Paleogeography of Human Settlement at Iqaluktuuq, Victoria Island, Nunavut
2022
Julie M. Ross | T. Max Friesen
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&rsquo:s isostatic rebound impacted the Ekalluk River&rsquo: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&rsquo:s settlement choices.
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