David Hurst Thomas and the Guale Problem: Rethinking Late Prehistoric Mobility along the Georgia Sea Islands

Summary

In his research along the Georgia Coast, David Hurst Thomas identified the "Guale problem" as one of the key issues for late prehistoric research in the region. The problem centers on the relative degree of Guale mobility and subsistence during the pre- and postcontact eras. One view is that these were highly mobile, moving seasonally as they exhausted resources. Alternatively, others posit a more sedentary existence where the rich estuarine environment supplemented by maize agriculture supported large relatively stable year-round villages. Here, we provide a retrospective on the contributions that Thomas and colleagues have made in resolving issues related to Guale mobility. As a rejoinder, we explore contemporary research on the issue and provide commentary on what exactly we know and future avenues of inquiry regarding late prehistoric mobility and village life along the Georgia Coast.

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This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)   •
• 2015 Fryxell Award Symposium: Papers in Honor of David Hurst Thomas

Keywords

Spatial Coverage