North American Archaeology

Lacking the grand–scale, pre–Columbian alterations to landscapes brought about by the repeated rise and fall of states and empires, the focus of North American archaeologists has been on native foragers and villagers. Since the quincentennial of Columbus′s voyage, North America has also become a hotbed for studies of culture contact, transculturation, and ethnogenesis. These recent developments have reshaped North American archaeology––bridging the divide between history and prehistory and between the practices of everyday life and global cultural change.

North American Archaeology offers readers a rich and informative text organized around central topics and debates within the discipline that are illustrated by case studies from different regions and time periods. Based on the lives of real people and the historical changes that they experienced in the past, these case studies emphasize human agency, cultural practice, the body, issues of inequality, and the politics of archaeological practice. By highlighting current understandings of cultural and historical processes in North America and situating these understandings within a global perspective, this volume will inspire not only students and scholars of North American archaeology but will undoubtedly spark the imaginations of the many individuals interested in the rich history and cultures of North American peoples.

Series Editors′ Preface.

Preface.

List of Figures.

Notes on Contributors.

1. Alternative Histories and North American Archaeology (Timothy R. Pauketat and Diana DiPaolo Loren).

2. The Peopling of North America (J.M. Adovasio and David Pedler).

3. Tempo and Scale in the Evolution of Social Complexity in Western North America: Four Case Studies (Kenneth M. Ames).

4. Structure and Practice in the Archaic Southeast (Kenneth E. Sassaman).

5. The Enigmatic Hopewell of the Eastern Woodlands (William S. Dancey).

6. Farming and Social Complexity in the Northeast (Elizabeth Chilton).

7. The Evolution of the Plains Village Tradition (Dale R. Henning).

8. The Forgotten History of the Mississippians (Timothy R. Pauketat).

9. Beyond the Mold: Questions of Inequality of Southwest Villages (Michelle Hegmon).

10. Chaco and Paquime: Complexity, History, Landscape (Stephen H. Lekson).

11. Social and Physical Landscapes of Contact (Stephen W. Sulliman).

12. Creolization in the French and Sapnish Colonies (Diana DiPaolo Loren).

13. Before the Revolution: Archaeology and the African Diaspora on the Atlantic Seaboard (Theresa A. Singleton).

14. Representing and Repatriating the Past (Joe Watkins).

15. Labor and Class in the American West (Dean J. Saitta).

Glossary.

Index.

Timothy R. Pauketat is Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of Illinois. He has conducted research in the America Bottom, particularly Cahokia, and pioneered research in archaeology of traditions, agency, and political economy. His recent books include Ancient Cahokia and the Mississippians (2004) and The Archaeology of Traditions (2001).

Diana DiPaolo Loren is an Associate Curator at the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University. Her research on French and Spanish colonial sites contributes to the study of issues of creolization, race, identity, and the body.

"[I] think that every instructor of North American prehistory should own this book, because I think it will enrich their lectures and widen their perspectives, whether they agree with the positions taken by the authors or not." ( Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, September 2008)

"North American Archaeology generally achieves its aims; it is an easy read and explains many key concepts in an approachable way for upper level students." (Australian Archaeology)