The Theory and Practice of Ethnoarcheology with special reference to the Near East - article ; n°1 ; vol.6, pg 55-64

Watson P.J.

Description

Paléorient - Année 1980 - Volume 6 - Numéro 1 - Pages 55-64
Ethnoarcheology, broadly defined, refers to any use by archeologists of published or unpublished data drawn from ethnographie sources and used to aid archeological interpretation. Recently there has been a burst of interest among archeologists in obtaining relevant ethnographie data by undertaking fieldwork in living communities themselves. The theory and practice of ethnoarcheology are discussed, and a summary is provided of results from some recent studies in the living archeology of the Near East.
L'ethnoarchéologie, prise au sens large, a trait à l'utilisation par les archéologues, de données, publiées ou non, provenant de sources ethnographiques utilisées dans le but d'aider à l'interprétation archéologique. Les archéologues se sont récemment rendu compte de l'intérêt que pouvaient présenter des données ethnographiques pertinentes qui résultent d'un travail sur le terrain dans les communautés vivantes mêmes. La discussion porte sur la théorie et sur la pratique de l'ethnoarchéologie : l'article nous offre un récapitulatif des résultats tirés de quelques études récentes de « l'archéologie vivante » au Proche-Orient.
10 pages
Source : Persée ; Ministère de la jeunesse, de l’éducation nationale et de la recherche, Direction de l’enseignement supérieur, Sous-direction des bibliothèques et de la documentation.

Informations

• Publié par: PALEORIENT
• Publié le: 01 janvier 1980
• Nombre de lectures: 24
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

