Sex and Gender in Bioarchaeology: Revisiting Methodology, Application of Different Perspectives, and the Role of Associated Funerary Objects at Río Viejo

Summary

This is an abstract from the "The Classic-Postclassic Transition in Oaxaca" session, at the 90th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Bioarchaeologists create biological profiles of past individuals through skeletal analyses to provide an overall picture of who they may have been during life including aspects of identity such as sex and gender. However, there is growing criticism within bioarchaeology about the use and definition of these concepts, and their application and interpretation of daily lives. Sex and gender which are often based on Western concepts that have been historically used interchangeably in heteronormative societies. Applying these concepts to precontact populations is of concern because ethnographic and archaeological evidence indicates that gender identity is more complex. A recent bioarchaeological study of mortuary practices during the Classic to Postclassic transition at Río Viejo highlights this complexity. This study critiques the suitability of current standardized methods for assessing sex and challenges assumptions of their universality by considering factors such as taphonomy, educational biases, and accessibility to analyzed precontact population collections. Additionally, the study uses feminist and queer theories of identity to question Western assumptions and interpretations regarding associated funerary objects.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 90th Annual Meeting, Denver, CO (2025)   •
• The Classic-Postclassic Transition in Oaxaca

Keywords

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 50914