The Early Bronze Age in Western Anatolia is known to have been a period of emerging social differentiation and socioeconomic changes. Despite the extensive research addressing the communities and experiences of individuals in Early Bronze Age Anatolia and the recent increase in childhood bioarchaeological research, limited research investigating the lived experiences of the juveniles of this region. This thesis aims to address two main objectives: firstly, to investigate how the lived experiences of juveniles were affected by increasing and changing social differentiation, and secondly, to interpret the lived kinship structure of juveniles at Early Bronze Age Karataş-Semayük. Emerging social differentiation in Early Bronze Age Anatolia may have led to increased stress in the communities that occupied this space and time. Stress is embodied in skeletal remains and in the archaeological record and can be interpreted in studies of kinship and lived experience. Previous research from Karataş-Semayük has suggested a social kinship in mortuary practice, but no research had previously been conducted on the lived kinship structure. Dental stress indicators, namely dental fluctuating asymmetry and linear enamel hypoplasia, were utilized to interpret the lived experiences of juveniles at the site. This data was synthesized with previous biodistance data, including dental metric and morphological data, to assess biological similarity in shared lived experiences. Results suggest that stress did not increase temporally at Karataş-Semayük despite changing and emerging social differentiation. Linear enamel hypoplasia and dental fluctuating asymmetry did not significant increase in frequency or severity between the periods of occupation at the site. Biodistance analysis and stress indicator analysis found no clustering of stress indicators according to either biological similarity or burial location, supporting the idea that Karataş-Semayük followed a social kinship in life as well as in death. The results from this research contribute to the existing body of knowledge about the lived experiences of juveniles in the archaeological record. The inhabitants of Karataş appeared to have experienced similar lived experiences according to embodiments of stress and so it is possible that the effects of social differentiation at the site were dampened by assimilation and affiliation practices used by the members of the community. Despite increasing social differentiation and the assumed associated stresses, the inhabitants of Karataş seemed to have had measures in place to buffer outside stressors.

The purpose of this thesis is to determine if there are spatial patterns in the ritual activities observed at the acropolis of Río Viejo, the political seat of the late Terminal Formative-period polity in the lower Río Verde valley of Oaxaca, Mexico. Using the 2012 and 2013 excavation reports and field notes, a GIS database was created to document the three-dimensional position of materials related to ritual activity at the acropolis. Contextualizing Río Viejo's public rituals within the broader region of the lower Río Verde valley grants the opportunity to assess if the patterns observed at the acropolis demonstrate ties to outlying communities or if distinct rituals were conducted as collective, regional-scale activities. To this end, four different ritual activities that were observed at outlying sites in the lower Río Verde valley are discussed in the context of the acropolis: ritual caches and offerings, communal labor practices, inhumations, and communal feasting. This thesis concluded that certain ritual activities at Río Viejo's acropolis, like food preparation, appear to be concentrated in a single area of the acropolis while other ritual activities, like offerings, appear to be scattered across the acropolis. This thesis also found that the ritual activities at the acropolis appear to differ from those found at other sites in the lower Río Verde valley.

In Brazil, the largest escaped slave community in the Americas incorporated multiple settlements into a united federation. This was Palmares, named for the palm forests where community members sheltered in the Captaincy of Pernambuco. Encompassing nine individual villages at its height in the mid-1600s, only one known settlement has been extensively studied by archaeologists. The remaining eight have not been definitively located. Through historiography, spatial analysis, and remote sensing techniques, the locations of the eight unknown sites of Palmares may be estimated using geographic information science. Introducing spatial analysis into the current body of Palmares literature offers new insights and further assists in the archaeological study of subaltern agency and communities. Incorporating qualitative historical and archaeological documentation into quantitative geographic research methods illuminates the potential for integrative archaeological work to impact the study of escaped slave communities.

This thesis creates a ceramic chronology for the site of Vista Alegre, a Middle Preclassic-Postclassic Maya port site on the northern coast of Quintana Roo, Mexico. As a member of the Proyecto Costa Escondida (PCE), I analyzed a sample of ceramic material (14,326 sherds) from three off-structure test units and their extensions (Pozos 8, 8A, 10, 12, 12A, and 12B). I completed "type: variety-mode" identification for 13,114 identifiable sherds with the help of the PCE and the Yucatán INAH ceramoteca facility, and I found a total of 101 established ceramic types and varieties, and twenty-five "specials" for which only the ceramic group can be determined. With this data and the PCE's previous working chronologies, I developed a ceramic sequence of six ceramic complexes to delineate Vista Alegre's site history. This thesis also establishes a new "Crema Inciso" variety for the Cetelac ceramic group and adds a tecomate vessel form (restricted-orifice neckless jar) for two other types. The findings here organize the ceramic data into a standardized, usable format and establish a chronology to reference and revise. Because a ceramic chronology is a tool, I demonstrate its utility by contributing to two ongoing research questions for the PCE: fluctuation in population levels at Vista Alegre compared to larger regional patterns; and the number of potential water storage vessels at the site over time as related to sea level rise and freshwater access. This ceramic sequencing project adds data to the site history of Vista Alegre, establishes a system of modern and more representative ceramic complexes with room to grow, and addresses a gap in scholarship on Maya maritime settlement in this area. The trading reach of Vista Alegre was wide, varied, and long-term, and its ceramic materials continue to inform us about its persistence and influence over the last 2,000 years.

