Are We Not all Archaeologists? A Plea for Archaeology Beyond Excavation In Tanzania
Issue: Vol 2 No. 2 (2015)
Journal: Journal of Contemporary Archaeology
Subject Areas: Archaeology
Abstract:
Archaeology in Tanzania survived under the history department for decades; thus, excavation has been the major distinction between historians and archaeologists. This has also affected how archaeology is viewed among archaeologists themselves who consider excavation based researches as ‘proper’ archaeology with less recognition of professional archaeologists who use documents and oral history without excavation. This essay is a plea for Tanzanian archaeologists to recognize archaeologies beyond the principles of excavation. The essay will begin by discussing the practices of archaeology in the country before turning to the plea for recognition of all professional archaeological researches, with or without excavation, as forms of archaeology contributing to the discipline.
Author: Nancy Alexander Rushohora
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