Abstract
Our discussion of the relationships between past peoples and the animals around them tends to be constrained by the dichotomy between species that we regard as ‘domesticated’, and those that we call ‘wild’. This simple distinction obscures the existence of another group, namely those species that actively choose to share human living space, whether we invite them or not. These commensal species gain shelter, food and reduction of competition, whilst we may regard them as companion animals, vermin or just part of the domestic landscape. A period of synanthropic commensalism may have preceded domestication in some species (cats, cavies), and some commensals will have been significant players in the food webs of human settlements (corvids, murids). Above all, perhaps, these are species that were an everyday part of peoples’ lives in the past.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Anthropological Approaches to Zooarchaeology |
| Subtitle of host publication | Complexity, Colonialism and Animal Transformations |
| Editors | Doug Camapana, Pam Crabtree, Susan De France, Justin Lev Tov, Alice Choyke |
| Place of Publication | Oxford |
| Publisher | Oxbow Books |
| Pages | 270-274 |
| Number of pages | 5 |
| ISBN (Print) | 978-1-84217-390-9 |
| Publication status | Published - 2010 |
Keywords
- zooarchaeology
- commensal
- domestication