Ethnoarchaeology
ANTH 197 (Special Topics)
Winter 2009
Instructor: Dr. Matthew C. Curtis
Class Meeting Time and Location: Tuesdays and Thursdays from 12:30 PM to 1:45 PM in 1021 HSSB
Email: mcurtis@anth.ucsb.edu
Instructor office location and office hours: 2067 HSSB, Tuesdays and Thursdays 2:15 - 3:30 PM (or by appointment)
Course webpage: http://www.nfomedia.com/anth197/
Course Objectives:
This course provides a survey of theoretical approaches and field methods in ethnoarchaeology, introducing students to
the breadth and intricacies of ethnoarchaeological research and analogical reasoning in archaeology. Ethnoarchaeological
research involves the study of ethnographic material culture of living communities from archaeological perspectives. In
its most basic sense ethnoarchaeology is the study of living societies in the effort to explore and understand the behavioral
relationships that underlie and inform the production of material culture both past and present. Thus, ethnoarchaeologists
examine aspects of material culture in living societies, making use of analogical reasoning, inference, and metonymy to
aid in interpreting the archaeology of past societies. Ethnoarchaeology is, therefore, a research strategy that includes a
wide range of approaches to investigating the relationships of material culture to larger cultural phenomena, or culture
groups as a whole. Ethnoarchaeologists explore the contexts of material culture among living communities and the
contexts relating to how material culture enters the archaeological record. By doing this archaeologists are able to
improve both our understanding of archaeological concepts and interpretations. Ethnoarchaeological research is practiced
by anthropologists possessing a range of theoretical orientations, including processual, post-processual, and behavioral
ecological. As a whole, ethnoarchaeology has influenced greatly the development of methods and theory in
anthropological archaeology over the last forty years.
We will focus on ethnoarchaeology’s contributions to and place within anthropology and focus on the relationships
between archaeology and ethnography to examine how ethnographic data and context might be utilized to understand the
past more completely and how the archaeologist might study material culture behavior in living contexts. Students will
read examples of ethnoarchaeological research carried out in the Americas, Africa, Asia, Europe, and Australia and
Oceania. The contributions of ethnoarchaeological research to a variety of issues in archaeology are assessed, including:
hunter-gatherer mobility, subsistence practices, gender, landscape archaeology, site formation processes, operating
sequences, middle-range theory, artifacts and style, settlement systems, ceramic production and use, lithic production and
use, specialist craft production, metallurgy, site architecture, mortuary practices, trade and exchange, experimentation,
ideology, identity, and symbolism. In addition, the course includes several anthropological films documenting
ethnoarchaeological research and relevant illustrated examples from Dr. Curtis’ ethnoarchaeological research experiences
in Africa will be presented throughout the academic quarter.
Course meetings will include both lectures and seminar style discussions led by the instructor and class participants.
Students will complete four reading questions assignments, design, write, and present a proposal for an
ethnoarchaeological project that could be carried out in the local community, and will complete a take-home written final
examination. Course readings include a comprehensive text reviewing the history, methods, and theoretical implications
of ethnoarchaeological practice (David and Kramer 2001) one recent case study (Arthur 2007) , and additional weekly
readings in pdf files located on the course webpage.
Note: This is a demanding, advanced upper-division undergraduate course taught in a lecture and seminar style setting.
The course requires substantial reading, writing, and student participation. It is expected that students will have
completed both the lower division department course in archaeology (ANTH 3 or ANTH 3SS) as well as at least one
upper division archaeology course (particularly helpful are ANTH 100 Basic Archaeological Concepts, ANTH 112Z
Theoretical Approaches in Contemporary Archaeology, and ANTH 165 History of Archaeology). This is NOT a course
for students without any experience in anthropological archaeology!
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Required Texts:
John W. Arthur (2007) Living with Pottery: Ethnoarchaeology among the Gamo of Southwest Ethiopia. University of
Utah Press.
Nicholas David and Carol Kramer (2001) Ethnoarchaeology in Action. Cambridge University Press.
