Description
All over the world, people have swapped their time-honoured hunter-gatherer mode of existence for a sedentary way of living based on agriculture. This crucial step – Childe has spoken of the ‘Neolithic revolution’ – opened the way to the existence of modern societies such as ours. Two archaeologically important regions, both with a strong tradition in Dutch archaeological research, are the ancient Near East and the Caribbean area. The prehistoric societies in these two regions reveal a series of intriguing contrasts and correspondences.
In this course, we obtain a historical-cultural overview of the Near East and the Caribbean during the transition from hunter-gatherer to farmer. We will explore the socio-political and ideological composition of the prehistoric societies that inhabited these regions.
Course objectives
Knowledge of the cultural history of the Near East and the Caribbean during the transition from hunter-gatherer to farmer;
Insight into the primary interpretative discussions with respect to this transition, specifically around the themes of village composition, domestication, trade and exchange, ritual and social organisation;
Knowledge of current literature, and the current archaeological debate on these themes;
Comparative insights with respect to correspondences and differences both in cultural developments in the two regions as well as in archaeological approaches.
Timetable
Course schedule details can be found in the bachelor 2 time schedule.
Mode of instruction
Lectures.
Course load
The course load will be distributed as follows:
28 lectures (14 Near East & 14 Caribbean) (2 ects);
420 pages of literature (3 ects).
Assessment method
Written examination (essay-type questions).
All exam dates (exams, re-sits, paper deadlines etc.) can be found in the examination schedule.
Reading list
Literature will be made available prior to the lectures via BlackBoard.
Registration
Registration for the course is not necessary, registration for the exam is mandatory. For instructions, see the Registration in uSis page.
Exchange and Study Abroad students, please see the Prospective students website for information on how to apply.
Registration 'Contractonderwijs'
All information (costs, registration, entry requirements, etc.) for those who are interested in taking this course as a Contractstudent is on the Contractonderwijs Archeologie webpage (in Dutch).
Contact
For more information about this course, please contact mw. dr. J.A. Mol.
Remarks
Compulsory attendance.