Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Dental and oral nonmetric traits in a Coimbra reference sample: testing intrasample chronological and spatial variation

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

A reference sample of dental and oral nonmetric traits should represent its biological population from which it stems. The presence of individuals born at different times, different regions, and separate countries in the Coimbra-identified cranial collections provides the test of whether this sample reflects the biological continuity of this Portuguese sample among the late modern (early industrialization, nineteenth century) to early contemporary (early demographic transition, first half of the twentieth century) population of this region of central Portugal. The Coimbra collections were scored for 61 traits using methodology by Hauser and De Stefano (1989), Turner et al. (1991), Scott and Turner (1997), Irish (1998), and Marado and Silva (2016). The 600 individuals in the sample were divided by generation, region, and nationality. Their phenetic diversity was tested with principal component analysis and with the mean measure of divergence statistic. The proximity between the subsamples was generalized, and it mimicked previous genetic marker results. Some small subsamples hindered conclusions; nevertheless, this Coimbra sample is considered a reliable dental reference sample for the Portuguese late modern/early contemporary population.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. The work of Burnett et al. (2010) on maxillary premolar accessory ridges, MxPAR, was not yet known by the present authors at the time of trait selection.

References

  • Adams SM, Bosch E, Balaresque PL, Ballereau SJ, Lee AC, Arroyo E, López-Parra AM, Aler M, Gisbert Grifo MS, Brion M, Carracedo A, Lavinha J, Martínez-Jarreta B, Quintana-Marci L, Picornell A, Ramon M, Skorecki K, Behar DM, Calafell F, Jobling MA (2008) The genetic legacy of religious diversity and intolerance: paternal lineages of Christians, Jews, and Muslims in the Iberian Peninsula. Am J Hum Genet 83:725–736

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Beleza S, Gusmão L, Lopes A, Alves C, Gomes I, Giouzeli M, Calafell F, Carracedo A, Amorim A (2006) Micro-phylogeographic and demographic history of Portuguese male lineages. Ann Hum Genet 70:181–194

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bocquet-Appel JP (1984) Biological evolution and history in 19th century Portugal. In: van Vark GN, Howells WW (eds) Multivariate statistical methods in physical anthropology. Reidel Publishing Company, Boston, pp. 289–321

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Brandt G, Szécsényi-Nagy A, Roth C, Alt KW, Haak W (2014) Human paleogenetics of Europe of—the known knowns and the known unknowns. J Hum Evol 79:73–92

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burnett SE, Hawkey DE, Turner CG (2010) Brief communication: population variation in human maxillary premolar accessory ridges (MxPAR). Am J Phys Anthropol 141(2):319–324

    Google Scholar 

  • Burnett SE, Irish JD, Fong MR (2013) Wear’s the problem? Examining the effect of dental wear on studies of crown morphology. In: Scott GR, Irish JD (eds) Anthropological perspectives on dental morphology: genetics, evolution, variation. Cambridge University Press, New York, pp. 535–554

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Collins R (2004) Visigothic Spain. Blackwell, Oxford, pp. 409–711

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Coppa A, Cucina A, Hoogland MLP, Lucci M, Luna Calderón F, Panhuysen RGAM, Tavarez María G, Valcárcel Rojas R, Vargiu R (2008) New evidence of two different migratory waves in the circum-Caribbean area during the pre-Columbian period from the analysis of dental morphological traits. In: Hoffman CL, Hoogland MLP, van Gijn AL (eds) Crossing the borders: new methods and techniques in the study of archaeological materials from the Caribbean. The University of Alabama Press, Tuscaloosa, pp. 195–213

    Google Scholar 

  • Cunha E, Wasterlain S (2007) The Coimbra identified osteological collections. In: Grupe G, Peters J (eds) Skeletal series and their socio-economic context. Verlag Marie Leidorf GmbH, Rahden/Westf, pp. 23–33

