A Study Of The Socio Political Context Of Japanese Archaeology

"This thesis uses a study of the relationship between Japanese archaeology and its social, political and economic context to explore the issue of relativism versus positivism in archaeological interpretation. This is done through (1) a historical analysis of the growth of Japanese archaeological work and buried cultural properties administration prior to and after 1945, (2) a description of how Japanese political and business elites have used archaeological sites and information from the Asuka area to create a symbol of the Japanese people's national identity and (3) a presentation of opinions of archaeologists working in the buried cultural properties administrative system, during the mid-1980s, about the role of archaeology in contemporary Japan. This analysis of the history of Japanese archaeology shows that archaeological data have been used to rewrite a new Japanese history from 1945, but that archaeologists, while retaining control of the organization of archaeological research, may not control how archaeological information is used by the society as a whole. The study concludes that neither an extreme positivist nor an extreme relativist position is valid when discussing the relationship between archaeology and its social context." --

The Handbook of East and Southeast Asian Archaeology focuses on the material culture and lifeways of the peoples of prehistoric and early historic East and Southeast Asia; their origins, behavior and identities as well as their biological, linguistic and cultural differences and commonalities. Emphasis is placed upon the interpretation of material culture to illuminate and explain social processes and relationships as well as behavior, technology, patterns and mechanisms of long-term change and chronology, in addition to the intellectual history of archaeology as a discipline in this diverse region. The Handbook augments archaeologically-focused chapters contributed by regional scholars by providing histories of research and intellectual traditions, and by maintaining a broadly comparative perspective. Archaeologically-derived data are emphasized with text-based documentary information, provided to complement interpretations of material culture. The Handbook is not restricted to art historical or purely descriptive perspectives; its geographical coverage includes the modern nation-states of China, Mongolia, Far Eastern Russia, North and South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Burma, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and East Timor.

Theory in Archaeology tackles important questions about the diversity in archaeological theory and practice which face the discipline in the 1990s. What is the relationship between theory and practice? How does `World' archaeological theory differ from `European'? Can one be a good practitioner without theory? This unique book brings together contributors from many different countries and continents to provide the first truly global perspective on archaeological theory. They examine the nature of material culture studies and look at problems of ethnicity, regionalism, and nationality. They consider, too, another fundamental of archaeological inquiry: can our research be objective, or must `the past' always be a relativistic construction? Theory in Archaeology is an important book whose authors bring together very different perceptions of the past. Its wide scope and interest will attract an international readership among students and academics alike.

This innovative collection of essays from an international range of contributors describes various means of preserving, protecting and presenting vital cultural resources within the context of economic development, competing claims of "ownership" of particular cultural resources, modern uses of structures and space, and other aspects of late twentieth-century life.

The Constructed Past presents group of powerful images of the past, termed in the book construction sites. At these sites, full scale, three-dimensional images of the past have been created for a variety of reasons including archaeological experimentation, tourism and education. Using various case studies, the contributors frankly discuss the aims, problems and mistakes experienced with reconstruction. They encourage the need for on-going experimentation and examine the various uses of the sites; political, economical and educational.

Bruce Trigger is a critical analyst and architect of social evolutionary theory, and an Egyptologist. This work discusses various approaches to the interpretation of archaeological data in relation to Trigger's fundamental intellectual contributions.

Protecting Traditional Places Located on Private Property in Western Washington - Ellen Prendergast-Kennedy Archaeology in Social Context: The Influence of Nationalism on the Discussions of the Ainu First Prize Graduate Student Paper, Northwest Anthropological Conference, 2004 -Shingo Hamada Malaria in Africa: Is America Part of the Solution or Part of the Problem, First Prize Undergraduate Student Paper, 58th Northwest Anthropological Conference, 2004 Keirsten E. Snover Abstracts of Papers Presented at the 58th Annual Meeting of the Northwest Anthropological Conference, 2005, Spokane Preserving Our Ideals - Franz Boas

What do we value about the past? In formulating policies about heritage preservation, that is the inevitable question, and deals not only with economic value but also the intangible value to individuals, communities and society as a whole. This interdisciplinary group of scholars—anthropologists, archaeologists, architects, educators, lawyers, heritage administrators, policy analysts, and consultants—make the first attempt to define and assess heritage values on a local, national and global level. Chapters range from the theoretical to policy frameworks to case studies of heritage practice, written by scholars from eight countries.