Archaeology

Archaeology

The cultural anthropology of the human past focusing on material evidence of human modification of the physical environment.

Archaeological record

All material objects constructed by humans or near-humans revealed by archaeology, including artifacts and nonportable material culture.

Processual archaeology

An objective, empirical science that explains cultural processes leading to ways of life and material cultures, emphasizing human adaptations to environments.

Cultural ecology

Understanding cultural processes in the context of climate change, economic productivity, demographic factors, and technological change.

Postprocessual archaeology

Focuses on symbolic and cognitive aspects of social structures, emphasizing human agency and examining power dynamics within societies.

Sites

Precise geographical locations of remains of past human activity.

Artifacts

Portable objects that have been deliberately shaped by human or near-human activity.

Ecofacts

Plant or animal remains that are byproducts of hominin activities.

Features

Nonportable remnants from the past, such as house walls or ditches.

Matrix

The gravel, sand, or clay in which an artifact is found.

Association

The occurrence of two or more objects found in the same matrix.

Provenance

The precise 3D position of a find within the matrix.

Context

The evaluation of what happened to an object after it entered the archaeological record.

Ethnoarchaeology

The study of how present-day societies use artifacts and structures and how these objects become part of the archaeological record.

Influencers of preservation

Factors affecting the longevity of organic remains, including climate and transformational processes like looting.

Survey archaeology

The physical examination of a geographical region to locate promising archaeological sites.

LiDAR

Light detection and ranging technology that uses laser beams to reveal hidden archaeological features.

Geographic information systems (GIS)

A computer-aided system for collecting, storing, and analyzing spatial data.

Excavation

The systematic uncovering of archaeological remains through the removal of soil and other materials.

Assemblage

Artifacts and structures from a particular time and place at a site.

Digital archaeology

The study and preservation of digital information about the past available on the internet.

Subsistence strategies

Different ways societies meet basic material survival needs, including foraging and food production.

Band

A small social organization characteristic of foragers, with equal access to resources among adults.

Tribe

A larger social organization where members farm or herd, with relatively equal social relations.

Chiefdom

A social organization with a chief and close relatives having privileged access to wealth and power.

State

A stratified society with a defended territory, governmental institutions, and an elite monopoly on force.

Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (1990)

A law requiring federal agencies to protect American Indian and Native Hawaiian human remains and cultural objects.

Feminist archaeology

A research approach exploring the systematic exclusion of women's contributions from the archaeological record.

Gender archaeology

Investigates how people recognize and represent gender differences in society.

Historical archaeology

The study of archaeological sites associated with written records, often post-European contact.

Collaborative archaeology

Projects that study the past by working with descendant communities.

Civic engagement

An approach to understanding the past to address modern social justice issues.

Cosmopolitanism

The ability to move easily between cultural settings, focusing on multi-sited ethnographic research.

Evolution of archaeology’s goals

The shift from reconstructing material remains to understanding cultural processes and interpretive archaeology.