intro to archaeology Flashcards
define Anthropology
the study of humanity focusing on human diversity and evolution
Anthropology is what 3 things?
Integrative, Holistic and Comparative
what does holistic mean
you view humanity as a whole
what does integrative mean when we talk about anthropology?
a series of component parts that work together
what does comparative mean
considers similarities and differences without making generalizations
Define biological anthropology
the study of humans as biological organisms, emphasis on evolution and variation
what are the 3 subfields of biological anthropology?
primatology, paleoanthropology and forensic anthropology
define primatology
study of living non human primates & their fossils to understand evolution an behaviour
define paleoanthropology
study of human evolution through fossils
define forensic anthropology
specializes in the identification of the human skeleton
what is archaeology?
the study of human past through the analysis of material remains uses scientific method
what are armchair anthropologists?
they draw conclusions without doing their own fieldwork
what did it mean for anthropology when the industrial revolution occurred?
it led to the discovery of more artifacts as prior to that time, they did not dig far below the earth
what do uniformitarianism and catastrophism tell us about the earth?
how it was formed (terrain, water bodies)
define uniformitarianism
physical and chemical processes and forces operating today haven’t changed from the past
define catastrophism
idea that the earth was shaped by natural disasters
early archaeology was what?
more descriptive than explanatory
who developed the 3 age system and what was it based on?
J.C Thomsen; the material of tools
which stage of the 3 age system is the oldest?
the stone age
what are the 3 subsets of the 3 age system?
Stone, Iron and Bronze
what are the 3 subsets of the stone age?
paleolithic, mesolithic and neolithic
which of the stone ages is the oldest?
paleolithic
which of the stone ages is the youngest?
neolithic
the 3 levels of the paleolithic stone age are?
lower, middle, upper
the upper paleolithic stone age is what in comparison to the others?
the newest stage
the lower paleolithic stone age is what in comparison to the others?
the oldest stage
“lithic” means what?
made of rock
Lewis Henry Morgan claimed what?
that all societies had the same order of cultural evolution; barbarians, savages and civilized
what was Morgan’s theory called?
Unilineal Evolution
who did Morgan believe were the most civilized?
Christian Europeans
what is unilineal evolution
that all societies had the same order of cultural evolution
Charles Darwin was known for what?
origin of species; natural selection; survival of the fittest
Darwin believed in what kind of evolution?
Multilinear Cultural Evolution
what is Multilinear Cultural Evolution?
the idea that all societies and their cultures take different pathways of change
Flinders Petrie did what?
found similarities in different sites connecting civilizations
Petrie believed what?
emphasized the importance of defining past societies in distinct groups based on their material culture
V. Gordon Childe believed what?
changes in archaeological record reflected change in society and material aspects of culture
who documented the neolithic & urban revolutions?
Childe
what did the neolithic & urban revolutions mean for society?
they relied more on plants and animals
Archaeological culture is what?
a group of similar artifacts from a certain time & place that reflect the material culture of a past society
how is archaeological culture named?
the type of artifact found or the place it came from (clovis culture- site, linear pottery culture- artifact)
does archaeological culture relate to REAL past civilizations?
NO
define induction
drawing general conclusions on the basis of available data
define reduction
drawing conclusions from the general laws and models
which tests a hypothesis: induction or reduction?
reduction
what are the two types of reduction archaeology?
processual and new
what are the forms of processual archaeology?
ecological, darwinian, HBE (human behaviour ecology) and NCT (niche construction theory)
ecological, darwinian, HBE (human behaviour ecology) and NCT (niche construction theory) are forms of what?
processual archaeology
describe ecological archaeology
the role of ecology in shaping culture & technology
describe darwinian archaeology
applies the idea of natural selection to culture change
describe HBE (human behavioural ecology)
ecological models to explain human decisions
describe NCT (niche construction theory)
how humans create ecological niches to maximize survival
what is an example of NCT?
controlled burning
define processual archaeology
the “new archaeology” focused on using the scientific method & hypothesis testing
Lewis Binford believed what?
archaeology should be a science or nothing at all
T or F: archaeology can tell archaeologists about the past IF the correct questions/hypothesis are asked.
TRUE
having an external understanding of society is called what?
ETIC
having an internal understanding of society is called what?
EMIC
Binford was what, etic or emic?
ETIC
Ian Hodder emphasized and argued what?
the importance of context; archaeologists should emulate historians
define post processual archaeology
focuses on beliefs, symbols & context specific interpretations
focuses on beliefs, symbols & context specific interpretations– this is an example of what kind of archaeology?
post processual
does post processual archaeology have multiple explanations?
NO. one single explanation
what are 3 types of PP archaeology?
gender, agency theory & landscape
describe gender archaeology
to study and represent gender (gender studies)
describe agency theory
actions of members of society are the focus
describe landscape archaeology
the importance of landscapes in the past
what are 2 complimentary approaches to both processual & post processual archaeology?
ecodynamics & network/boundary research
describe ecodynamics
combining human agency with complex environmental interactions
network/boundary research is what?
focused on alliance and community formation
define cultural heritage
the record of ancestors of particular groups
how is cultural heritage used?
political purposes– ex: Hilter and Aryan race
List 3 threats to cultural heritage
natural disasters, war, intentional destruction
define indigenous archaeology
work being done by indiegnous archaeologists, involving indigenous people in the design, excavation, etc., and a collab of nonindigenous/indigenous peoples
