book chapter

The Aleutian and Commander islands and their inhabitants

Wistar Institute of Anatomy and Biology • Philadelphia • Published In 1945 • Pages:

By: Hrdlicka, Ales.

Abstract

This is the author's final work on the Aleut resulting from his archaeological research in the Aleutian Islands in 1937. His survey of the early Aleut includes excerpts from early sources, conclusions from material specimens excavated, and anthropometric analysis of skeletal remains found. On the basis of his archaeological and anthropometric research, he infers the existence of a pre-Aleut population. This conclusion was not reached by Jochelson in his research (see 10: Jochelson) and Quimby disagrees with Hrdlicka's conclusions and postulates a gradual change (see 30: Quimby). No attempt was made to evaluate the validity of Hrdlicka's theory for the Files. Excerpts from early sources were omitted if the early sources themselves are included in this collection. Only a small portion of the author's field journals, kept on both his 1936 and 1937 expeditions, was excerpted since they deal primarily with the author's own experiences. The anthropometric data, either the descriptive or tabular presentation of results was excerpted but not both. Material of primarily archaeological interest and lists of specimens obtained were not included. Finally, it should be noted that the analysis of the clothing, mats, baskets, and cordage excavated on Kagamil Island (Appendix I, pp. 589-608) was made by Miss O. Settles, Professor of Textiles, Iowa State College.

HRAF PubDate

2007

Region

North America

Sub Region

Arctic and Subarctic

Document Type

book chapter

Evaluation

Creator Type

Archaeologist

Document Rating

3: Good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent

Analyst

Leila S. Small ; 1950-1956

Field Date

1936-1938

Coverage Date

1781-1938

Coverage Place

Aleutian Islands, Alaska, United States

Notes

[by] Ales Hrdlicka …

This document consists of excerpts

Includes bibliographical references (p. 619-624)

The work is based on a variety of sources, including archeology, historical ethnography, anthropmetry, and the author's own observations. Few historical or archeological dates are given. Hrdlicka postulates the existence of a pre-Aleut, living up until Russian contact. However, the case for a pre-Aleut population is now questioned (see Laughlin, document 24.) Evidence points to two contemporaneous sub-populations of Aleut, an eastern and western group. (I.S. 2005)

LCCN

45003639

LCSH

Aleuts