Book
Archaeological approaches to the present: models for reconstructing the past
Academic Press • New York • Published In 1977 • Pages: xvi, 259
By: Yellen, John E..
AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
This source, a revision of the author's 1974 Ph.D. dissertation, examines several aspects of the relationship between archaeology and ethnography, dealing for the most part with ways in which the archaeologist may more fruitfully employ ethnographic data to evaluate and sharpen his own analytic techniques. To this end Yellen suggests several analytical frameworks which he believes may prove of value in critically evaluating assumptions that archaeologists often make, and suggests other specific techniques that may aid in individual site interpretation. As an adjunct to these theoretical interpretations the author provides a unique body of ethnographic data collected from field observations and interviews at sixteen San camps which he visited during the years of his fieldwork. These data relate to the social composition of the camps, water supply, foods and food quest activities, and perhaps most significantly of all (from the standpoint of the archaeologist), a detailed analysis of debris left behind at abandoned campsites and their 'scatter' or dispersal patterns within the camping area. These patterns, based on contemporary analysis, seem related to various economic activities within the community, (e. g., food debris related to activities of the nuclear family, parts of toys with children's play areas, etc.), a factor which may be of some significance to archaeologists in their interpretation of artifact dispersion at a given site. The detailed analysis of this information is summarized in three appendices, with a series of end maps showing the physical aspects and dispersal patterns of each of the sixteen camps studied.
- SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
- Theoretical orientation in research and its results
- Collecting
- Hunting and trapping
- Refuse disposal and sanitary facilities
- Community structure
- Daily routine
- Settlement patterns
- Water supply
- Diet
- cultureCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
- San
- HRAF PubDateThe date HRAF published the document
- 2005
- RegionThe area the document pertains to
- Africa
- Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
- Southern Africa
- Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
- Book
- Evaluation
- Creator TypeThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
- Archaeologist
- Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
- John Beierle ; 1988
- Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
- 1968-1976
- Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
- 1968-1975
- Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
- Dobe and Duda region, Botswana
- NotesAdditional notes
- John E. Yellen
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 254-259)
- LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
- 77004886
- LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
- San (African people)