Exploring the Intersection of Ethnography and Technology: Understanding the Evolution of Human Technologies through Ethnographic Research

This collection contains the abstracts of the papers presented in the session entitled "Exploring the Intersection of Ethnography and Technology: Understanding the Evolution of Human Technologies through Ethnographic Research" at the 90th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Ethnographic research plays a significant role within the wider archaeological study of human cultural and technological evolution. Offering a level of detail largely unavailable in archaeological contexts, ethnographic data has yielded invaluable insights into various aspects of diverse cultural materials and technological practices; from raw material acquisition, to manufacture, use and discard. Beyond mere documentation, this research avenue has been instrumental in fueling the formulation of hypotheses and the cultivation of innovative ideas, particularly with regards to the ‘missing majority’ of past organic material culture. The aim of this session is to showcase studies that combine the archaeological study of technology with ethnographic data and perspectives, with a particular emphasis on the role that ethnographic data might play within cultural evolutionary frameworks of past technological change.