    Google Scholar 

  • Delgado-Burbano ME (2007a) Population affinities of African Colombians to Sub-Saharan Africans based on dental morphology. Homo 58(4):329–356

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Delgado-Burbano ME (2007b) Variación dental no-métrica y el tráfico de esclavos por el atlántico: la ascendencia biológica y los orígenes geográficos de una población afro-colombiana. Revista Española de Antropología Física 27:13–32

    Google Scholar 

  • Díaz PC (2000) Sedes regiae (ann. 400–800). In: Ripoll G, Gurt JM (eds) El Reino Suevo de Hispania y su sede en Bracara. Reial Academia de Bones Lletres, Barcelona

    Google Scholar 

  • Edgar HJH (2004) Dentitions, distance, and difficulty: a comparison of two statistical techniques for dental morphological data. Dental Anthropology 17(2):55–62

    Google Scholar 

  • Fenner JN (2005) Cross-cultural estimation of the human generation interval for use in genetics-based population divergence studies. Am J Phys Anthropol 128(2):415–423

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Freeman MF, Tukey JW (1950) Transformations related to the angular and the square root. Ann Math Stat 21:607–611

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gamito TJ (2005) The Celts in Portugal. e-Keltoi 6:571–605

    Google Scholar 

  • Harris EF (2008) Statistical applications in dental anthropology. In: Irish JD, Nelson GC (eds) Technique and application in dental anthropology. Cambridge University Press, New York, pp. 35–67

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Harris EF, Sjøvold T (2004) Calculation of Smith’s mean measure of divergence for intergroup comparisons using nonmetric data. Dental Anthropology 17(3):83–93

    Google Scholar 

  • Hauser G, De Stefano GF (1989) Epigenetic variants of the human skull. E. Schweizerbart’sche Verlagsbuchhandlung (Nagele u. Obermiller), Stuttgart

  • Igrejas LM (2007) O Celtismo na Galiza: Algumas controvérsias - Ideologia e ciência na definição do passado Céltico Galego. Análise empresarial 38:78–79

    Google Scholar 

  • Irish JD (1998) Dental morphological affinities of Late Pleistocene through recent sub-Saharan and North African peoples. Bull Mém Soc Anthropol Paris 10(3):237–272

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Irish JD, Guatelli-Steinberg D (2003) Ancient teeth and modern human origins: an expanded comparison of African Plio-Pleistocene and recent world dental samples. J Hum Evol 45(2):113–144

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Irish JD (2005) Population continuity vs. discontinuity revisited: dental affinities among Late Paleolithic through Christian-era Nubians. Am J Phys Anthropol 128:520–535

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Irish JD (2006) Who were the ancient Egyptians? Dental affinities among Neolithic through postdynastic peoples. Am J Phys Anthropol 129:529–543

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jackes M, Lubell D, Meiklejohn C (1997) Healthy but mortal: human biology and the first farmers of Western Europe. Antiquity 71:639–658

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jackes M, Silva AM, Irish J (2001) Dental morphology: a valuable contribution to our understanding of prehistory. Journal of Iberian Archaeology 3:97–119

    Google Scholar 

  • Lorrio AJ, Ruiz Zapatero G (2005) The Celts in Iberia: an overview. e-Keltoi 6:167–254

    Google Scholar 

  • Lukacs JR, Hemphill BE, Walimbe SR (1998) Human dental development, morphology, and pathology: a tribute to Albert A. Dahlberg. In: Lukacs JR (ed) Are Mahars autochthonous inhabitants of Maharashtra?: a study of dental morphology and population history in South Asia. University of Oregon Anthropological Papers, Eugene

    Google Scholar 

  • Mairal Q, Santos C, Silva M, Marques SL, Ramos A, Aluja MP, Amorim A, Prata MJ, Alvarez L (2013) Linguistic isolates in Portugal: insights from the mitochondrial DNA pattern. For Sci Int Genetics 7:618–623

