Re: Anthro/Archaeology Depts combined

Thomas Kavanagh (tkavanag@indiana.edu)
8 Nov 1995 18:34:06 GMT

kdever@calstatela.edu wrote:
>My university combines the fields of Anthropology under the major Anthropology.
>That is to say that Archaeology degrees are not offered but the
>Archaeology classes are offered by the Anthro dept. Is anyone in a
>similar situation? I am wondering what constraints that puts on
>the development of Archeo students if any?

None, if, as Binford said, archy is anthro. I beleive that it is very
important for archys to be fluent in ethno theory, including the
problems. All too often, when trying to "explain" a set of archy
features, they will just go to the book shelves and mechanistically apply
the "theory" without giving it much thought. This is particularly true in
the use of the Sahlins-Service/Fried political typologies.

The University of New Mexico has the combined 4-field approach.
Unfortunately, the archies are in a separate building and seldom take the
ethno classes.
tk