Forager-Traders in South and Southeast Asia Long-Term Histories [Hardcover]

A unique re-assessment of forager-trader groups within the complex historical worlds of South and Southeast Asia.Specialised forager-traders have lived alongside and in exchange relationships with agriculturalists for many thousands of years in South and Southeast Asia. The book offers a series of representative case-studies, and will be of particular interest in light of a current debate about the extent to which historical foraging populations must be understood as specialised adaptations to a complex economically diverse environment rather than as a throw-back to a Palaeolithic way of life.Specialised forager-traders have lived alongside and in exchange relationships with agriculturalists for many thousands of years in South and Southeast Asia. The book offers a series of representative case-studies, and will be of particular interest in light of a current debate about the extent to which historical foraging populations must be understood as specialised adaptations to a complex economically diverse environment rather than as a throw-back to a Palaeolithic way of life.Specialized forager-traders have lived alongside and in exchange relationships with agriculturalists for many thousands of years in South and Southeast Asia. Here is a series of representative case-studies that pertain to a current archaeological debate. The issue concerns the extent to which historical foraging populations are to be understood as specialized adaptations to a complex economically diverse environment, rather than as throw-backs to a Paleolithic way of life.1. Historicizing adaptation, adapting to history: forager-traders in South and Southeast Asia Kathleen D. Morrison; 2. Introduction Kathleen D. Morrison; 3. Hunting and gathering strategies in prehistoric India: a bio-cultural perspective on trade and subsistence John R. Lukacs; 4. Harappans and hunters: economic interaction and specialization in prehistoric India Gregory L. Possehl; 5. Gender and social organization in the relilCZ