Interactions and Social Change in California: A Perspective from the Far West

Summary

People in California have interacted with groups near and far for thousands of years. Here we take a big picture approach by looking at how interactions between people across time and space affect the histories of adjunct regions. In this paper, we first establish connections between people in California to the Northwest, Southwest, Mexico, and afar to demonstrate the scale of meaningful interactions. Second, by considering wide-ranging and long-term interactions, we better explain the agency and structure of the relationships forged between diverse people. These relationships are not static; they have been negotiated, redefined, and sometimes have been dissolved. Using archaeological and ethnographic data, we more closely examine the rise and demise of some of these relationships. Finally, we apply large-scale and long-term perspectives to address social change and issues of structural instability today.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• The North American Continental System: Interaction and Exchange across the Continent   •
• Society for American Archaeology 82nd Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC (2017)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 16782