Dental anthropology investigations of behaviour and society in some historic Arctic/Sub-Arctic samples

The thesis is a dental anthropological study of Arctic/Sub-Arctic samples utilising oral environmental health indicators (caries, calculus, periodontal disease), dental wear, craniofacial trauma (CFT), paramasticatory dental activities (PMDA) and cultural identifiers to analyse labour and dietary divisions, and how teeth were used as tools and cultural identifiers. The study was organised ecogeographically, as the mostly historically collected remains meant temporal distinctions were largely impossible, bar being preEuropean contact. Contextualisation utilised ethnohistoric accounts, published bioarchaeological, archaeological and clinical studies, and a PMDA recording method, developed here. A total of 1540 individuals were analysed from Siberia, the Aleutian Islands, Alaska, Canada, and Greenland. Arctic/SubArctic populations have been the focus of ethnohistoric, bioarchaeological, and clinical studies, but misconceptions remain regarding homogeneity. Whilst many cultures extended across the ecogeographic range of Arctic/Sub-Arctic populations, the divergent ecogeographies should result in distinct diet, labour, PMDA, and cultural identification. The oral environmental health indicators show overall, homogenously good oral health but were too infrequent for dietary divisions assessment. Whilst the wear results were similarly non-distinct for the adults for labour divisions, they illustrated the age PMDA began (5.5-10.5-years-old) when analysed in conjunction with the CFT and PMDA results. The younger age (5.5-years-old) coincides with development of adult levels of coordination and balance, and improved musculature control from changes in motor learning abilities. The same type of PMDA was found to continue into adulthood in one sample (West Greenland). Further distinct behaviours were found in another sample (Amaknak Island), as wear is absent in subadults, but extensive wear is present in the adults. The analysis also showed two distinct cultural identification configurations – wearing labrets and ablation – with a demographic distribution and restricted to the Aleutian Islands. Ablation has been reported in these populations, but not accepted by most researchers. The analysis found evidence that females and males had different extraction methods and placements of ablation. In males, teeth were forcefully removed from the socket, with the roots remaining, followed by alveolar bone resorption. The females experienced a less traumatic extraction method, as roots remaining is absent. Evidence of wearing labrets inferior to the labia inferior oris was found. The analysis also found an unreported labret placement, being superior to the labia superior oris. The females and males have different patterns of wearing labrets, with females wearing labrets laterally, and the males wearing one medially, both superior to the labia superior oris. The study provides an immense amount of information on Arctic/Sub-Arctic samples, the homogenous oral health environment, and the distinct PMDA and cultural identifiers.

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