Cultural and social patterning in economic activities and their implications to archaeological interpretation: a case from the Kafue Basin, Zambia

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Periodical article

Title:	Cultural and social patterning in economic activities and their implications to archaeological interpretation: a case from the Kafue Basin, Zambia
Author:	Musonda, Francis
Year:	1989
Periodical:	African Studies
Volume:	48
Issue:	1
Pages:	55-69
Language:	English
Geographic term:	Zambia
Subjects:	traditional society archaeology hunting fisheries Anthropology and Archaeology Peoples of Africa (Ethnic Groups)
External link:	https://doi.org/10.1080/00020188908707701
Abstract:	This paper first discusses aspects of hunting and fishing activities in the food procurement strategy of traditional communities in Zambia: hunting methods, ritual hunting, hunting as an economic activity, the distribution of meat, fishing as a seasonal activity, fishing equipment, and preservation of fish and its economic meaning. Then it examines the significance of hunting and fishing activities to archaeological researches in the Kafue Basin. Faunal remains from archaeological sites in Zambia have not been studied in sufficient detail, and the role of meat and fish in the prehistoric economy, as well as hunting and fishing techniques, are not well understood. The paper shows that ethnographic data, especially concerning the question of preservation, play an important role in the analysis of past human subsistence patterns. Bibliogr.