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Manabe Y, Oyamada J, Kitgawa Y, Rokutanda A, Kato K, Matsushita T (2003) Dental morphology of the Dawenkou Neolithic population in North China: implications for the origin and distribution of Sinodonty. J Hum Evol 45:369–380

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marado LM (2014) Characterization of the dental morphology of a Portuguese sample from the 19th and 20th centuries. PhD thesis. Universidade de Coimbra, Coimbra

  • Marado LM, Silva AM (2014) Ties between Portugal and Brazil: a contribution from dental morphology. In: Bitencourt Campos J, Zocche JJ, Cerezer JF, Oosterbeek LM (eds) Arqueologia Ibero-americana e Transatlântica: Arqueologia, Sociedade e Território. Habilis press Editora, Criciúma, pp 313–326

  • Marado LM, Silva LM (2016) The mandibular molar pit-tubercle (MMPT) dental nonmetric trait: comprehensive analysis of a large sample. Homo. doi:10.1016/j.jchb.2016.09.003

    Google Scholar 

  • Martiniano R, Feitosa Y, Abade A, Manco L (2013) Y-chromosome diversity in central Portugal reveals signatures of ancient maritime expansions. Anthrop Anz 70(4):355–367

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McEvoy B, Richards M, Forster P, Bradley DG (2004) The longue durée of genetic ancestry: multiple genetic marker systems and Celtic origins on the Atlantic facade of Europe. Am J Hum Genet 75:693–702

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mendes Corrêa AA (1919) Origins of the Portuguese. Am J Phys Anthropol 2(2):117–145

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pereira L, Morales AC, Goios A, Duarte R, Rodrigues C, Endicott P, Alonso A, Martin P, Torres C, Amorim A (2006) The Islamization of Iberian Peninsula: a demographic shift or a cultural change? Search for an answer using extant and ancient DNA from Mértola (Southeast Portugal). Int Congr Ser 1288:828–830

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pereira L, Prata MJ, Amorim A (2000) Diversity of mtDNA lineages in Portugal: not a genetic edge of European variation. Ann Hum Genet 64:491–506

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ralph P, Coop G (2013) The geography of recent genetic ancestry across Europe. PLoS Biol 11(5):e1001555

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • R Core Team (2013) R: a language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna

  • Regueiro M, Garcia-Bertrand R, Fadlhaoui-Zid L, Álvarez J, Herrera RJ (2015) From Arabia to Iberia: a Y chromosome perspective. Gene 564:141–152

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rocha MA (1995) Les collections ostéologiques humaines identifiées du Musée Anthropologique de l’Université de Coimbra. Antropol Port 13:121–138

    Google Scholar 

  • Sampietro ML, Caramelli D, Lao O, Calafell F, Comas D, Lari M, Agustí B, Bertranpetit J, Lalueza-Fox C (2005) The genetics of the pre-Roman Iberian Peninsula: a mtDNA study of ancient Iberians. Ann Hum Genet 69:535–548

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Santos C, Fregel R, Cabrera VM, Álvarez L, Larruga JM, Ramos A, López MA, Aluja MP, González AM (2014) Mitochondrial DNA and Y-chromosome structure at the Mediterranean and Atlantic façades of the Iberian Peninsula. Am J Hum Biol 26:130–141

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scott GR, Dahlberg AA (1982) Microdifferentiation in tooth crown morphology among Indians of the American Southwest. In: Kertén B (ed) Teeth: form, function and evolution. Columbia University Press, New York, pp. 259–291

    Google Scholar 

  • Scott GR, Turner CG (1997) The anthropology of modern human teeth. Dental morphology and its variation in recent human populations. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge

  • Silverstein AJ (2010) Islamic history. A very short introduction. Oxford University Press, New York

  • Sobral JM (2004) O Norte, o Sul, a raça, a nação – representações da identidade nacional portuguesa (séculos XIX-XX). Análise Social XXXIX(171):255–284

    Google Scholar 

  • Sołtysiak A (2011) An R script for Smith’s mean measure of divergence. Bioarchaeology of the Near East 5:41–44

