A new study published in the open-access journal PLOS ONE sheds light on the late Postclassic period (1200-1500 AD) in the northern Maya lowlands of Mexico. During this time of major change, many settlements developed along the eastern coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, influenced partly by the expansion of trade routes.
Previous research found that these coastal communities hosted many non-local individuals. However, it remained unclear if these immigrants were treated as outsiders or integrated into local society.
Andrea Cucina of the Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán in Mexico and his colleagues analyzed the remains of 50 individuals from two archaeological sites on Cancun Island dating to the late Postclassic. By examining strontium isotope signatures in the teeth, the team determined that seven appeared to have been born elsewhere in the Maya lowlands, not at these sites.
However, carbon isotope analysis of diet and burial constructions showed no significant differences between locals and non-locals. This suggests all individuals were treated similarly in terms of food consumption and burial practices.
The results indicate that non-local people had become integrated into the local culture despite originating from other regions. The presence of both adults and children among the non-locals implies entire families, not just individuals, relocated.
A key limitation is that the techniques cannot detect “second-generation immigrants”, a potentially valuable source of information requiring different methods. Analyzing mobility patterns across pre-Hispanic Mesoamerica is essential for fully understanding the cultural networks of the time.
The authors note that coastal settlements saw the arrival of outsiders during this period, believed based on archaeology to come from central Mexico. However, current research shows migration within the Maya cultural region, from places like Belize, Petén and other parts of the Yucatan Peninsula.
Migration for economic, environmental, political or familial reasons has long been part of the human experience, and this study documents the movement and integration of individuals, and perhaps entire families, into new communities in the past – likely for similar motivations that exist today.
Sources
PLOS | Andrea Cucina, Erin Kennedy Thornton, Allan Ortega-Muñoz. Human mobility on Cancun Island during the Late Postclassic: Intra- and inter-site demographic interactions. PLOS ONE, 2023; 18 (10): e0292022 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0292022
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