The Adoption of Agriculture in the Tehuacan Valley, Mexico: Stable Isotope Data for 10,000 Years of Environmental and Dietary Change

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Subsistence Crops and Animals as a Proxy for Human Cultural Practice" session, at the 88th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

An enduring focus in anthropological research concerns the causes for adoption of agriculture in multiple regions across the globe near the onset of the Holocene. The Tehuacan Valley of Puebla, Mexico, represents a unique location to explore long-term trends of human-plant coevolution as the dry climate of the valley has resulted in preservation of organic materials dating from the late Pleistocene through the Holocene. To explore the notion that environmental changes stimulated the adoption of agriculture, we use stable isotope analysis of human and animal bones that span a 10,000-year period. The study includes 37 human samples and 200 faunal bone remains, including 20 dogs (Canis familiaris), 79 white-tail deer (Odocoileus virginianus), and 101 lagomorphs (Sylvilagus spp. and Lepus spp.). The human data reflect dietary patterns over time while the faunal data reflect environmental conditions. Results demonstrate significant environmental changes from the Pleistocene to the Holocene, but also significant environmental changes within the Holocene. Maize consumption by both humans and dogs increased from the Ajalpan (~1500–900 BC) to Venta Salada (AD 700–1500) phases, but little evidence exists for regular maize consumption prior to this time. Results are situated within local and global discussions on the development of agricultural economies.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Subsistence Crops and Animals as a Proxy for Human Cultural Practice   •
• Society for American Archaeology 88th Annual Meeting, Portland, OR (2023)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 37432.0