Across the West: Human Population Movement and the Expansion of the Numa examines one of the most significant questions in the prehistory of western North America: the origins, timing, and mechanisms behind the spread of Numic-speaking peoples across the Great Basin and surrounding regions. Edited by David B. Madsen and David E. Rhode, this interdisciplinary volume brings together leading scholars in archaeology, linguistics, and anthropology to explore patterns of human mobility, cultural change, and environmental adaptation.
Through a series of regional case studies and theoretical essays, the contributors analyze archaeological evidence, linguistic distributions, subsistence strategies, and ecological contexts to assess competing models of population movement. Rather than advancing a single explanation, the volume highlights the complexity of the Numic Expansion and the methodological challenges involved in linking language, material culture, and demography.
By synthesizing diverse lines of evidence, Across the West provides a foundational framework for understanding prehistoric population dynamics in the western interior of North America. It remains an essential reference for archaeologists, anthropologists, and students of Indigenous history interested in migration, cultural interaction, and long-term human adaptation in arid landscapes.