Engendering Northern Plains Paleoindian Archaeology: Decision-making and gender roles in subsistence and settlement strategies

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In North American Plains Prehistory, the term Paleoindian conjures up images of big game mammoth and bison hunters. Moreover, the focus on typology, systems analysis, adaptation, and the environment in Plains research, combined with the assumption that gender is an irrelevant and static aspect of culture, has resulted in a mechanistic and de-humanized view of Paleoindian life, relying upon questionable assumptions about gender relations in hunting-gathering societies. Increasing archaeological evidence is questioning traditional models that assume the centrality of big game hunting, and ethnographic and anthropological studies have demonstrated that many hunting-gathering societies are characterized by flexible, overlapping gender roles. Northern Plains Paleoindian populations were likely characterized by interdependency and complementarity in gender roles, with an emphasis on flexibility and fluidity. Examining subsistence and settlement strategies from the perspective of gender, information acquisition, and decision-making can be an important first step for restoring balance to our conception of the Paleoindian past.