Department of Anthropology and Applied Archaeology

Anthropology, the study of humanity, past and present, has four subdivisions:

• Archaeology: the study of past cultures
• Biological Anthropology: the study of human diversity and the evolution of the human family
• Cultural Anthropology: the study of living humans and their culture
• Linguistic Anthropology: the comparative study of the relationship between language and culture

Using the greater field of anthropology as a foundation, these four subfields unite the many studies of peoples into a meaningful whole. Because of our focus on human interaction, anthropology training provides applicable skills for the fields of education, industry, business, and national and international government service.

Research plays an important role in our department. We place heavy emphasis on pre-Hispanic Native American archaeological studies in the Plains and the Southwestern United States. Our location provides a unique vantage point to study America's earliest cultures. Our faculty members are involved in both qualitative and quantitative research within their disciplines, including archaeology, lithic technology, biological anthropology, ceramic analysis, cultural anthropology, historic preservation, and cultural resource management.

Our classes are taught in a new building with dedicated labs for osteology, forensic anthropology, geoarchaeology, ceramics, cultural anthropology, curation and imaging. We supplement instruction with an anthropological research division known as the Agency for Conservation Archaeology, as well as the Blackwater Draw Museum and Blackwater Draw National Historical Landmark site (the Clovis archaeological type site).

We hold field schools during select summers, at a variety of locations. We also bring in a notable individual to connect students, faculty and community members with the greater world of anthropology during the annual Cynthia Irwin-Williams Lectureship. Our anthropology club, Mu Alpha Nu, provides a variety of social and professional opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students.

We offer an undergraduate major in anthropology, an undergraduate major in forensic science with an emphasis in forensic anthropology, an undergraduate minor in anthropology, and a graduate major in anthropology. All emphasis areas of undergraduate anthropology degrees will be phased out as of July 1, 2023.

B.A. or B.S., Anthropology  Forensic Anthropology  M.A., Anthropology

Department of Anthropology and Applied Archaeology Social Media:

For more Information