The Indigenous people of Florida terraformed the region's relatively flat landscape into monumental vantage points for residence, burial, and displays of regional power. Known as mound structures today, these long-abandoned sites are now obscured by dense vegetation and thick tree canopies making their rediscovery difficult. Using Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) technology these lost sites can be located remotely for protection and study. In this research, LiDAR is used to locate Indigenous mound sites along the St. Johns River within the Ocala National Forest. Using free an open source geographic information systems (GIS) and similar software, LiDAR point cloud data is processed and visualized into digital elevation models (DEMs). This supports manual feature extraction (MFE) in service of locating potential sites. MFE is the identification of features by visual interpretation (Quintas et. al. 2017:364). This form of desktop survey reduces physical labor requirements with traditional methods of site location (e.g., field survey) by providing exact location data of possible sites prior to fieldwork. The central purpose of this project is the identification of Indigenous mound sites within the project study area for the purposes of identification, verification, and protection. This includes identifying previously unrecorded and documented sites in order to validate the usefulness of manual feature extraction of potential features and sites from LiDAR data within the densely vegetative area of interest. The project successfully identified two previously unknown sites and provided critical information for updating information associated with an additional four known mound sites. All data contributed to new or updated archaeological records with the Florida Master Site File and the US Forest Service database. This research took place during 2020 and 2021, and all University of Central Florida and federal policies and guidelines associated with COVID were followed.

This thesis applies a new methodology to dietary reconstructions of a unique population excavated from Kellis 2, a Romano-Christian era (c.50-450 AD) cemetery located in the ancient city of Kellis, Dakhleh Oasis, Egypt. Previously, stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses were conducted on bulk hair keratin from 216 individuals to examine their dietary practices and health status. Although this research identified the presence of specific dietary choices in the community, the researchers were not able to determine what fraction of the diet was composed of those resources. This is the first such study to use a priori dietary reconstruction data in combination with the Bayesian mixing-model Food Reconstruction Using Isotopic Transfer Signals (FRUITS) to quantify the contributions various food groups make to a diet of age groups within this community. Combining paleodiet stable isotope analysis with FRUITS modeling provides an opportunity to predict and evaluate percentages of food groups consumed in previously identified dietary and social practices, such as weaning, and dietary dynamics between adult males and females and during aging. When C3 plants, C4 plants and protein sources were evaluated, FRUITS modeling confirmed that juvenile weaning began around 6 months of age at which time the addition of herbivore dairy and cereal grains were added to their diet. Younger aged adults (~15-35 years) ate a common omnivorous diet with no discernable differences between males and females, while elderly individuals (+50 years) appear to transition to a diet with greater emphasis on protein. The use of FRUITS modeling in this study has added greater clarity to previously identified food practices at Kellis 2 and demonstrated the applicability of this method on archaeological samples when investigating food group quantification and dynamics of diet resources within an ancient community.

Exploring dietary choices during life and status after death provides information about status and identity within an evolving and expanding Christian community. Through a combination of multi-isotopic analyses (carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, strontium), GIS mapping, and historical evidence, the life story of Medieval French Christians, buried in the elite cemetery of Saint-Jean de Todon (9th – 13th century) (n = 192) and lower-status cemetery of Saint-Victor-la-Coste (9th – 13th century) (n = 21), can be elucidated. Dietary differences were found between the two cemetery populations using carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis from bone collagen. Incorporating archaeological evidence with isotopic data, a hierarchy within the Saint-Jean group was also discovered. Using tooth dentin collagen from permanent molars, carbon and nitrogen isotopes were employed to investigate childhood diet between the two cemetery groups. It was found that non-adults from both groups ate similar foods during childhood, but a closer look at childhood to adulthood diet found a dietary shift occurred after the age of 20. This coincides at the time males were following the rule on fasts, substituting meat for freshwater fish for approximately half the year, and working their way up through the church. Tooth enamel apatite is used to investigate region of origin and mobility patterns through oxygen and strontium isotopes. Data indicated most individuals originate from within France, moving to the Rhône River corridor after childhood. Some individuals (n = 11) show evidence of migrating to France from Spain and North Africa. Research suggests that burials at the Saint-Jean de Todon cemetery belong to priests and monks and their families, as well as founding families and others who provided gifts or extra services to the church to be buried there. These data from this research explores the impact of Christianity on diet, mobility, and social status during the Medieval period in rural southern France.

