The Archaeology of Food in the Amazon

It was long believed that the lack of available food in tropical forests was a limiting factor for the development of human cultures in the Amazon. Recently, a very different picture has emerged in which, on the eve of European invasion, the Amazon basin was home to thriving indigenous societies with highly sophisticated foodways that ultimately co-created the region's much-coveted biodiversity. In this Element, the authors bring together recent data and discussion points on the archaeology of food, alongside testimonies from Forest Peoples, that help us think about culinary traditions, biodiversity, and food sovereignty since the human colonization of the Amazon 12,000 years ago until the present-day climate emergency.