larger than the regional scale. These groups-or networks (Fernández-López de Pablo et al, 2022)-are understood as having different spatial extents and their organizational structure, or contact pattern, probably likewise varies with scale.…”

Section: Spatial Social and Taxonomic Scale Levelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this case, the network will probably resemble so-called small-word networks (Milgram 1967;Watts & Strogatz, 1998;Bentley & Maschner, 2008), where most individuals live in a regional social context and few far-travelling individuals provide long-distance contacts and thus controlling the flow of information throughout the entire network. Depending on size, such small-world networks will probably range from a close-meshed structure, where adjacent clusters are connected to one another, to a more extended form, where some clusters distant from one another have no direct contact but are connected via intermediate clusters (Fernández-López de Pablo et al, 2022). It can be assumed, that such indirect contacts become more numerous with increasing levels of scale.…”

Section: Spatial Social and Taxonomic Scale Levelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Transport Patterns as Heuristic Testing Variables for the Social Coherence of Taxonomic Units at Different Spatial Scales

2022

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Taxonomic units in archaeology strongly convey the assumption of a social connection between the people having left the sites attributed to these units. The (implicit) assumption is that people whose sites are attributed to the same unit had closer social relations among one another than they had to people whose sites are attributed to other taxonomic units, and that such social proximity is reflected in similarities in their material culture. It is often difficult to be sure about the processes behind the emergence of similarities and dissimilarities. Therefore, taxonomic units relying on this criterion require additional testing in order to be meaningful components of studies on social relations. Dynamic objects, whose location of origin is known in addition to their place of discard, provide means for such testing, because they reflect the movement or contact patterns of people, potentially providing information on social boundaries or links on different spatial scales. Social coherence—the degree of connectedness between the people having left the sites attributed to these units—is sensitive to phenomena of spatial and temporal scale. However, there is no coherent terminology that would match scale levels of taxonomic units to those of social units. This paper proposes a hierarchical systematics for taxonomic units and their social equivalents applicable to both hunter-(fisher-)gatherer and farming societies to facilitate discussions on this topic. Based on this systematics, we propose an approach to test the coherence of taxonomic units regarding different social scale levels based on transport patterns of dynamic objects. Knowledge on the mode of acquisition (direct/embedded procurement, exchange, trade) of the dynamic objects is not a prerequisite. Three case studies from the Late Upper Paleolithic in Central Europe, the Late Paleolithic in Bavaria, and the Early Neolithic in Norway will be discussed to evaluate the potential and limits of the approach.

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Understanding hunter–gatherer cultural evolution needs network thinking

Cited by 10 publications

References 14 publications

Spatiotemporal Patterns on the Appearance of the First Trapeze Industries in the Late Mesolithic of the Iberian Peninsula

Spatiotemporal Patterns on the Appearance of the First Trapeze Industries in the Late Mesolithic of the Iberian Peninsula

Spatiotemporal patterns on the appearance of the first trapezes industries in the Late Mesolithic of the Iberian Peninsula

Transport Patterns as Heuristic Testing Variables for the Social Coherence of Taxonomic Units at Different Spatial Scales

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