Household Archaeology
Encyclopedia
Household archaeology has a long history of anthropological inquiry. Archaeological investigations of the household serve as a microcosm for the greater social universe. The household serves as a space for socialization processes. Household archaeology focuses on the household as a social unit, and involves research on the household's dwelling and other related architecture, material culture, features, and larger sociopolitical organizations that are associated with a specific culture. Household social relationships have been associated as serving as an "atom" for society. Therefore, household studied effectively convey information pertaining to flexible economic and ecological conditions Household activity encompasses spheres of activity related to function and how people act. Household archaeology redefines the notion of the household and the domestic
by challenging notions of what households are, how they operate and the social implications of such analysis. The material culture provides information about such activities. Households are families, domestic groups, and co-habitations. Households function in a variety of fashions.
involves archaeological investigations of household
activities. It encompasses social formation processes, family
or co-residential organization and the material culture
associated with such activities. Scholarly inquiry into household studies began in the 1960s with research emphasis upon a micro-scale analysis of social groups. Households are commonly referred to as the most basic social unit. Households operate within social and economic processes aimed to structure general conditions of social life. "Household" and "family" are social phenomena. According to Bender, these constructions are "logically distinct and, under certain circumstances, vary independently of each other." The household has three elements: the social (demographic), the material (possessions and dwellings) and the behavioral (activities). Household membership employs a variety of strategies and behaviors. Household archaeology is concerned with the material culture
remaining from basic activity patterns as a result of human behavior.
and social activities are often organized at the household level and reinforced by habitual actions through time. Human agency
also affects conceptions of household ideology. Scientific inquiry within household archaeology is a balance between theoretical arguments and empirical data to support or refute the evidence. Household archaeology is a platform for examining inequality. Whether gender, social or material, inequality exists in archaeological analysis.
chores have historically been associated with a gendered division of labor and tasks associated with maintaining the household chores and child rearing.
societies where men were responsible for food procurement of large game and women were responsible for child-rearing and gathering plant food sources. Friedrich Engels
argued that the sexual division of labor was an "outgrowth of nature" because men went to war, and hunted while women cared for the house and prepared food. This argument is unacceptable today. Women are engaged in productive, active work inside and outside the home all over the world. Anthropological inquiry into the sexual division of labor in the domestic domain began with Ester Boserup
's work on women and economic development. A universally assumed Western division between the “domestic/house/private” space versus the “public/exterior male world” exists. This launched a structured division between gendered social worlds. Women have made a substantial contribution to subsistence activities and household production. The structured system of social relationships also implies an “idealized” gendered identity associated with a public vs. private dichotomy. Political actions and socioeconomic motivations aid male and female actions in domestic groups. The mother-child relationship is often associated with the nucleus of all family groups. Reproduction involves physical reproduction, child rearing and socialization. Households can be organized to collectively achieve these tasks. Gender
themes resonate as a result of this action. Household studies of space and place often involve function and activity. Site layouts, and conceptions of households provide information about gender
roles in the past.
is reserved for cooking and the bedroom
is reserved for sleeping. However, not all cultures adhere to such traditions.
help to organize household studies that bridge theoretical and methodological interpretations of archaeological assemblages. Botanical, Faunal assemblage
, ceramic
, privy
, historical documents, art history
, and refuse data provide information for methodological applications of household archaeology. Household Archaeology employs a dynamic interaction between theoretical and practical. Applications of “longue durée,” an Ethnohistory
approach are suggested as a method for household anthropological Archaeology
. Joyce employed such methods in examining the socialization processes for Aztec
children. Household archaeology encompasses the space outside the dwelling itself. New scientific analysis allow households to be examined using new techniques such as soil chemistry, bone chemistry, and Paleoethnobotany
. Uniquely preserved examples allow archaeologists to examine households carefully and devise new techniques for analysis.
Domestic
Domestic or domestique can refer to:* A cycling domestique* A domestic worker* Domestic airport* Domestic violence* Domestic , a group with Trust in Trance Records* Domestikos , a Byzantine title...
by challenging notions of what households are, how they operate and the social implications of such analysis. The material culture provides information about such activities. Households are families, domestic groups, and co-habitations. Households function in a variety of fashions.