Weekly Readings in PDF files located on the course webpage: http://www.nfomedia.com/anth197/PDFReadingFiles.nfo
Course Webpage:
This course makes active use of a webpage on nfomedia.com.
http://www.nfomedia.com/anth197/
Each student must register and login to the webpage by the second class meeting (January 8). Important announcements,
PowerPoint lecture files, class handouts, Internet links, etc. are located on the course webpage. There is a course
password needed for initial registration on the nfomedia.com site. The password is: ethnoarchaeologyanth197
Grading and Course Requirements:
Student course grades will be based on the following components:
(1) Four Reading Questions Assignments (50 points each for a total of 200 possible points) = 20% of course grade
(2) Ethnoarchaeology Project Proposal and Presentation (300 points for written proposal and 100 points for class
presentation of proposal for a total of 400 possible points) = 40% of course grade
(3) Take Home Written Final Exam (400 possible points) = 40% of course grade
Grades will be calculated based upon a total of 1,000 possible earned points. Letter grades will be assigned for the
following point totals:
970 to 1000 points = A+
930 to 969 points = A
900 to 929 points = A870 to 899 points = B+
830 to 869 points = B
800 to 829 points = B770 to 799 points = C+
730 to 769 points = C
700 to 729 points = C670 to 699 points = D+
630 to 669 points = D
600 to 629 points = DBelow 600 points = F
Note:
No make-up exams or late reading summaries and project proposal assignments will be given / accepted, except in cases
of documented medical or family emergencies, or an official University excuse.
Academic Integrity:
The classroom is a special environment in which students and faculty come together to promote learning and intellectual
growth. It is essential to this learning environment that respect for the rights of others seeking to learn, respect for the
professionalism of the instructor, and the general goals of academic freedom are maintained. Differences of viewpoint or
concerns should be expressed in terms that are supportive of the learning process, creating an environment in which
students and faculty may learn to reason with clarity and compassion, to share of themselves without losing their
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identities, and to develop an understanding of the community in which they live. Student conduct that disrupts the
learning process shall not be tolerated and may lead to disciplinary action and/or removal from class.
Please see the 2008-2009 UCSB General Catalog concerning student conduct and responsibility. This instructor and the
University of California take seriously offenses such as cheating, fabrication, and plagiarism. Any act of academic
dishonesty is unacceptable and will be met with disciplinary action.
Important services available to support students at UCSB:
Campus Learning Assistance Service: Telephone: 893-3269. CLAS helps students increase their mastery of course
material through course-specific tutoring and academic skills development. CLAS has tutorial groups and drop-in tutoring
schedules posted on web site: www.clas.ucsb.edu. Sign up for services at the CLAS main office, Building 477, 9-5 daily.
Counseling & Career Services: Telephone: 893-4411, www.counseling.ucsb.edu) offers counseling for personal and
career concerns, self-help information and connections to off-campus mental health resources. Disabled Students
Program: Telephone: 893-2668; www.sa.ucsb.edu. DSP provides academic support services to eligible students with
temporary and permanent disabilities. Please let me know if you need special classroom accommodations due to a
disability. You must register with DSP prior to receiving these accommodations.
