1976 – 2017: Modern archaeologists have pointed out that the relationship between colonial geographic labels and prehistoric indigenous boundaries is often “…

1976 – 2017: Modern archaeologists have pointed out that the relationship between colonial geographic labels and prehistoric indigenous boundaries is often “fuzzy” and inconsistent. For example, while colonial definitions place the divide at Dominica, many scientific researchers use “Leeward” specifically to refer to islands from Guadeloupe northward. This highlights the difficulty of applying 17th-century European administrative terminology to ancient social networks that operated under entirely different principles. The authors argue that these labels can sometimes obscure the actual fluid nature of inter-island contact and cultural exchange. Consequently, a more nuanced “archipelagic view” is required to accurately map the shifting identities of pre-Columbian societies.