History of Theoretical Background
Household archaeologyArchaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
involves archaeological investigations of household
Household
The household is "the basic residential unit in which economic production, consumption, inheritance, child rearing, and shelter are organized and carried out"; [the household] "may or may not be synonymous with family"....
activities. It encompasses social formation processes, family
Family
In human context, a family is a group of people affiliated by consanguinity, affinity, or co-residence. In most societies it is the principal institution for the socialization of children...
or co-residential organization and the material culture
Material culture
In the social sciences, material culture is a term that refers to the relationship between artifacts and social relations. Studying a culture's relationship to materiality is a lens through which social and cultural attitudes can be discussed...
associated with such activities. Scholarly inquiry into household studies began in the 1960s with research emphasis upon a micro-scale analysis of social groups. Households are commonly referred to as the most basic social unit. Households operate within social and economic processes aimed to structure general conditions of social life. "Household" and "family" are social phenomena. According to Bender, these constructions are "logically distinct and, under certain circumstances, vary independently of each other." The household has three elements: the social (demographic), the material (possessions and dwellings) and the behavioral (activities). Household membership employs a variety of strategies and behaviors. Household archaeology is concerned with the material culture
Material culture
In the social sciences, material culture is a term that refers to the relationship between artifacts and social relations. Studying a culture's relationship to materiality is a lens through which social and cultural attitudes can be discussed...
remaining from basic activity patterns as a result of human behavior.
Archaeological Implications
The material record thoroughly represents the intimate spaces of everyday life. It challenges how to formulate questions about everyday experiences. How people construct and interact with the world around them provide material evidence of a specific worldview. The household consists of the social (demographic and relationships of its members), the material aspect (dwelling and structures), and the behavioral aspect (activities it performs). A household can be considered as “a corporate body organized by reference to shared practices and [a] common estate.” Religion, ritualsArchaeology of religion and ritual
The archaeology of religion and ritual is a growing field of study within archaeology that applies ideas from religious studies, theory and methods, anthropological theory, and archaeological and historical methods and theories to the study of religion and ritual in past human societies from a...
and social activities are often organized at the household level and reinforced by habitual actions through time. Human agency
Agency
Agency may refer to:* Agency * Agency , refers to a person who acts on behalf of another person.* Agency * Agency , the ability of social actors to make independent choices....
also affects conceptions of household ideology. Scientific inquiry within household archaeology is a balance between theoretical arguments and empirical data to support or refute the evidence. Household archaeology is a platform for examining inequality. Whether gender, social or material, inequality exists in archaeological analysis.
Defining the Household
The term "family" today implies a kinship tie, while domestic groups are associated with function and co-residence simply implies shared dwelling space. A household can be any of these. Household function is concerned with production, consumption, reproduction and socialization. These functions can be interpreted archaeologically. DomesticDomestic
Domestic or domestique can refer to:* A cycling domestique* A domestic worker* Domestic airport* Domestic violence* Domestic , a group with Trust in Trance Records* Domestikos , a Byzantine title...
chores have historically been associated with a gendered division of labor and tasks associated with maintaining the household chores and child rearing.
Gender
Historically, a presumed gendered binary exists associating men with the “public” sphere and women with the “private” sphere. This often is explained by the historical division of labor in hunter-gathererHunter-gatherer
A hunter-gatherer or forage society is one in which most or all food is obtained from wild plants and animals, in contrast to agricultural societies which rely mainly on domesticated species. Hunting and gathering was the ancestral subsistence mode of Homo, and all modern humans were...
societies where men were responsible for food procurement of large game and women were responsible for child-rearing and gathering plant food sources. Friedrich Engels
Friedrich Engels
Friedrich Engels was a German industrialist, social scientist, author, political theorist, philosopher, and father of Marxist theory, alongside Karl Marx. In 1845 he published The Condition of the Working Class in England, based on personal observations and research...
argued that the sexual division of labor was an "outgrowth of nature" because men went to war, and hunted while women cared for the house and prepared food. This argument is unacceptable today. Women are engaged in productive, active work inside and outside the home all over the world. Anthropological inquiry into the sexual division of labor in the domestic domain began with Ester Boserup
Ester Böserup
Ester Boserup , born Ester Børgesen in Copenhagen, was a Danish economist, writer. She studied economical and agricultural development, worked at the United Nations as well as other international organizations, and she wrote several books...
's work on women and economic development. A universally assumed Western division between the “domestic/house/private” space versus the “public/exterior male world” exists. This launched a structured division between gendered social worlds. Women have made a substantial contribution to subsistence activities and household production. The structured system of social relationships also implies an “idealized” gendered identity associated with a public vs. private dichotomy. Political actions and socioeconomic motivations aid male and female actions in domestic groups. The mother-child relationship is often associated with the nucleus of all family groups. Reproduction involves physical reproduction, child rearing and socialization. Households can be organized to collectively achieve these tasks. Gender
Gender
Gender is a range of characteristics used to distinguish between males and females, particularly in the cases of men and women and the masculine and feminine attributes assigned to them. Depending on the context, the discriminating characteristics vary from sex to social role to gender identity...
themes resonate as a result of this action. Household studies of space and place often involve function and activity. Site layouts, and conceptions of households provide information about gender
Gender
Gender is a range of characteristics used to distinguish between males and females, particularly in the cases of men and women and the masculine and feminine attributes assigned to them. Depending on the context, the discriminating characteristics vary from sex to social role to gender identity...
roles in the past.
