Paleogeography of Human Settlement at Iqaluktuuq, Victoria Island, Nunavut

Abstract

Change in sea levels, be they isostatic or eustatic, impact humans and the paleogeography they inhabit. In this paper we examine paleogeography at Iqaluktuuq, a section of the Ekalluk River, Victoria Island, Nunavut, between Tahiryuaq (Ferguson Lake) and Wellington Bay. The area’s isostatic rebound impacted the Ekalluk River’s development and the use of the area by two essential subsistence resources, Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus) and caribou (Rangifer tarandus). This, in turn, impacted the choices of Pre-Dorset, Middle and Late Dorset, and Thule/Inuit people regarding site locations. A new relative sea-level curve developed using calibrated radiocarbon dates on marine shells and terrestrial material from archaeological sites is produced for Iqaluktuuq. Based on the data, large scale (1:50,000) paleogeography maps are presented for the period of human occupation of Iqaluktuuq, 3100 calibrated years Before Present (B.P. cal) to present, revealing how paleogeography impacts people’s settlement choices.

Keywords

• sea level
• nunavut
• archaeology
• arctic
• settlement patterns
• Dorset