Douglas J. Kennett. 2005. The Island Chumash: Behavioral Ecology of a Maritime Society. University of California Press, Berkeley.
Living in the North Channel Islands
Douglas Kennett's The Island Chumash: Behavioral Ecology of a Maritime Society is a study of the human behavioral ecology (HBE) of the native American occupations of the northern Channel Islands. The Northern Channel Islands are a chain of four islands, San Miguel, Santa Rosita, Santa Cruz, and Anacapa, located twenty miles off the coast from Santa Barbara in Southern California. The islands were colonized some 13,500 years ago, and permanent settlement began some 7500 years ago. For most of that time, the Chumash and their ancestors were hunter-fishers, with an economy based on a diet of fish, shell-fish, and pinnipeds. Over time, the strategies the Chumash used to run their society changed, with changes in climate and the accessibility to certain foods.
Approximately one-third of Kennett's book is dedicated to background: describing his theoretical underpinnings (HBE) and providing a description of the environment. Two chapters detail what the villages of the Chumash were like, when the Spanish landed on their mountainous island homes in 1542.
Approximately one-third of Kennett's book is dedicated to background: describing his theoretical underpinnings (HBE) and providing a description of the environment. Two chapters detail what the villages of the Chumash were like, when the Spanish landed on their mountainous island homes in 1542.
Deep Time and the Chumash
The second one-third of this book is dedicated to the archaeological evidence of the islands, beginning with the Terminal Pleistocene sites of Daisy Cave and Arlington Springs sites, dated to circa 13,500 years ago; and continuing into the Late Holocene fishing communities of the 16th century. The final one-third of The Island Chumash is a synthesis of the book, a substantial reference section, and an index.
Kennett's book is an interesting examination of the way humans adapt to changes in their surroundings, whether self- or nature-induced. Beyond the description of the Channel Island Chumash cultural changes, The Island Chumash is an exercise of how one can apply the methodology of HBE to the changes of cultures over time.
Kennett's book is an interesting examination of the way humans adapt to changes in their surroundings, whether self- or nature-induced. Beyond the description of the Channel Island Chumash cultural changes, The Island Chumash is an exercise of how one can apply the methodology of HBE to the changes of cultures over time.
