Networks and Cultural Transmission in Hunter-Gatherer Societies

Abstract

Abstract In this chapter we examine current research on networks and cultural transmission in modern, historic, and prehistoric hunter-gatherer societies. Understanding networks in hunter-gatherer societies is important because hunting and gathering has been the socioeconomic framework for the vast majority of human evolutionary history. A better understanding of the structure and function of social networks in hunting and gathering societies has the potential to shed light on the evolution of human social organization. Our discussion of the structure and function of networks in hunter-gatherer societies uses studies of contemporary hunter-gatherers, ethnohistorical data, and ethnoarchaeological observations to frame inferences about prehistoric societies observable only in the archaeological record. We summarize recent work with contemporary hunter-gatherers that shows how large-scale networks link both unrelated and related individuals, optimizing flows of energy, material, and information. Next, we describe ethnohistorical and ethnoarchaeological studies of hunter-gatherers that link observations of the structure of modern hunter-gatherer societies to the archaeological record. Lastly, we examine case studies of Paleoindian hunter-gatherers from late Pleistocene North America. These studies focus on macro-scale cultural transmission in the deep past to show how network theory plays a fundamental role in understanding how low-density, sparsely populated groups adapted to the novel environmental conditions of the New World. We suggest that future research in hunter-gatherer studies should focus on the diversity of network structures across societies, especially in sedentary hunter-gatherer societies, and with the introduction of agricultural economies.