Conceptual issues in hominin taxonomy: <i>Homo heidelbergensis</i> and an ethnobiological reframing of species
<p>Efforts to name and classify Middle Pleistocene <em>Homo</em>, often referred to as “<em>Homo</em> heidelbergensis” are hampered by confusing patterns of morphology but also by conflicting paleoanthropological ideologies that are embedded in approaches to hominin tax...
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2023
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| _version_ | 1864513565152509952 |
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| author | Sheela Athreya (11889800) |
| author2 | Allison Hopkins (14777041) |
| author2_role | author |
| author_facet | Sheela Athreya (11889800) Allison Hopkins (14777041) |
| author_role | author |
| dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv | Sheela Athreya (11889800) Allison Hopkins (14777041) |
| dc.date.none.fl_str_mv | 2023-03-16T06:18:33Z |
| dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv | 10.1002/ajpa.24330 |
| dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv | https://figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/Conceptual_issues_in_hominin_taxonomy__i_Homo_heidelbergensis_i__and_an_ethnobiological_reframing_of_species/22257505 |
| dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv | CC BY 4.0 info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
| dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv | Human society Anthropology Anthropology Anatomy |
| dc.title.none.fl_str_mv | Conceptual issues in hominin taxonomy: <i>Homo heidelbergensis</i> and an ethnobiological reframing of species |
| dc.type.none.fl_str_mv | Text Journal contribution info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion text contribution to journal |
| description | <p>Efforts to name and classify Middle Pleistocene <em>Homo</em>, often referred to as “<em>Homo</em> heidelbergensis” are hampered by confusing patterns of morphology but also by conflicting paleoanthropological ideologies that are embedded in approaches to hominin taxonomy, nomenclature, and the species concept. We deconstruct these issues to show how the field's search for a “real” species relies on strict adherence to pre-Darwinian essentialist naming rules in a post-typological world. We then examine Middle Pleistocene <em>Homo</em> through the framework of ethnobiology, which examines on how Indigenous societies perceive, classify, and name biological organisms. This research reminds us that across human societies, taxonomies function to (1) identify and classify organisms based on consensus pattern recognition and (2) construct a stable nomenclature for effective storage, retrieval and communication of information. Naming Middle Pleistocene <em>Homo</em> as a “real” species cannot be verified with the current data; and separating regional groups into distinct evolutionary lineages creates taxa that are not defined by readily perceptible or universally salient differences. Based on ethnobiological studies of this kind of patterning, referring to these hominins above the level of the species according to their generic category with modifiers (e.g., “European Middle Pleistocene <em>Homo</em>”) is consistent with observed human capabilities for cognitive differentiation, is both necessary and sufficient given the current data, and will allow for the most clear communication across ideologies going forward. </p> <h2>Other Information</h2> <p>Published in: American Journal of Physical Anthropology<br> License: <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" target="_blank">http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/</a><br> See article on publisher's website: <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.24330" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.24330</a></p> |
| eu_rights_str_mv | openAccess |
| id | Manara2_520ab1a9e52ecbc6933fbda4f4cab7de |
| identifier_str_mv | 10.1002/ajpa.24330 |
| network_acronym_str | Manara2 |
| network_name_str | Manara2 |
| oai_identifier_str | oai:figshare.com:article/22257505 |
| publishDate | 2023 |
| repository.mail.fl_str_mv | |
| repository.name.fl_str_mv | |
| repository_id_str | |
| rights_invalid_str_mv | CC BY 4.0 |
| spelling | Conceptual issues in hominin taxonomy: <i>Homo heidelbergensis</i> and an ethnobiological reframing of speciesSheela Athreya (11889800)Allison Hopkins (14777041)Human societyAnthropologyAnthropologyAnatomy<p>Efforts to name and classify Middle Pleistocene <em>Homo</em>, often referred to as “<em>Homo</em> heidelbergensis” are hampered by confusing patterns of morphology but also by conflicting paleoanthropological ideologies that are embedded in approaches to hominin taxonomy, nomenclature, and the species concept. We deconstruct these issues to show how the field's search for a “real” species relies on strict adherence to pre-Darwinian essentialist naming rules in a post-typological world. We then examine Middle Pleistocene <em>Homo</em> through the framework of ethnobiology, which examines on how Indigenous societies perceive, classify, and name biological organisms. This research reminds us that across human societies, taxonomies function to (1) identify and classify organisms based on consensus pattern recognition and (2) construct a stable nomenclature for effective storage, retrieval and communication of information. Naming Middle Pleistocene <em>Homo</em> as a “real” species cannot be verified with the current data; and separating regional groups into distinct evolutionary lineages creates taxa that are not defined by readily perceptible or universally salient differences. Based on ethnobiological studies of this kind of patterning, referring to these hominins above the level of the species according to their generic category with modifiers (e.g., “European Middle Pleistocene <em>Homo</em>”) is consistent with observed human capabilities for cognitive differentiation, is both necessary and sufficient given the current data, and will allow for the most clear communication across ideologies going forward. </p> <h2>Other Information</h2> <p>Published in: American Journal of Physical Anthropology<br> License: <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" target="_blank">http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/</a><br> See article on publisher's website: <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.24330" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.24330</a></p>2023-03-16T06:18:33ZTextJournal contributioninfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersiontextcontribution to journal10.1002/ajpa.24330https://figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/Conceptual_issues_in_hominin_taxonomy__i_Homo_heidelbergensis_i__and_an_ethnobiological_reframing_of_species/22257505CC BY 4.0info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessoai:figshare.com:article/222575052023-03-16T06:18:33Z |
| spellingShingle | Conceptual issues in hominin taxonomy: <i>Homo heidelbergensis</i> and an ethnobiological reframing of species Sheela Athreya (11889800) Human society Anthropology Anthropology Anatomy |
| status_str | publishedVersion |
| title | Conceptual issues in hominin taxonomy: <i>Homo heidelbergensis</i> and an ethnobiological reframing of species |
| title_full | Conceptual issues in hominin taxonomy: <i>Homo heidelbergensis</i> and an ethnobiological reframing of species |
| title_fullStr | Conceptual issues in hominin taxonomy: <i>Homo heidelbergensis</i> and an ethnobiological reframing of species |
| title_full_unstemmed | Conceptual issues in hominin taxonomy: <i>Homo heidelbergensis</i> and an ethnobiological reframing of species |
| title_short | Conceptual issues in hominin taxonomy: <i>Homo heidelbergensis</i> and an ethnobiological reframing of species |
| title_sort | Conceptual issues in hominin taxonomy: <i>Homo heidelbergensis</i> and an ethnobiological reframing of species |
| topic | Human society Anthropology Anthropology Anatomy |