The impact of social status and biological sex on diet at 10th century CE Hungarian sites from stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses

Bibliographic Data

ID13096733
AuthorsAriana Gugora (0000-0002-5045-6482, Konkoly Observatory, corresponding author), Attila Demény (0000-0003-0522-9018, Konkoly Observatory), István Gábor Hatvani (0000-0002-9262-7315, Konkoly Observatory), Erzsébet Fóthi (0000-0003-4590-4487, ELTE Research Centre for the Humanities)
Year2024
Volume59
Pages104792-104792
Publication date2024-10-04
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Archaeological Science Reports (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2352-409X • E-ISSN: 2352-4103
PublisherElsevier BV (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1016/j.jasrep.2024.104792
OpenAlexW4403134977
LanguageEN
References cited48

This is the first comprehensive stable isotopic research on Hungarian populations performed from start to finish in Hungary. • At Karos-Eperjesszög, there were no statistically significant differences in animal protein consumption among social classes. • Adult males at Tiszanána appear to have had preferential access to animal protein. • C 3 plants dominated diet at all sites, but C 4 plants, like broomcorn millet, were also consumed, mostly at Karos-Eperjesszög. Stable isotope analysis is a valuable tool to determine the diet of past societies, as well as the relationship that diet has with biological sex and social class. In this research, we performed stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses on individuals from four 10th century CE Hungarian sites (Karos-Eperjesszög, Tiszanána, Bodroghalom, and Üllő-Ilona út) to determine if their diet was affected by their sex or social status. We also compared these sites with Kenézlő-Fazekaszug, our previously published, contemporaneous site. The study yielded some unexpected results, indicating that elevated social status was not a reliable indicator of high animal protein consumption among the residents of the upper class Karos site. Additionally, the results suggested that biological sex was only a factor in animal protein consumption at the putative middle-class sites, such as Tiszanána. With its comprehensive sampling, this research provides new stable isotopic data to the Central and Eastern European database, as well as exciting results about a crucial period in Hungarian history. It may also serve as the impetus for future stable isotope analyses of other 10th century Hungarian sites

Carbon fibers · Geography · Isotope · Isotopes of carbon · Isotopes of nitrogen · Nitrogen · Physics · Stable isotope ratio · Total organic carbon · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Chemistry · Environmental Science · Isotope Analysis in Ecology · Mathematics · Pacific and Southeast Asian Studies · Environmental Chemistry · Organic Chemistry