IngentaConnect Myth of the Anasazi: Archaeological Language, Collaborative Commu...

Author: Colwell-Chanthaphonh, Chip¹

Source: Public Archaeology, Volume 8, Numbers 2-3, August 2009 , pp. 191-207(17)

Abstract:

'Anasazi', the term archaeologists have used since the 1930s to describe the ancient Pueblo inhabitants of the American Southwest, is today a contested word — contested for misconstruing the Navajo concept of Anaasází, misrepresenting the Pueblo past, misleading the public, and misdirecting archaeological research. This essay examines how this single word, when unpacked, can provide insights into the larger issues of identity, affinity, and authority infused in archaeological practice. I argue that the fundamental questions about archaeology's operation in the world are prompted by — and perhaps ultimately can be resolved by — collaborating with descendant communities through methods that move across anthropology's disciplinary boundaries, from archaeology to ethnography. Who is — and who should be — empowered to interpret the ancient past? This is the tangled question at the heart of the controversy over 'Anasazi'. Its answer will help not only elucidate archaeology's labyrinthine past with Native peoples, but also illuminate the potential for the discipline's engaged and ethical future.

Keywords: AMERICAN SOUTHWEST; PUEBLO; NAVAJO; LANGUAGE; POLITICS; ETHICS

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1179/175355309X457222

Affiliations: 1: Denver Museum of Nature and Science, Department of Anthropology, 2001 Colorado Blvd, Denver, CO 80205, USA;, Email: Chip.C-C@dmns.org

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Myth of the Anasazi: Archaeological Language, Collaborative Communities, and the Contested Past