    Google Scholar 

  • Tsirkin JB (1989) The veterans and the Romanization of Spain. Gérion 7:137–147

    Google Scholar 

  • Turner CG (1985) Expression count: a method for calculating morphological dental trait frequencies by using adjustable weighting coefficients with standard ranked scales. Am J Phys Anthropol 68:263–267

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turner CG, Nichol CR, Scott GR (1991) Scoring procedures for key morphological traits of the permanent dentition: the Arizona State University dental anthropology system. In: Kelley MA, Larsen CS (eds) Advances in dental anthropology. Wiley-Liss, New York, pp. 13–31

    Google Scholar 

  • Tyrrell A (2000) Skeletal non-metric traits and the assessment of inter- and intra- population diversity: past problems and future potential. In: Cox M, Mays S (eds) Human osteology in archaeology and forensic science. Greenwich Medical Media, London, pp. 289–306

    Google Scholar 

  • Ullinger JM (2002) Early Christian pilgrimage to a Byzantine Monastery in Jerusalem—a dental perspective. Dental Anthropology 16(1):22–25

    Google Scholar 

  • Ullinger JM, Sheridan SG, Hawkey DE, Turner CG, Cooley R (2005) Bioarchaeological analysis of cultural transition in the Southern Levant using dental nonmetric traits. Am J Phys Anthropol 128:466–476

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weets JD (2004) A dental anthropological approach to issues of migration and population continuity in ancient Ireland [PhD]. Pennsylvania State University

  • Weets JD (2009) A promising mandibular molar trait in ancient populations of Ireland. Dental Anthropology 22(3):65–72

    Google Scholar 

  • Weisensee KE, Jantz RL (2011) Secular changes in craniofacial morphology of the Portuguese using geometric morphometrics. Am J Phys Anthropol 145:548–559

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zilhão J (1993) The spread of agro-pastoral economies across Mediterranean Europe: a view from the far west. J Mediterr Archaeol 6(1):5–63

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank the Department of Life Sciences, Faculty of Sciences and Technology, University of Coimbra, for the access to their identified osteological collections; Professor Joel D. Irish for the help with quantitative and statistical methods and support; Professor Arkadiusz Sołtysiak for the help with the R program and his MMD R script; and Professor Sofia Wasterlain for the helpful comments which inspired this work and previous statistical guidance. The first author’s contribution was funded by the Fundação para a Ciência e as Tecnologias (FCT; Ministério da Educação e Ciência) with the scholarship reference SFRH/BD/70183/2010. This project received the financial support of the Project Lab2PT—Landscapes, Heritage and Territory Laboratory—AUR/04509 and FCT through the national funds and when applicable of the FEDER co-financing, in the aim of the new partnership agreement PT2020 and COMPETE2020—POCI 01 0145 FEDER 007528.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Unidade de Arqueologia da Universidade do Minho, Edifício dos Congregados, Avenida Central 100, 4710-229, Braga, Portugal

    Luís Miguel Marado

  2. Lab2PT – Landscape, Heritage and Territory Laboratory, University of Minho, Avenida Central 100, 4710-229, Braga, Portugal

    Luís Miguel Marado

  3. Prehistory Laboratory, CIAS, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    Ana Maria Silva

  4. UNIARQ – WAPS, University of Lisbon Archaeology Center, Lisbon, Portugal

    Ana Maria Silva

  5. Laboratory of Forensic Anthropology, Center for Functional Ecology, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    Ana Maria Silva

Authors
  1. Luís Miguel Marado
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Ana Maria Silva
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Luís Miguel Marado.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Electronic supplementary material

ESM 1

(DOCX 24 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Marado, L.M., Silva, A.M. Dental and oral nonmetric traits in a Coimbra reference sample: testing intrasample chronological and spatial variation. Archaeol Anthropol Sci 10, 1165–1177 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-016-0455-4

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-016-0455-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation