0582 Mid Anth

Midterm Pitt Anth

archaeology

study of artifacts and relics of early mankind; study of the human past through material remains

cultural anthropology

the study of people's communities, behaviors, beliefs, and institutions, including how people make meaning as they live, work, and play together

linguistic anthropology

The study of human language in the past and present.

physical anthropology

the study of humans from a biological perspective, particularly focused on human evolution

Historical and Prehistoric Archeology

what are the two branches of archaeology?

1. methodology
2. Material remains
3. interpretation
4. the human past
5. anthropological questions

what are the five elements of archaeology?

epistemology

study of knowledge

induction

arguing from specifics to generalities

deduction

arguing from generalities to specifics

Occam's Razor

Simpler explanations are more likely to be true than complex ones.

debitage

a term referring to all the pieces of shatter and flakes produced and not used when stone tools are made

archaeological record

all material objects constructed by humans or near-humans revealed by archaeology

artifacts

portable objects whose form is modified or wholly created by human activity

features

nonportable human-made remains that cannot be removed from their place of discovery without altering or destroying their original form

ecofacts

nonartifactual natural remains that nonetheless have cultural relevance

sites

spatial clusters of artifacts, features, and ecofacts

regions

largest and most flexible spatial clusters; definable area bounded by topographical features such as mountains and bodies of water

behavioral, transformational

archaeological data are the result of \___ processes and \___ processes

behavioral processes

activities that produce material remains

transformational processes

begins after material remains have been deposited

taphonomy

study of what happens to plants and animals after they die

matrix

the physical medium that surrounds, holds, and supports archaeological data

provenience

the three-dimensional location of archaeological data within or on the matrix at the time of discovery

association

two or more artifacts occurring together in the same matrix

context

evaluation of archaeological data based on both behavioral and transformational processes

primary context

conditions in which both provenience and matrix have remained undisturbed since the original deposition

secondary context

alterations of provenience, association, and matrix by transformational processes caused by either human or natural activity

analogy

a form of reasoning whereby the identity of unknown things or relations is inferred from those that are known

specific analogy

particular comparisons within a single cultural tradition

general analogy

Broad comparisons that can be documented across many cultural traditions

actualistic studies

actual behavior can tied to diagnostic material remains regardless of cultural setting

Ethnoarchaeology

ethnographic research done by archaeologists is that the kinds of information needed to understand the past as well as the present will be recorded

Experimental Archaeology

an aspect of actualistic studies done by archaeologists

* reconstruction and maintenance of households and communities under past conditions

technology

means by which human societies interact most directly with the natural environment

social systems

assign roles and define relationships among people

ideology

encompasses the belief and value systems of a society

material remains

artifacts, features and other items such as plant and animal remains that indicate human activity

* makes up archaeological records

artifacts

any portable object made or altered by humans

* stone tools and pots

features

non-portable objects, deposits, constructions

ecofacts

plants, animals, sediments, etc. that result from human activity

* not intentionally designed or made
* need evidence of human activity

sites

spatial cluster of artifacts, features

* places where humans did things

regions

groups of sites in their environmental setting

context

where material remains are found, and with what

* differences between finding the pot in a grave versus a food-related dwelling

Site Formation Processes

conditions and events that affect material remains from the termination of use to the time they are recovered (taphonomy)

Stratigraphy

the study of rock layers and the sequence of events they reflect

cultural transformations

occurs after deposition; When people move or alter once-used things from one place to another

* human influenced

natural transformations

When "nature" moves or alters artifacts, ecofacts, and features; for example as a result of wind and water action, earthquakes, tsunami, forest fires, tree growth, animal burrowing, decay processes, etc.

* non-human factors

bioturbation

the disturbance of sedimentary deposits by living organisms

1. cold
2. dry
3. anoxic
4. sealed in mud, clay, ash, etc

4 natural conditions that favor preservation

analogy

the unknown function or identity of something is inferred from a known case consciously or unconsciously done based on uniformitarianism

Uniformitarianism

the same behaviors and processes we observe in one time and place may well have happened somewhere else

specific analogy

compare to a better-known time period in the same cultural tradition; direct, historical interpretation

general analogy

broad comparison across different cultural traditions

ethnography

the scientific description of the customs of individual peoples and cultures; cultural research and observations

ethnohistory

significant historical experiences of a particular group

* observational history of a culture written by an outsider (people documenting other cultures prior to anthropology)

Ethnoarchaeology

ethnographic research done by archaeologists on the material culture of living; typically done for extant cultures

Experimental Archaeology

controlled replication of artifacts or activities

taphonomy

ethnoarchaeology and experimental archaeology also helps us understand \___ (site formation processes)

human behavior

contemporary taphonomy gives useful information on \___ \___

Antiquarianism

the creation of historically accurate costumes and scenery

Archbishop James Ussher

Who created the timelIne that revealed the estimation of the true age of the earth?

Christian Jurgensen Thomsen

created the Three Age System

Three Age System

Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age

Pitt-Rivers

Father of Scientific Archaeology, pioneered meticulous field methods

Petrie

archaeologist who had an interest in spatial pattern of material

Kidder

archaeologist who crafted creative description and classification of material evidence

Georges Cuvier

coined catastrophism

catastrophism

theory that states that natural disasters such as floods and volcanic eruptions shaped Earth's landforms and caused extinction of some species

Uniformitarianism

Charles Lyell's idea that geologic processes have not changed throughout Earth's history (same ones we still see today)

human evolution

coined by Charles Darwin; what processes shaped the continents, how the plants and animals came to their present form in regions

primitive

a person who belongs to early stage of civilization

unilinear evolution

coined by Lewis Henry Morgan

all societies pass through the same stages of cultural evolutionary development

* divided humanity into savagery => barbarism => civilization

cultural relativism

coined by Franz Boaz who was against unilinear evolution; there is no universal standard for judging human progress

historical particularism

each culture is the product of particular historical circumstances

time-space grids

A synthesis of temporal and spatial distributions of data used in the culture history approach based on period sequences within culture areas.

functionalism

culture is designed to fulfill important functions and meet universal human needs

cultural ecology

human culture is an adaptation to the environment; looks at the environmental to figure out the way that people have adapted to change overtime

Gordon Willey

Anthropologist who did projects in the Viru valley of Peru. Studied the settlement patterns Viru valley by ding regional research

radiocarbon dating

a chemical analysis used to determine the age of organic materials based on their content of the radioisotope carbon-14

Processual Archaeology

coined by Lewis Binford

Stresses dynamic relationship between social and economic aspects of culture, and the environment as the basis for understanding the processes of culture change. Archaeology becomes independent from anthropology -- explanation over description

Post-Processual Archaeology

a movement in archaeological theory that emphasizes the subjectivity of archaeological interpretations

survey

locating sites and finding out about them without excavating

excavation

the process of digging up the remains of the past

* air photos, satellite images, LiDAR,

field walking

Involves walking over the site and looking carefully for any tiny objects that may be of interest

mapping

Illustrates how each element of the domain is paired with an element in the range; \___ features visible on the surface

Surface Collection

a collection of pottery and stone artifacts made from the surface of the soil around a possible site

subsurface sampling

shoveling test pits, taking core samples

geophysical methods

Subsurface studies - aimed at locating and detecting the presence of subsurface structures and their size, shape, depth, and physical properties to identify the presence of certain physical characteristics that are indicative of oil and gas reservoirs.

test excavation

a small initial excavation to determine a site's potential for answering a research question

trenching

creating shallow excavations used for pouring small footings and foundation walls or to provide drainage of surface water

record keeping

keeping track of artifacts and other features around the site

flotation

The use of fluid suspension to recover tiny burned plant remains and bone fragments from archaeological sites.

judgement sampling

seek out data directly relevant to your research question

random sampling

seek out data that are representative of the total population

stratified sampling

preferentially targeting certain sites; divide the landscape into Strata and survey areas you believe have sites

faunal analysis

identification and interpretation of animal remains from an archaeological site

lithic analysis

study of stone tools

Skeletal Analysis

The study of human remains to discover sex, age, cause of death, etc.

botanical analysis

study of plant matter

Family Hominidae

great apes and humans; split from other apes about 6 m.y.a