Population and prehistory : the late phase on Aneityum

Abstract

The documentary evidence available about Aneityum - the southernmost island of the New Hebrides - and its people soon after continuing European contact provides a unique opportunity for an exploration of the likely relationships between archaeological evidence and the populations which created that evidence. This case study examines the documentary and archaeological records for the Aneityumese in the late phase of their prehistory; and the demographic record - such as it is - for the ensuing half-century highlights the problems of inference which might be encountered in attempts to translate an inanimate archaeological record into people long dead. As the title suggests, the emphasis is on population, partly because the archaeological evidence is limited (though no more so than on many islands of the Pacific), partly because this is one of the few well-attested examples of a diminishing population. The probable causes of its diminution are discussed, as are its archaeological implications. The concluding chapter reflects more broadly on the difficulties inherent in the interpretation of both archaeological and some historical evidence in terms of populations, and outlines the kind of procedure that must be followed if the estimation of population is to be an objective of an archaeological investigation. Show more