On Recent Trends in the Anthropology of Foragers: Kalahari Revisionism and its Archaeological Implications
Author(s)
Shott, Michael J.
Abstract
Archaeology studies change in forager societies over time, yet relies on ethnology for much of its understanding of how those societies are organized. The prevailing model of forager societies in ethnology emphasize their affluence, flexibility and equality, but these properties are now questioned; moreover doubts have also been raised about the archaeological uses of ethnographic data. The resulting debates have implications for the validity of certain ethnological inferences an for our understanding of the nature of ethnographically documented forager societies. Significantly, the issues can only be settled with the aid of archaeological data.
