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The Pacific coast of the Southern Central American Isthmus is a highly productive and biodiverse region with a rich human history. Although the interaction of the oceans, climate, biodiversity and early human systems has shaped the region’s ecology, research has remained largely disconnected, arising independently from discrete disciplines. To unite this disparate research, we reviewed and synthesized the historical ecology of the Isthmus from the Last Glacial Maximum to the rise of industrial fishing in the 1950s. Our findings reveal a complex interplay between environmental changes, human adaptations and resource use patterns. We identify three major transitions that influenced resource use: the shift to agriculture, the stabilization of rising sea levels and the arrival of Spanish colonists. Each transition marked a significant shift in human–environment interactions, yet we find that the ocean consistently played a central role. This interdisciplinary synthesis offers insights into the region’s socio-ecological past, emphasizing the importance of ocean–land connections for Isthmian peoples and the critical need for research and conservation efforts to ensure its future sustainability. A Spanish language version of the abstract is provided as electronic supplementary material. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Shifting seas: understanding deep-time human impacts on marine ecosystems’. 

ABSTRACT BackgroundHuman pressures are driving the emergence of unprecedented, ‘novel’, ecological and environmental systems. The concept of novel (eco)systems is well accepted by the scientific community, but the use and measurement of novelty has outgrown initial definitions and critiques. There are still unresolved methodological and conceptual differences in quantifying novelty that prevent a unified research approach. FrameworkHere we present a conceptual framework and guidelines to unify past and future measurement of ecological novelty. Under this framework, novelty is a property of an ecological or environmental entity of interest. Novelty is quantified as the comparison between the target entity and a reference set, measured as the summary of degrees of difference across one or more dimensions. Choices in these components, particularly the reference set, can change resulting novelty measurements and inferences. ShowcaseWe provide a case‐study to showcase our framework, measuring pre‐ and post‐European novelty in 99 pollen assemblages in Midwest USA forests. We paired this quantitative exploration with a five‐step process designed to improve the utility and outcomes of novelty analyses. ConclusionsQuantitative novelty has immense value in studies of abrupt ecological change, linking climatic and ecological change, biotic interactions and invasions, species range shifts and fundamental theories. Our framework offers a unified overview and is also primed for integration into management and restoration workflows, providing consistent and robust measurements of novelty to support decision making, priority setting and resource allocation.