Reindeer on the Move: An Introduction to the Archaeology of Animal Movement

Abstract

Human-animal relationships have influenced many aspects of human culture and societies, as the lives of humans and animals were intertwined in past societies. Increasing interest in current archaeology towards human-animal relationships calls for a comprehensive consideration of the role of animal movement in these entanglements. This chapter presents different perspectives on the study of animal movement using reindeer as an example. Animal movement – understood as multi-scalar, encompassing everything between long-distance migrations and transhumance-associated mobility patterns to habitual activity associated with specific behaviors and locomotor patterns – is central in many aspects of human lives, ranging from hunter-gatherer societies following the yearly migrations of their prey to agrarian societies where the rhythms of domesticated animals shaped those of human lives. Ultimately, the archaeology of animal movement must examine the kinds of traces animal movement leaves in the archaeological record; what are the implications for the interpretation of archaeological assemblages; and how does the analysis of animal movements help in our understanding of the lives of humans and animals in past societies. In this chapter we discuss reindeer movements, human-reindeer entanglements and meeting points of people and reindeer. Through these examples, we highlight the range of archaeological issues and methods involved in the analysis of animal activity and mobility, and what implications the analysis of animal movement may have for understanding past human-animal relationships and human societies.