Reconsideration: marine and mountainous Jomon people -reconstructing past behavior of the Jomon people using limb bone cross-sectional morphology-

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K13418
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 03060:Cultural assets study-related
• Research Institution: Niigata University of Health and Welfare
• Principal Investigator: Hagihara Yasuo 新潟医療福祉大学, リハビリテーション学部, 講師 (00780256)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: 縄文人 / 四肢骨 / 地理的環境 / 時期差 / 幾何学的断面形態解析 / 楕円フーリエ解析 / cross-sectional geometry

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The purpose of this research project was to clarify the characteristics of limb bone morphology of the Jomon population. Moreover, examined how differences in terrain such as coastal and mountainous areas affected the behavior of the Jomon population. I measured more than 700 Jomon skeletal remains. The following results were obtained by analyzing these data. (1) Third metacarpal bone diaphysis of the Jomon population is elongated to the dorsopalmar direction compared with modern Japanese. (2) Fibular diaphysis of the Jomon population is curved in the anterior direction around the mid-shaft. (3) The diaphysis of the radius is huge, especially in the Tokai region late/final Jomon male. (4) The terrain difference affects the diaphyseal shape and robusticity of the Jomon, especially in females.

Free Research Field

自然人類学，骨考古学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究では「海と山の縄文人」という40年近く前に提唱され，縄文人の形質的特徴を知る上で非常に重要ながらも，詳細な検討がほとんど行われていなかった仮説について，現在日本列島で出土した縄文人骨をできる限り網羅的に調査をすることで再検討を行った．
本研究により，縄文人の四肢骨に見られる複数の形態的特徴を明らかにすることができた．また，時期，および地理的環境が縄文人の四肢骨形態にどのような影響を与えるのかについて，その一端を明らかにすることができた．これらの成果は，1万年以上続いた縄文時代の人びとの行動様式，環境への適応を知る上で重要である．