The rise of reindeer pastoralism in Northern Eurasia: human and animal motivations entangled

Abstract

Abstract en Explanatory models of how domestic animals entered human societies often focus on human choices and overlook the role of animal agency in this process. After discussing the dichotomy between nature and society in these models and in anthropology, this article examines the respective roles of animal and human motivations and agencies in the advent of reindeer pastoralism in the Eurasian Arctic. Based on recent multidisciplinary approaches, it hypothesizes an intensification process whereby reciprocal adaptations by reindeer and people gave rise to new hybrid herding socialities. It proposes a holist interpretation that takes account of the triadic nature of the ‘pastoral niche’, characterized by an interaction between humans, animals, and the landscape.