Mobility is an important, multifaceted process involving complex interactions of culture, politics, and economics while also intersecting with individual identities, like religion, status, gender, and age. As such, a multitude of people from different origins can comprise a settlement or a community, which may be detectable through biogeochemical assessment. This study employs stable oxygen and carbon isotopic analysis to evaluate evidence for residential mobility within the early to late Medieval Kilroot cemetery (c. 6th to 16th centuries A.D.) at County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The site is 2.8 miles (4.5 kilometers) east of Carrickfergus Castle and the surrounding town, which was an Anglo-Norman stronghold, and its presence may have influenced mobility in its hinterland. A total of 33 individuals were sampled to examine the bone apatite (later life) homogeneity in δ18O and δ13C stable isotope compositions of the Medieval community as well as variation between sex and age groups. This research revealed no statistically significant differences between males and females, adults and subadults for δ18O and δ13C ratios, indicating that there was no gender or age preference when it came to residential mobility. By the narrow variation and isotopic homogeneity, the research shows that the Medieval Kilroot cemetery only comprised those considered local, regardless of sex or age. This suggests there was no distinguishable mobility within the region and the cemetery only included those from surrounding areas, which may imply preference for local residents around the Belfast Lough. Such homogeneity is consistent with the restricted nature of Irish tuatha (petty kingdoms or chiefdoms) described in historical documents, with Medieval individuals living, dying, and ultimately being buried around the area of Kilroot. These results provide a meaningful contribution to the growing literature for Medieval Irish movement and isotopic variation, presenting salient insights to mobility and community expectations for the time period.

In 2013 structural assessments associated with ongoing renovations of the Red House, Trinidad and Tobago's Parliament building, revealed human remains buried beneath the foundation. Excavations and radiocarbon dating indicate the remains are pre-Columbian with 14C dates ranging between approximately AD 125 and AD 1395. Due to the small overall sample size and the inability to attribute all individuals to a specific Amerindian period, the skeletal sample was considered as an aggregate. A bioarchaeological assessment of excavated graves and associated human skeletal material was conducted to determine the demographic profile and the pathological conditions exhibited by the collective skeletal 'population.' Osteological analyses included determining the minimum number of individuals (MNI), assessing the biological profile (e.g. sex, age, ancestry and stature), evaluating pathological conditions, antemortem and perimortem trauma and describing the overall taphonomic modifications. In addition, dental wear patterns, artificial cranial modifications and musculoskeletal stress markers were noted. Finally, the mortuary treatment and context was compared to the limited information published on contemporary skeletal samples from islands in the Lesser Antilles and nearby coastal regions of South America. The sample consisted of an MNI of 60 individuals including 47 adults and 13 juveniles. The skeletal completeness of these individuals ranged from a single skeletal element to more than 90% complete. Sex assessment was possible for 23 individuals with 11 females (23%) and 17 males (35%). Multiple antemortem conditions indicate a total of 35 individuals (58%) who exhibited one or more pathological condition including dental pathology (e.g. LEHs, carious lesions, antemortem tooth loss, dental wear, abscesses and a possible apical cyst), healed antemortem trauma, non-specific generalized infections, osteoarthritis, spinal osteophystosis and Schmorl's nodes. Additional antemortem conditions include examples of artificial cranial modification in both sexes, and activity related humeral bilateral asymmetry. While not a representative population, the reconstruction of health, lifestyle and disease for these ancient peoples makes a significant contribution to the limited osteological research published on the Caribbean's pre-contact period.

Social organization influences individual well-being and overall community health, which may lead to health disparities that manifest in teeth. The research in this thesis explores social variability by analyzing patterns in dental disease at the archaeological site of Kuelap in Chachapoyas, Peru. The ancient Chachapoya (AD 900-1535) were a complex society but the nature of that complexity is not well understood based on traditional archaeological correlates. Since burials at Kuelap lack grave goods that are often used to discriminate variation in social status or identity, bioarchaeological dental proxies were tested. The dental remains of 106 individuals (7 subadults, 54 adult males, and 46 adult females) from five different types of mortuary contexts were analyzed using a two stage methodological approach. Three pathological indicators (caries, antemortem tooth loss, and calculus) were examined to explore cultural influences of diet and the external environment on human biology. While no significant differences exist in any of the conditions among individuals from five diverse mortuary contexts, there were statistically significant differences between males and females. These results indicate that there was a lack of explicit health disparities and hierarchical ranking (social inequality) at Kuelap. Instead, bioarchaeological analysis suggests that there is social variability with gendered differences in oral health. This thesis presents the first analysis of dental pathology from Kuelap and furthers knowledge of ancient dental health patterns and social variability in both the Chachapoya and larger Andean region. Overall, this research broadens anthropological understanding of the interconnectedness among health, social variability and complexity in ancient societies.