Module One Key Terms
Absolute dating- A technique used to determine the actual age of a fossil
Analogy- analogies for objects and their modern uses are sometimes observed during the process of making
an assumption about an object and it's use based off of cultural practices in the area and the evidence
available about the artifact in question
Archaeological survey- Methods archaeologists use to acquire data from sites or regions without excavation
Archaeology- study of artifacts and relics of early mankind
Artifacts- object made by human beings, either hand-made or mass-produced
Band- a small kinship-based group of foragers who hunt and gather for a living over a particular territory
usually less than 100 people
Battleship curve- How style frequency changes through time, shapes of seriation graphs formed by plotted
points
Chiefdom- A societal grouping governed by a chief who typically relies on generosity, ritual status, or
charisma rather than force to win obedience from the people. usually around 5,000-20,000+ people
Cultural Evolution- The adaptive changes of cultures in response to environmental changes over time
Cultural Items- Physical/material objects that have meaning, value, or use
dating inorganic materials- you can use thermoluminescence, but only to determine the last time the
material was heated.
dating organic materials- you can use radiocarbon dating on organic materials like wood, fabric, carbonized
seeds, bone, etc
Diffusion- The process of spread of a feature or trend from one place to another over time
Ecofacts- Natural materials that give environmental information about a site. Plant & animal remains.
Ethnoarchaeology- the study of the way present-day societies use artifacts and structures and how these
objects become part of the archaeological record
Excavation- the action of excavating something, especially an archaeological site.
Experimental archaeology- Experiments designed to determine the archaeological correlates of ancient
behavior; may overlap with both ethnoarchaeology and taphonomy.
Features- a distinctive attribute or aspect of something.
Goals of Archaeology
- reveal the form of the past
- discover the function of the past
- understand cultural processes
Half-life- length of time required for half of the radioactive atoms in a sample to decay
Human Remains- body of a deceased person, including cremated remains
Hypothesis- A testable prediction, often implied by a theory
independent invention- development of the same culture trait or pattern in separate cultures as a result of
comparable needs and circumstances
Law of Superposition- The geologic principle that states that in horizontal layers of sedimentary rock, each
layer is older than the layer above it and younger than the layer below it.
radiocarbon dating- a chemical analysis used to determine the age of organic materials based on their
content of the radioisotope carbon-14
relative dating- Method of determining the age of a fossil by comparing its placement with that of fossils in
other layers of rock
Seriation- Arranging objects in sequential order according to one aspect, such as size, weight, or volume.
Site- (behavioral) A place where human activity once took place, (archaeological) a cluster of artifacts.
State- A body of people living in a defined territory who have a government with the power to make and
enforce law without the consent of any higher authority, generally 20,000+ people
Stratigraphy- the study of rock layers and the sequence of events they reflect
Thermoluminescence (TL)- Technique for dating certain archaeological materials that were heated in the
past (such as stone tools) and that release stored energy of radioactive decay as light upon reheating.
Tribe- Any system of social organization made up of villages, bands, or other groups with a common
ancestry, language, culture, and name usually up to a few thousand people