Household Space
The dwelling itself serves as a material, functional space. The house serves as a "privileged entity" for studying intimate spaces of inside space. Storage space can asses a socially constructed identity. This process allows groups to apply spatial and social meaning to control knowledge. Alternatively, discard behavior reflects how acquisition and use reflects patterns of daily life. Particular spaces within the dwelling itself are reserved to accomplish household tasks. For example, the kitchenKitchen
A kitchen is a room or part of a room used for cooking and food preparation.In the West, a modern residential kitchen is typically equipped with a stove, a sink with hot and cold running water, a refrigerator and kitchen cabinets arranged according to a modular design. Many households have a...
is reserved for cooking and the bedroom
Bedroom
A bedroom is a private room where people usually sleep for the night or relax during the day.About one third of our lives are spent sleeping and most of the time we are asleep, we are sleeping in a bedroom. To be considered a bedroom the room needs to have bed. Bedrooms can range from really simple...
is reserved for sleeping. However, not all cultures adhere to such traditions.
Methodology
Multiple lines of evidence prove to be most useful in household archaeological studies. Human settlement patterns, site formation processes, and material cultureMaterial culture
In the social sciences, material culture is a term that refers to the relationship between artifacts and social relations. Studying a culture's relationship to materiality is a lens through which social and cultural attitudes can be discussed...
help to organize household studies that bridge theoretical and methodological interpretations of archaeological assemblages. Botanical, Faunal assemblage
Faunal assemblage
Faunal Assemblage is the archaeological or paleontological term for a group of associated animal fossils found together in a given stratum.The principle of faunal succession is used in biostratigraphy to determine each biostratigraphic unit, or biozone...
, ceramic
Ceramic
A ceramic is an inorganic, nonmetallic solid prepared by the action of heat and subsequent cooling. Ceramic materials may have a crystalline or partly crystalline structure, or may be amorphous...
, privy
Privy
Privy may refer to:* Privy council* Privy purse* A garderobe* An outhouse, a small structure for defecation and urination* Privity...
, historical documents, art history
Art history
Art history has historically been understood as the academic study of objects of art in their historical development and stylistic contexts, i.e. genre, design, format, and style...
, and refuse data provide information for methodological applications of household archaeology. Household Archaeology employs a dynamic interaction between theoretical and practical. Applications of “longue durée,” an Ethnohistory
Ethnohistory
Ethnohistory is the study of ethnographic cultures and indigenous customs by examining historical records. It is also the study of the history of various ethnic groups that may or may not exist today....
approach are suggested as a method for household anthropological Archaeology
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
. Joyce employed such methods in examining the socialization processes for Aztec
Aztec
The Aztec people were certain ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl language and who dominated large parts of Mesoamerica in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries, a period referred to as the late post-classic period in Mesoamerican chronology.Aztec is the...
children. Household archaeology encompasses the space outside the dwelling itself. New scientific analysis allow households to be examined using new techniques such as soil chemistry, bone chemistry, and Paleoethnobotany
Paleoethnobotany
Paleoethnobotany, also known as archaeobotany in European academic circles, is the archaeological sub-field that studies plant remains from archaeological sites...
. Uniquely preserved examples allow archaeologists to examine households carefully and devise new techniques for analysis.
See also
- Anthropology of feasting
- Landscape archaeologyLandscape archaeologyLandscape archaeology is the study of the ways in which people in the past constructed and used the environment around them. Landscape archaeology is inherently multidisciplinary in its approach to the study of culture, and is used by both pre-historical, classic, and historic archaeologists...
- EmbodimentEmbodimentEmbodied or embodiment may refer to:in psychology and philosophy,*Embodied cognition , a position in cognitive science and the philosophy of mind emphasizing the role that the body plays in shaping the mind...
- Anthropology of religionAnthropology of religionThe anthropology of religion involves the study of religious institutions in relation to other social institutions, and the comparison of religious beliefs and practices across cultures.-History:...
- Gender archaeologyGender archaeologyGender archaeology is a method of studying past societies through their material culture by closely examining the social construction of gender identities and relations...
- Bioarchaeology as status indicator