| Archaeologists as People Lolita Nikolova (Bulgaria/USA) & Claire Smith (Australia) |
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Official website of 6 WAC at http://www.ucd.ie/wac-6/index.html
Late submitted Session Proposal for the Sixth World Archaeological Congress, Dublin, Ireland, 29th June - 4th July 2008. It remain as
a proposal eventually for the next Congress.
Call for participation in a complimentary book: Archaeologists as People.
Ask for the list of initial questions via e-mail (admin@iianthropology.org)
Please also e-mail essays on the topic: Archaeologists, Past and Humanity (e-mail: admin@iianthropology.org)
ARCHAEOLOGISTS AS PEOPLE
Session Abstract
Lolita Nikolova (lnikolova@iianthropology.org) &
Claire Smith (Claire.Smith@flinders.edu.au)
Archaeology is often criticised for focussing on objects, sites, assemblages and contexts-things-rather than the
people behind the things. One of the main artefacts of archaeology is the changing constructs of the discipline that
have been inherited from generation to generation The paradox of this view, of course, is that while archaeological
theory can seem boring, the lives of archaeologists are actually extremely interesting, if not flamboyant and, at times,
enthralling. The debates between Binford and Bordes, for example, over whether differences in Mousterian stone
tool assemblages were due to ethnic differences or were simply a reflection of different activities, not only engaged a
contemporary audience, but are still thought-provoking 30 years later. It is not only the issues themselves that are
interesting, but also the different opinions that archaeologists bring to the material and how this affects their
interpretations of past human behaviour. The challenge for us all is to marry the intrinsic excitement of the discipline
and the achievements of its practitioners to the teaching of issues that have shaped the direction of the discipline
over the last 150 years.
The theme of Archaeologists as People is crucial for the development of the global archaeology as a
humanistic discipline. We need to approach critically and constructively the past, present and future
of the archaeology as a social practice from the point of you how archaeologists as personalities
have contributed to the development of archaeology as a profession. We hope this session will
include the consideration of some of the following questions:
What kind of personalities does archaeology need in its different fields of research and practice?
What is the role of the different formal and non-formal social networks of archaeologists for the
development of their personalities ?
How do the systems of employment and of funding of the archaeologists' projects influence the
archaeologists as people? Do we need changes?
How can we benefit from the development of the social psychology?
How does the anthropology of everydayness influences the self-awareness of the archaeologists
Which are the shortest roads to the success in archaeology?
Which values of archaeologists as people are of special use in the 21st century?
We anticipate that this session will include material ranging from the influence of personal ethics on social justice
agendas and archaeological practice; how the social and political contexts of particular countries influence the
development of archaeological personalities; archaeological biographies (archaeologists dead and alive); the
manner in which the increasing number of Indigenous archaeologists are influencing the disciplines; amateur
visions (those of people who were involved in archaeological ideas or discoveries but whose work has been
dismissed or overlooked by the mainstream); and how individuals negotiate the interface between archaeology and
political action.
Archaeologists as People: Enculturation, Self-awareness, Success and the
Archaeologists
Presentation Abstract by Lolita Nikolova
Last updated Jan 3rd, 2008
Archaeologists are a professional category in the contemporary world that have several important missions: to
document the past, the communicate the past and to express personalities that relate to, produce and reproduce the
best values of the human civilization.
The theme of Archaeologists as People is crucial for the development of the global archaeology as a humanistic
discipline. Our understanding is that we need to approach critically and constructively the past, present and future of
the archaeology as a social practice from the point of you how the archaeologists as personalities have contributed
to the development of the archaeological science and archaeology as a profession.
In our research paper to be represented at the 6th World Archaeological Congress we will try to analyzed the social
and psychological roots of the controversy of the archaeologists as people and will try to answer the following
questions:
What kind of personalities does the archaeology need in its different fields of research and practice?
What is the role of the different formal and non-formal social networks of archaeologists for the development of their
personalities ?
How do the systems of employment and of funding of the archaeologists' projects influence the archaeologists as
people? Do we need changes?
How can we benefit from the development of the social psychology?
