Bioarchaeological approaches to physical activity and lifestyle among Pre-Hispanic populations from central Argentina (late Holocene)

SALEGA, SOLEDAD

Reno (Nevada) y online

Congreso; 92nd Annual Meeting of the American Association of Biological Anthropologists; 2023

American Association of Biological Anthropologists

The aim of this work is to analyze the frequency of entheseal changes (EC) among Pre-Hispanic populations from central Argentina during the late Holocene period (2500-500 BP), and to evaluate their relationship with physical activity and lifestyle. EC were recorded in the upper and lower limbs of 90 male and female adult individuals from archaeological sites located in the Hills (n=47) and Plains (n=43) regions in the province of Córdoba. Fourteen fibrous and nineteen fibrocartilaginous entheses were scored with two different methods. Frequencies of bone changes were analyzed in each enthesis and in six functional complexes. Results showed higher prevalences of EC among older, male individuals. But when regions are considered, individuals from the Plains showed more EC frequencies since younger ages, and female individuals showed higher prevalences for the entheses of the upper limbs. Sex, age and geographical origin accounted for low percentages of variation in EC, and the strength of association between EC and significant variables was moderate to low. These results suggest the interaction of physical activity with biological characteristics of the analyzed individuals, and can be related to differences in lifestyle of the two regions considered, with a higher mobility and dependency on hunting and gathering activities in the Plains region, within an overall mixed subsistence strategy that incorporated cultivated crops.