Theme:
5. Theories and methods in archaeology: interactions between disciplines
Session format:
Regular session
Title:
Lost in Transmission - Following Knowledge in Hunter-Gatherer Societies [PaM]
Content:
In current archaeology, artefacts are no longer viewed as fragments of archaeological “cultures” in the same sense as during the culture historical period, but instead we attempt to reason about the people who produced and implemented these objects. The technologies and techniques that make up the basis for prehistoric tool production, like any other technical traditions, result from the accumulation of knowledge and know-how. In order to be adopted widely enough to leave an archaeological signature, such knowledge had to spread, through mobility and migrations, diffusion of ideas or a combination of the two. Yet oftentimes, the discussion ends on such a matter-of-fact point without any further enquiry into the mechanisms behind knowledge transmission.
In this session we would like to address the transmission of knowledge in hunter-gatherer societies through the study of their material culture. Participants are invited to present papers relating to both horizontal and vertical transmission, as well as to explore possible combinations between these two directions. We wish to discuss a variety of perspectives, such as apprenticeship processes and communities of practice. Related questions also include the spread of traditions through mechanisms of innovation, diffusion and adoption, technological change over multiple geographical scales and the role of social networks in the diffusion of technical know-how.
The ultimate goal of this session is thus to share, compare and explore strategies for studying knowledge transmission in regards to relevant archaeological materials, such as lithic, osseous, or ceramic industries, using the methodological framework of technology. We would therefore welcome the participation of researchers with a wide range of foci, methodologies and approaches, such as ethno(archaeo)logy, comparative case studies, technological analyses, chaîne opératoire, (paleo)sociology, or agent-based modelling, in order to ultimately join our efforts to approach the extremely vast and complex topic of knowledge transmission in hunter-gatherer societies.
Keywords:
hunter-gatherers, knowledge, transmission, know-how, technology, Learning
Session associated with MERC:
no
Session associated with CIfA:
no
Session associated with SAfA:
no
Session associated with CAA:
no
Session associated with DGUF:
no
Session associated with other:
PaM
Main organiser:
Markus Wild (Germany) 1,2
Co-organisers:
Sandra Söderlind (Germany) 3
Elisa Caron-Laviolette (France) 4,2
Affiliations:
1. ZBSA (Centre for Baltic and Scandinavian Archaeology)
2. UMR 7041 ArScAn (Ethnologie préhistorique)
3. Institut für Ur- und Frühgeschichte der Universität Kiel
4. Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne
THIS SESSION CAN NOT BE SELECTED AT THIS MOMENT