Interrogating Diaspora and Movement in the Greater Cahokian World

Archaeological and isotopic evidence from Greater Cahokia and several prominent outlier sites argues against simple diaspora models either for the rise or fall of this pre-Columbian urban phenomenon. Besides indications that a culturally diverse population was associated with the city throughout its history, we argue that a spiritual vitality undergirded its origins such that many movements of people would have been two-way affairs. Some Cahokians who ultimately left the city may have been members of foreign lineages in the beginning.