Introduction

Chapter 1, written by Cathy Willermet and Andrea Cucina, introduces the volume and its interdisciplinary approach to bioarchaeology. The volume editors encouraged a problem-oriented, rather than disciplinary, approach to showcase interdisciplinary research questions related to population history in Prehispanic Mesoamerica. Mesoamerica contains a rich and complex ethnohistorical and archaeological record from which many data sources and perspectives can be brought to bear on questions of ethnicity and past migrations. The editors asked authors to focus on questions such as: How much did people move around? How much did their cultural affiliation reflect their biological history? How were people related to one another? How did people interact with one another? How did people view themselves? The resulting volume explores these issues from cultural ethnohistorical, (bio)archaeological, biological, biogeochemical, dental morphological, iconographic, and linguistic perspectives. The editors argue that approaching past societies from an interdisciplinary lens is sometimes more difficult, but ultimately more constructive.