Europeanization of sub-arctic environments: perspectives from Norse Greenland's outer fjords

Kirsty A. Golding; Ian A. Simpson; Clare A. Wilson; Emily C. Lowe; J. Edward Schofield; Kevin J. Edwards

doi:10.1007/s10745-014-9708-y

Europeanization of sub-arctic environments: perspectives from Norse Greenland's outer fjords

Kirsty A. Golding, Ian A. Simpson^*, Clare A. Wilson, Emily C. Lowe, J. Edward Schofield, Kevin J. Edwards

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

9 Citations (Scopus)

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Abstract

Europeanization of sub-Arctic environments by Norse communities in Greenland, from the early 11th to mid 15th centuries AD, varied spatially and temporally, with pastoral agriculture and associated homefield management at the heart of this transformation. This process is poorly understood for the outer fjord areas of Norse Greenland and from this locality we contribute a homefield soils and sediments-based analysis. Our findings identify a recipe effect - the partitioning of turf, domestic animal manure and domestic waste resources used to manage soil fertility, field irrigation channels and the effects of eroded material deposition in the homefield. These management practices increased soil macro-nutrient status relative to pre-settlement concentration in some areas of the homefield whilst macro-nutrient concentrations in other areas of the homefield were allowed to decline. We suggest that where resources were limited, sustainable intensification could only be achieved in some areas of the homefield with other areas managed unsustainably.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	61-77
Number of pages	17
Journal	Human Ecology
Volume	43
Issue number	1
Early online date	18 Dec 2014
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/s10745-014-9708-y
Publication status	Published - Feb 2015

Bibliographical note

Acknowledgements
The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the Leverhulme Trust Footprints on the Edge of Thule Programme Award. ECL acknowledges the support of the Weissman International Internship Program, the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences and the Department of Anthropology at Harvard. We would
also like to thank George McLeod (University of Stirling) for manufacturing soil thin sections.

Keywords

Anthrosols
Europeanization
Norse Greenland
Sub-Arctic
Sustainable intensification

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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Cite this

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abstract = "Europeanization of sub-Arctic environments by Norse communities in Greenland, from the early 11th to mid 15th centuries AD, varied spatially and temporally, with pastoral agriculture and associated homefield management at the heart of this transformation. This process is poorly understood for the outer fjord areas of Norse Greenland and from this locality we contribute a homefield soils and sediments-based analysis. Our findings identify a recipe effect - the partitioning of turf, domestic animal manure and domestic waste resources used to manage soil fertility, field irrigation channels and the effects of eroded material deposition in the homefield. These management practices increased soil macro-nutrient status relative to pre-settlement concentration in some areas of the homefield whilst macro-nutrient concentrations in other areas of the homefield were allowed to decline. We suggest that where resources were limited, sustainable intensification could only be achieved in some areas of the homefield with other areas managed unsustainably.",

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AU - Schofield, J. Edward

AU - Edwards, Kevin J.

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Europeanization of sub-arctic environments: perspectives from Norse Greenland's outer fjords

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

UN SDGs

Access to Document

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