Citation

Velasco‐Vázquez J, Delgado‐Darias T, Alberto‐Barroso V. Int. J. Osteoarchaeol. 2018; 28(4): 388-396.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1002/oa.2662

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The approach to Gran Canaria's pre-Hispanic period has traditionally been dominated by a romantic and propitious view of its indigenous populations advocating a historical evolution on the margin of the conflicts and contradictions common to any society. Yet new data indicate that the ancient Canarians were subject to high rates of internal violence linked to the island's isolation and harsh biogeographical conditions, as well as marked personal differences and a strong hierarchization of the social order. However, the effects of such a degree of violence among the subadult population remain unknown. The study of the assemblage of the victims, particularly the younger members of society, requires a global analysis of the historical conditions to determine whether this violence was exceptional or habitual. The findings of this study point to a prevalence of trauma among subadults (surpassing 20%), thus bolstering the notion of a society with widespread physical violence affecting the whole population or at least that above the age of 5 or 6 years. The data also suggest widespread violence within the framework of interpersonal relationships rather than violence directed specifically against the population's younger sector.

Language: en

Keywords

blunt force trauma; insular context; interpersonal violence; subadult; trauma