anthropolgy

Essay by 100198890University, Bachelor'sA+, March 2014

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ISQ #1: What type of society and culture did the fist ancestors have?

Stephanie Clement-100198890

The first ancestors society is ethnographically classified as Affluent Foragers,but they would have been more characteristic of Generalized Hunters and Gatherers. Upon first arriving to the Northwest Coast between 12,000 to 16,000 years ago the first ancestors would have consisted of highly mobile groups of opportunistic foragers which carried all of their belongings with them. To determine the type of society and culture of the first ancestors we must define what a Generalized Hunters and Gatherers society consists of. What type of economy was present, what was the society of opportunistic foragers, and what was the political structure and social organization.

The defining features of the Generalized Hunters and Gatherers society is the way they exploit their resources, their mobility and non permanent lifestyles. The Generalized Hun ters and Gatherers harvest what is available in their environment whenever it is available consuming their food as they harvest it.

As Ames states, " Archaic peoples on the coast were most likely foragers with low population densities who were very mobile, shifting residences to available resources and not reliant on storage." (23) Using this method they were able to exploit their resources in a way that would provide the greatest return for the least amount of effort. In order to have this simplified way o f life the Generalized Hunters and Gatherers had to of carried their tools with them so the technology used would have been portable, convenient and practical. The diet of the peoples of the Northwest Coast between 12,000 to 16,000 years ago would have hi ghly relied upon their marine environment. According to Mcmillian and Yellowhorn, " Discarded animal bones and shells provide insights into the diet of these early island...