Making journeys is one of the oldest human behaviours. As a species we have shown a particular capacity to settle in and adapt to a range of climates, landscapes, and natural environments, far exceeding most other species. Migration has also characterised our more recent pasts and been the mechanism for the spread of innovative technologies, social practices, and languages. As a consequence, migration has long been of interest to archaeologists and others who model or reconstruct past human practices. Yet, the nature of these migrations, their textures, temporalities and the experience of them by past people has rarely been considered. In this presentation, Catherine will discuss the history of migration studies in our narratives of the past and suggest a bottom-up approach to ancient migrations, focussed on the interpersonal and intercommunity politics of the people who undertook them.
This presentation serves as a book launch for her new co-authored monograph Negotiating Migrations published open access by Bloomsbury Academic (https://www.bloomsbury.com/au/negotiating-migrations-9781350427662/)
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https://anu.zoom.us/j/82539025901?pwd=QnYxMXJOWlFlc3E1WXpYUG82UGNqZz09
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Speaker
Catherine J. Frieman
School of Anthropology and Archaeology
Catherine J. Frieman is an associate professor of European archaeology in the School of Anthropology and Archaeology at the Australian National University. She is a material culture and technology studies specialist, and has conducted research in western Europe, the UK, Southeast Asia and Australia. Her research interests include the nature of archaeological enquiry, patterns of innovation and resistance, the role of aDNA for modelling past societies, deep time mobilities, and prehistoric stone tools. Her most recent monograph is Negotiating Migrations: The Archaeology and Politics of Mobility (Bloomsbury Academic, 2024). Her other monographs cover topics as diverse as skeuomorphism in the archaeological record, Bronze Age maritime trade, the deep history of innovation, and archaeological method and theory.