A Phylogenetic Approach to Analyzing Lithic Stone Tool Morphology in Southern British Columbia

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

As one of the most significant hydrological systems in British Columbia, the Fraser River drainage basin holds socio-cultural and economic significance both presently and in the past. Archaeologically, sites located within the vicinity of the Fraser River exhibit evidence of extensive trade and social networks between cultural groups from as far north as present-day Prince George where the river flows south through the center of the province before eventually reaching the present-day coastline of Vancouver. Can the history of lithic technological variation along this route be detected using a phylogenetic analysis? Given the abundance of archaeological evidence for trade and social networks in this area, a macroevolutionary approach to understanding artifact assemblages should give indication of the timing and process of cultural transmissions. Using phylogenetic methods, this study will test three hypotheses regarding the evolutionary history of tool morphologies in consideration of the geographic distribution of sites and the timing and nature of stylistic changes along the southern portion of the Fraser River watershed.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts   •
• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 40205.0