"Knowledge Without Action…": Shifting Frames of Reference in Archaeology Theory and Practice

Summary

Following 15th-century philosopher’s Wang Yangming’s statement that "Knowledge without action is not real knowledge," I explore the value of knowledge that emanates from evidence-based practice grounded in descendant community’s engagement with heritage, and it subsequent application in two realms. The first is research at the interface of Traditional Knowledge (TK) and Western science; the second a series of community-initiated and -directed studies funded by the Intellectual Property Issues in Cultural Heritage (IPinCH) project. I discuss the benefits (and challenges) of work in these realms for both communities and universities in terms of applied research; the relationship between intangible and tangible heritage; and the value of ethnoarchaeological studies that foreground community needs and interests while also making substantial contributions to the field of archaeology.

SAA 2015 abstracts made available in tDAR courtesy of the Society for American Archaeology and Center for Digital Antiquity Collaborative Program to improve digital data in archaeology. If you are the author of this presentation you may upload your paper, poster, presentation, or associated data (up to 3 files/30MB) for free. Please visit http://www.tdar.org/SAA2015 for instructions and more information.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)   •
• Sound of Theory

Keywords