New York African Burial Ground Skeletal Biology Final Report, Volume 1. Chapter 6. Isotopic and Elemental Chemistry of Teeth: Implications for Places of birth, Forced Migration Patterns, Nutritional Status, and Pollution

Concerns about individual and group origins are central to the study of the New York African Burial Ground (NYABG). A key goal of the project is to provide scientific insights into the geographic origins of individuals. Enslaved Africans came from different regions of Africa. Can we determine more precisely the geographic area where individuals and groups come from and what were their ethnic affinities? At what ages were enslaved individuals forced to involuntarily leave their homelands? Which individuals came to New York via the Caribbean or some other destination in North America? Who was first generation enslaved, and who was born into slavery?