How does the anthropology of everydayness influences the self-awareness of the archaeologists?
Which are the shortest roads to the success in archaeology?
Which values of the archaeologists as people are of special value in the 21st century?
a proposal eventually for the next Congress.
Call for participation in a complimentary book: Archaeologists as People.
Ask for the list of initial questions via e-mail (admin@iianthropology.org)
Please also e-mail essays on the topic: Archaeologists, Past and Humanity (e-mail: admin@iianthropology.org)
ARCHAEOLOGISTS AS PEOPLE
Session Abstract
Lolita Nikolova (lnikolova@iianthropology.org) &
Claire Smith (Claire.Smith@flinders.edu.au)
Archaeology is often criticised for focussing on objects, sites, assemblages and contexts-things-rather than the
people behind the things. One of the main artefacts of archaeology is the changing constructs of the discipline that
have been inherited from generation to generation The paradox of this view, of course, is that while archaeological
theory can seem boring, the lives of archaeologists are actually extremely interesting, if not flamboyant and, at times,
enthralling. The debates between Binford and Bordes, for example, over whether differences in Mousterian stone
tool assemblages were due to ethnic differences or were simply a reflection of different activities, not only engaged a
contemporary audience, but are still thought-provoking 30 years later. It is not only the issues themselves that are
interesting, but also the different opinions that archaeologists bring to the material and how this affects their
interpretations of past human behaviour. The challenge for us all is to marry the intrinsic excitement of the discipline
and the achievements of its practitioners to the teaching of issues that have shaped the direction of the discipline
over the last 150 years.
The theme of Archaeologists as People is crucial for the development of the global archaeology as a
humanistic discipline. We need to approach critically and constructively the past, present and future
of the archaeology as a social practice from the point of you how archaeologists as personalities
have contributed to the development of archaeology as a profession. We hope this session will
include the consideration of some of the following questions:
What kind of personalities does archaeology need in its different fields of research and practice?
What is the role of the different formal and non-formal social networks of archaeologists for the
development of their personalities ?
How do the systems of employment and of funding of the archaeologists' projects influence the
archaeologists as people? Do we need changes?
How can we benefit from the development of the social psychology?
How does the anthropology of everydayness influences the self-awareness of the archaeologists
Which are the shortest roads to the success in archaeology?
Which values of archaeologists as people are of special use in the 21st century?
We anticipate that this session will include material ranging from the influence of personal ethics on social justice
agendas and archaeological practice; how the social and political contexts of particular countries influence the
development of archaeological personalities; archaeological biographies (archaeologists dead and alive); the
manner in which the increasing number of Indigenous archaeologists are influencing the disciplines; amateur
visions (those of people who were involved in archaeological ideas or discoveries but whose work has been
dismissed or overlooked by the mainstream); and how individuals negotiate the interface between archaeology and
political action.
Archaeologists as People: Enculturation, Self-awareness, Success and the
Archaeologists
Presentation Abstract by Lolita Nikolova
Last updated Jan 3rd, 2008
Archaeologists are a professional category in the contemporary world that have several important missions: to
document the past, the communicate the past and to express personalities that relate to, produce and reproduce the
best values of the human civilization.
The theme of Archaeologists as People is crucial for the development of the global archaeology as a humanistic
discipline. Our understanding is that we need to approach critically and constructively the past, present and future of
the archaeology as a social practice from the point of you how the archaeologists as personalities have contributed
to the development of the archaeological science and archaeology as a profession.
In our research paper to be represented at the 6th World Archaeological Congress we will try to analyzed the social
and psychological roots of the controversy of the archaeologists as people and will try to answer the following
questions:
What kind of personalities does the archaeology need in its different fields of research and practice?
What is the role of the different formal and non-formal social networks of archaeologists for the development of their
personalities ?
How do the systems of employment and of funding of the archaeologists' projects influence the archaeologists as
people? Do we need changes?
How can we benefit from the development of the social psychology?
How does the anthropology of everydayness influences the self-awareness of the archaeologists?
Which are the shortest roads to the success in archaeology?
Which values of the archaeologists as people are of special value in the 21st century?
Call for participation: Archaeologists as People