Anthropology is the systematic study of the humanity both past and present. The course introduces students to the four subfields of anthropology, which include archaeology, biological, linguistic and cultural anthropology. Students will learn about the concepts and methods that anthropologists use to study our species and gain a broader perspective on the human experience. Meets New Mexico General Education Curriculum Area 4: Social and Behavioral Sciences.

This course provides a basic introduction to the broad field of biological anthropology. The research interests of biological anthropologists include the history and development of modern evolutionary biology, molecular and population genetics, modern primates, the primate and human fossil record, and modern human biological diversity. Biological Anthropology concentration students are required, and others are encouraged, to enroll concurrently in 1135L. Meets New Mexico General Education Curriculum Area 3: Physical and Natural Sciences.

This is an introductory course that provides an overview of cultural anthropology as a subfield within the broader discipline of anthropology and as a research approach within the social sciences more generally. The course presents core concepts and methods of cultural anthropology that are used to understand the ways in which human beings organize and experience their lives through distinctive cultural practices. More specifically, this course explores social and cultural differences and similarities around the world through a variety of topics such as: language and communication, economics, ways of making a living, marriage and family, kinship and descent, race, ethnicity, political organization, supernatural beliefs, sex and gender, and globalization. This course ultimately aims to present a broad range of perspectives and practices of various cultural groups from across the globe. Meets New Mexico General Education Curriculum Area 4: Social and Behavioral Sciences.

This class explores different ways of studying and interpreting the past through a survey of archaeology’s historical, theoretical, and methodological development. If you are interested in archaeology as a career (or even just trying out an archaeological field school), this course is critical: it will provide you with the basic tools for conducting archaeological research and with an understanding of the background of the discipline. For this reason, this course is required for Anthropology majors with an Archaeology concentration. Even if you know you don’t want to be an archaeologist, though, this class may interest you. Have you ever wondered how archaeologists know what they know about the past? Are you skeptical about some archaeological claims? Have you ever read a statement about the past and thought, “is this really true?” This class will provide you with the skills, both conceptual and practical, to answer those questions.

A course exploring a topic not covered by the standard curriculum but of interest to faculty and students in a particular semester.

Archaeology is the systematic study of the human past through material remains. This course introduces students to the physical remains of past societies and compares and contrasts archaeological development in different regions. Students will explore the dynamics of the human past and its influences on contemporary society. Meets New Mexico General Education Curriculum Area 4: Social and Behavioral Sciences.

(Also offered as CJ 319; LING 359) Examination of the interrelations of language and speech with other selected aspects of culture and cognition. Prerequisite: 114 or 1155 or LING 2110 or LING 301.

A survey of past archaeological cultures across the Southwestern United States and Northwestern Mexico beginning with the initial occupation of humans in the region but focusing on the period from 500 to 2500 years ago. This course provides students with an overview of broad patterns in subsistence, technology, sociopolitical organization, and ritual practice. An emphasis is placed on major culture areas and sites. May include fieldtrips and hands-on activities.

Archaeology of South America from the Paleo-Indian to the European colonial period. Emphasizes the origins and evolution of Andean civilization and associated interpretive problems.

Development of ideas and theories in sociocultural anthropology; focus on topics such as integration of human societies, sources of change in economic and cultural systems.

Culture and history of indigenous peoples of South America. Selected examples from lowland and highland regions.

Current topics in sociocultural anthropology to be explored in experimental courses.

Events and processes in the emergence and evolution of the human lineage-from the origins of Australopithecus, through the emergence of the genus Homo, to the evolution of early modern humans-based on the human fossil record. Offered every other spring.

Explores recent research in both captivity and the wild on cognition and behavior of great apes (chimpanzees, gorillas, bonobos, orangutans), the closest living relatives of humans.

Surveys the development of the Maya civilizations in Mesoamerica from the origins of agriculture through the Spanish Conquest. The course will explore archaeological, ethno-historical, linguistic, and environmental data and accounts. Prerequisite: 1115 or (1211 and 1211L) or 2175 or 320.

This class explores ethical issues and debates surrounding heritage-making practices and discourses through lens of ethnological, archaeological, and evolutionary anthropology. It problematizes the boundaries between different constructions of the past and present.

Directed study under the supervision of a faculty member. Restriction: permission of instructor. {Offered upon demand}

(Also offered as ARTH 402/502) Archaeological and historic art forms of the Arctic Northwest coast and the eastern woodlands of North America. {Fall}

Topics of archaeological interest including gender in archaeology, European contact and post-processualism.

(Also offered as ANTH 544, BIOL 444/544, EPS 444/544, GEOG 444/544, MSST 444/544.) Interdisciplinary overview of how science museum resources are used to study change in human communities, natural, and physical systems over space and time. Course activities emphasize materials science, data science, and team science. Restriction: instructor permission.

A course exploring a topic not covered by the standard curriculum but of interest to faculty and students in a particular semester.

Ancient disease through the study of normal and abnormal bone remodeling processes and dental conditions. Population health evaluated by descriptive and radiologic analyses of human remains. Prerequisite: *351L. {Alternate years}

Directed study of topics not covered in regular courses.

Field research for qualified advanced undergraduate or graduate students with previous experience in archaeology, biological anthropology, human evolutionary ecology, linguistics or general ethnology. Problems are selected on the basis of student-faculty interest and field research opportunities. Restriction: permission of instructor. {Offered upon demand}