Patty Jo Watson
The Theory and Practice of Ethnoarcheology with special
reference to the Near East
In: Paléorient. 1980, Vol. 6. pp. 55-64.
Abstract
Ethnoarcheology, broadly defined, refers to any use by archeologists of published or unpublished data drawn from ethnographie
sources and used to aid archeological interpretation. Recently there has been a burst of interest among archeologists in obtaining
relevant ethnographie data by undertaking fieldwork in living communities themselves. The theory and practice of
ethnoarcheology are discussed, and a summary is provided of results from some recent studies in the "living archeology" of the
Near East.
Résumé
L'ethnoarchéologie, prise au sens large, a trait à l'utilisation par les archéologues, de données, publiées ou non, provenant de
sources ethnographiques utilisées dans le but d'aider à l'interprétation archéologique. Les archéologues se sont récemment
rendu compte de l'intérêt que pouvaient présenter des données ethnographiques pertinentes qui résultent d'un travail sur le
terrain dans les communautés vivantes mêmes. La discussion porte sur la théorie et sur la pratique de l'ethnoarchéologie :
l'article nous offre un récapitulatif des résultats tirés de quelques études récentes de « l'archéologie vivante » au Proche-Orient.
Citer ce document / Cite this document :
Watson Patty Jo. The Theory and Practice of Ethnoarcheology with special reference to the Near East. In: Paléorient. 1980, Vol.
6. pp. 55-64.
doi : 10.3406/paleo.1980.4259
http://www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/article/paleo_0153-9345_1980_num_6_1_4259Vol 1980 PALEORIENT
THE THEORY
AND PRACTICE OF ETHNOARCHEOLOGY
WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE NEAR EAST
P.J WATSON
ABSTRACT Ethnoarcheology broadly defined refers to any use by archeologists of published or unpublished data drawn from
ethnographic sources and used to aid archeological interpretation Recently there has been burst of interest among archeologists in obtaining
relevant ethnographic data by undertaking fieldwork in living communities themselves The theory and practice of ethnoarcheology are
discussed and summary is provided of results from some recent studies in the living archeology of the Near East
RESUME ethnoarcheologie prise au sens large trait utilisation par les archéologues de données publiées ou non provenant de
sources ethnographiques utilisées dans le but aider interprétation archéologique Les archéologues se sont récemment rendu compte de
intérêt que pouvaient présenter des données ethnographiques pertinentes qui résultent un travail sur le terrain dans les communautés
vivantes mêmes La discussion porte sur la théorie et sur la pratique de ethnoarchéologie article nous offre un récapitulatif des résultats tirés
de quelques études récentes de archéologie vivante au Proche-Orient
DEFINITIONS subject matter being investigated then archeologists
must supplement and complement the data base by
doing ethnographic fieldwork themselves In other The word ethnoarcheology is inherently ambi
words the fundamental issue is one of relevant data guous and is variously defined but there is considerable
Once problem or problem-area is defined then we merit in recent suggestions by Gould and Stiles
must be prepared to go to the data sources wherever that the term be used to encompass systematic compari
they may be found in time or space that will provide sons for purposes of archeological interpretation or
information to solve the problem In the case of eth model building of ethnographic with archeological
noarcheology archeologists not only carry out field- data and patterning The data may come
work in living societies but also some of them are from published sources from archival material inclu
making unique methodological contributions to study ding museum or other collections) from experiments
of the relationships between material culture and its from field observations in living society or from some
social or behavioral matrix 4) combination of these Field observations in living socie
ties are also referred to as living archeology action
archeology or archeological ethnography and these
are the primary focus of this paper THEORY
Although the above definition of ethnoarcheology is
logical and useful it is well to remember that this Fundamental to consideration of archeological inter
approach whatever it may be called to understanding pretation is the fact that barring use of time machine
the past is only one of large number of potential data we can never know the past directly We can describe
sources archeologists may need to explore Ethnoar and explain the past only via observations made in the
cheology is not panacea for the ills of archeological present and via the uniformitarian assumption not
interpretation any more than is say settlement archeo that there is one-to-one correspondance between pre
logy Archeology is of necessity and by definition sent events and processes and those of the past but
highly eclectic discipline its practitioners require detai rather that we can attain knowledge of past events or
led data and models from wide variety of sources processes by observing present-day ones then reasoning
such as botany zoology geography geology and eco systematically from those observations to
nomics and numerous subdivisions of these One of the remains left by the past events and processes
these sources is ethnography living societies as known On the basis of perceived similarity in form between
through published and unpublished information If that ethnographically known and archeologically recovered
information is inadequate for particular problem or materials the archeologist infers similarity offunction
GOULD 1974 29 1980 3-4 WATSON LEBLANC and REDMAN 1971 114-121
STILES 1977 88 LEONE 1973 KRAMER 1979 in press
55 THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF ETHNOARCHEOLOGY
derived from ethnographies of African Bushmen to help There is considerable amount of literature generated
interpret the lifeways of Upper Paleolithic hunter-gathe by prehistorians discussing this procedure 5) but the
rers in the Near East) situation can be very briefly summarized as follows
It is usually believed that direct historical analogy is An analogy however simple or complex it may be
better i.e. stronger more secure more likely to be this feature is hearth vs this archeological culture
correct than general comparative analogy Certainly the represents the remains of Polynesian-style chiefdom)
more closely-related and the more similar the ethnogra is an hypothesis that except for such routine identifi
phically documented situation is to the archeologically cations as the hearth in the above example which are
documented one the more abundant plausible analogies usually readily accepted by colleagues must be
will be But once the archeological material is beyond tested against the archeological record before it can be
the recognition of living members of the ethnographi accepted as probably correct In other words ethnogra
cally documented group 10) the two kinds of analogy phic information is simply very rich source of hypo
are logically equivalent Both are simply sources of thetical interpretations for archeological material left by
hypotheses facilitating interpretation of archeological extinct human groups These interpretations can be
materials There is perhaps in some sense greater checked or tested by inferring consequences from them
degree of probability that hypothetical interpretations that should be evidenced in the archeological record if
drawn from direct historical sources are more valid than the interpretations are correct Hill provides an
those drawn from sources remote in time and example of how such testing can be done in an actual
space l) but this proposition although intuitively very archeological situation Should evidence for the inferred
plausible and appealing is not well demonstrated consequences indeed be forthcoming from further exa
mination of the archeological record then the interpre number of writers have strongly cautioned archeo-
tation is strengthened To assert that series of positive logists about the pitfalls of overreliance or naive re
outcomes to such tests proves the truth of the original liance on ethnographic analogy 12 Many of these
hypothesis is to commit an error in logic affirming the cautionary points are well-taken although clear recogni
consequent) but in practice most of us certainly do tion of the analogies as hypotheses to be tested rather
tend to accept such tested propositions as proven unless than as ready-made interpretations obviates many of the
further work casts doubt on them difficulties Gould has recently elaborated the cautionary
theme in what believe to be somewhat misleading It is widely recognized that there are two kinds of
way 13 He notes as have various of the authors cited analogy the direct historical and the general compara
above that many prehistoric societies have no ethnogra tive The former is possible in those parts of the world
phically known counterparts This is certainly true and where prehistory developed directly i