The Caribbean before Columbus
William F. Keegan and Corinne L. Hofman
Abstract
The Caribbean before Columbus is a new synthesis of the region’s insular history on multiple scales: temporal, spatial, local, regional, environmental, social, and political. It combines the results of the authors’ 55 years of archaeological research with that of their colleagues. For the first time the complete histories of the major islands and island groups are elucidated, and new insights are gained through inter-island comparisons. The concepts of series and ages provide structure, but historical names, such as Taíno and Lucayan, are avoided. The authors challenge the conventional wisdom ... More
The Caribbean before Columbus is a new synthesis of the region’s insular history on multiple scales: temporal, spatial, local, regional, environmental, social, and political. It combines the results of the authors’ 55 years of archaeological research with that of their colleagues. For the first time the complete histories of the major islands and island groups are elucidated, and new insights are gained through inter-island comparisons. The concepts of series and ages provide structure, but historical names, such as Taíno and Lucayan, are avoided. The authors challenge the conventional wisdom concerning island colonization, societal organization, interaction and transculturation, and other basic elements of cultural development and change. The emphasis is on elements that unite the Bahamas, Lesser Antilles, and Greater Antilles as a culture area, and also on their divergent pathways. Colonization is presented as a multifaceted wave-like process. Continuing ties to the surrounding mainland are highlighted. Interactions between residents and new colonists are recognized. New solutions are offered to the “Huecoid problem,” the “Carib problem,” the “Taíno problem,” and the evolution of social complexity, especially in Puerto Rico. These solutions required a rethinking of social organization and its expression on the landscape.
Keywords:
Caribbean Islands,
Indigenous inhabitants,
Culture history,
Caribbean archaeology,
Philosophy of archaeology,
European encounters,
Mobility,
Exchange
Bibliographic Information
| Print publication date: 2017 |
Print ISBN-13: 9780190605247 |
| Published to Oxford Scholarship Online: February 2017 |
DOI:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190605247.001.0001 |
Authors
Affiliations are at time of print publication.
William F. Keegan, author
Curator of Caribbean Archaeology, Florida Museum of Natural History
Corinne L. Hofman, author
Professor of Caribbean Archaeology, Leiden University
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