Matrix Decomposition Model for Investigating Prehistoric Intracemetery Biological Variation

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

26 Scopus citations

Abstract

A matrix decomposition model for analyzing prehistoric intracemetery biological variability is presented. The model, based on the correlation between interindividual biological and burial distance matrices, provides an estimate of the number of distinct burial populations interred within a single cemetery, which effectively ameliorates identifiability problems typical of general variability analyses (Raemsch [1995] Ph.D. dissertation, SUNY at Albany). Unlike other methods for analyzing intrasite variability analysis (e.g., kinship analysis and microchronology), this method is not reliant on a priori subgroup definition. Assuming a kin-structured burial pattern, a residual matrix is defined based on the raw data matrices; the proportion of negative or zero residuals to the total number of residuals provides an estimate of the number of hidden subgroupings (lineages) within the cemetery. The comparative utility of the model is demonstrated on a series of protohistoric and historic period skeletal samples from the Georgia coast, where it demonstrated that the increase in phenotypic variability during the early mission period is the result of population aggregation at the missions and not necessarily genetic admixture between local and nonlocal groups.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)216-231
Number of pages16
JournalAmerican journal of physical anthropology
Volume122
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 2003
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Cemetery structure
  • Florida missions
  • Intracemetery variation

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Anatomy
  • Anthropology

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Matrix Decomposition Model for Investigating Prehistoric Intracemetery Biological Variation'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this