Regarding his role in the community, numerous theories have been advanced:

- The Iceman may have been a shaman who had climbed into the mountains in order to carry out his priestly duties. However, this is contradicted by the lack of holy vestments or ritual objects.

- In view of the fact that the Iceman was carrying a copper axe, it was thought that he may have been a mineral prospector looking for ore deposits in the mountains. However, he had neither suitable tools for the task nor samples of ore with him.

- In view of his weapons, i.e. his bow and arrows, the hunting aspect is often emphasized. However, these have many uses, including protection against threats by fellow humans. A partly conserved net that could have been used for capturing birds or rabbits also points to hunting activities. The Iceman could have used his flint and antler implements to skin and cut up quarry.

- There is no conclusive evidence that the Iceman was a trader. The six flint implements he had do not look like trade items. Instead they appear to be tools for his personal use. As the retoucheur shows, he would have been able to fashion the tools himself and resharpen them as needed. Nor did his kit include any other items that he might have traded.

- Finally, judging from his equipment, the Iceman may have been a shepherd or migratory herder. Migratory herding played an important role at the time and was a key element in the economy of settled communities. Besides guarding the herd, the herder had to be able to hunt, gather food and repair clothing and equipment. In fact Ötzi’s clothing and equipment are consistent with all these activities. Thanks to his equipment – especially the ember containers – he would have been able to sojourn in the high mountains for many days. The cereal remains on his clothing and in the ember container also show that he had recently been in contact with a settlement in the valley.

This theory is also supported by the position of the find near an important pass from the Schnals Valley to the Ötz Valley. The natural mountain meadows above the tree line have been used as pasture land by humans since the late Neolithic period.
However, the theory is undermined by the fact that no traces of sheep, goats or dogs were found on the Iceman’s clothing or at the scene of the find. As a herder he certainly would have come into physical contact with the animals he was tending.
Shortly after the mummy was discovered a rumour began circulating that the Iceman had been banished from or was fleeing from his community. Recent findings on the cause of this death and the wounds on his hands and head have shed new light on the theory that he was on the run. By all appearances, the Iceman had been involved in a fight shortly before his death. This may have prompted him to flee into the mountains. His pursuers, however, caught up with him and shot him with an arrow. Mustering his last strength, he was able to shake off his enemies and reach the gully, only to die of his wounds there.