Course Outline:
Week 1 (January 6 and January 8):
Lecture/Reading/Film/Discussion Topics:
Introduction to course; The Origins and History of Ethnoarchaeology; Core Concepts in
Ethnoarchaeology; Ethnoarchaeological Theory; Ethnography and Material Culture Studies; Experimental
Archaeology and Actualistic Studies; Fieldwork and Ethics
Assigned Readings:
David and Kramer Chapter 1, Chapter 3
Week 1 Weekly Readings in PDF Files http://www.nfomedia.com/anth197/PDFReadingFiles.nfo
Assignments Due:
None
Week 2 (January 13 and January 15):
Lecture/Reading/Film/Discussion Topics:
Analogy, Inference, and Metonymy; Ethnography and Material Culture Studies; Ethnoarchaeology and
the Processual vs. Post-Processual debates; Behavioral Ecology
Assigned Readings:
David and Kramer Chapter 2
Week 2 Weekly Readings in PDF Files http://www.nfomedia.com/anth197/PDFReadingFiles.nfo
Assignments Due:
None
Week 3 (January 20 and January 22):
Lecture/Reading/Film/Discussion Topics:
Issues of Taphonomy; Middle Range Theory; Cycling, Curation, and Lifespan; Abandonment;
Assigned Readings:
David and Kramer Chapter 4, Chapter 5
Week 3 Weekly Readings in PDF Files http://www.nfomedia.com/anth197/PDFReadingFiles.nfo
Assignments Due:
***Reading Questions Assignment 1 Due at the Beginning of Class on January 22***
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Week 4 (January 27 and January 29): Function, Style, and Symbols
Lecture/Reading/Film/Discussion Topics:
Functions and Operating Sequences of Artifacts; Typology and Taxonomy; Style and Function; Style and
Boundary Marking; “Symbols in Action,” Symbolic Reservoirs
Assigned Readings:
David and Kramer chapter 6, chapter 7
Week 4 Weekly Readings in PDF Files http://www.nfomedia.com/anth197/PDFReadingFiles.nfo
Assignments Due:
***Short Description of Project Proposal Due at the Beginning of Class on January 27***
***Reading Questions Assignment 2 Due at the Beginning of Class on January 29***
Week 5 (February 3 and February 5):
Lecture/Reading/Film/Discussion Topics:
Craft Specialization, Caste Formation and Identity; Gender; Household Archaeology; Trade and
Exchange
Assigned Readings:
Arthur Introduction, Chapters 1-4
David and Kramer chapter 11, chapter 12
Week 5 Weekly Readings in PDF Files http://www.nfomedia.com/anth197/PDFReadingFiles.nfo
Assignments Due:
***Reading Questions Assignment 3 Due at the Beginning of Class on February 5***
Week 6 (February 10 and February 12):
Lecture/Reading/Film/Discussion Topics:
CONTINUED from Week 5: Craft Specialization, Caste Formation and Identity; Gender; Household
Archaeology; Trade and Exchange
Assigned Readings:
Arthur chapters 5-8
Week 6 Weekly Readings in PDF Files http://www.nfomedia.com/anth197/PDFReadingFiles.nfo
Assignments Due:
***Short Written Update on Status of Project Proposal Assignment Due by February 12***
Week 7 (February 17 and February 19):
Lecture/Reading/Film/Discussion Topics:
Subsistence and Diet; Settlement Systems and Patterns; Site Structures and Activities; Hunter-Gatherer
Mobility; Nomadism; Sedentism; Optimization; Food Production and Farming; Pastoralists;
Intensification Issues
Assigned Readings:
David and Kramer chapter 5, chapter 8, chapter 9
Week 7 Weekly Readings in PDF Files http://www.nfomedia.com/anth197/PDFReadingFiles.nfo
Assignments Due:
***Reading Questions Assignment 4 Due at the Beginning of Class on February 19***
Week 8 (February 24 and February 26):
Lecture/Reading/Film/Discussion Topics:
Vernacular Architecture; Mortuary Practices, Status, and Ideology; Ideology, Dominance, and Resistance;
Integrating Objects, Technologies, and Social Representations
Assigned Readings:
David and Kramer chapter 10, chapter 13
Week 8 Weekly Readings in PDF Files http://www.nfomedia.com/anth197/PDFReadingFiles.nfo
Assignments Due:
None
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Week 9 (March 3 and March 5):
Lecture/Reading/Film/Discussion Topics:
The relevance of ethnoarchaeology; Conclusions
Assigned Readings:
David and Kramer chapter 14
Assignments Due:
***Ethnoarchaeology Project Proposal Due at the Beginning of Class on March 5***
Week 10 (March 10 and March 12):
Lecture/Reading/Film/Discussion Topics:
None
Assigned Readings:
None
Assignments due:
***Ethnoarchaeology Project Proposal Presentations on March 10 and March 12***
Week 11 (Finals Week):
***Take Home Final Exam due by 2:00 PM on Thursday, March 19***
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