Processes of Change--A Longitudinal Ethno-Archaeological Study of a Ghanaian Village: Hani 1970–98
Most ethno-archaeological research involves the study of single communities over short time periods. As archaeology endeavors to appreciate the processes of change over extended periods of time it is important to obtain insights into the dynamics of past communities by studying comparable communities over periods long enough to delineate significant changes in site formation, uses of material culture and reactions to environmental, economic, and political stimuli. The study of the Ghanaian village of Hani, the successor community to the medieval town of Begho (ca. AD 1100–1800), is unique in that it provides a continuous study of a community over 28 years, during which time the village has been mapped on seven occasions, agricultural practices and collecting activities studied at different seasons, the changing material culture of the village recorded and the attitudes and reactions to environmental, economic, and political changes monitored through a continuous series of questionnaires. Conclusions are drawn as to the effect of these changes and archaeological implications evaluated.La plupart des études ethno-archéologiques sont basées sur des communautés uniques durant des périodes courtes. Etant donné que l'archéologie apprécie de plus en plus le processus de changement à long terme, c'est très important de connaître le fonctionnement des anciennes communautés en étudiants des communautés comparables durant des longues périodes pour pouvoir démarquer des changements pertinents; notamment dans le domaine de la formation des sites, l'utilisation de la culture matérielle, des réactions á l'environnement, et l'impact politique. L'étude du village ghanéen de Hani, successeur de l'ancienne ville médiévale de Begho (ca. AD 1100–1800) est unique parce que c'est le résultat d'une étude progressive de plus de 28 ans. Pendant cette période, la carte de la ville a été tracée sept fois, les activités d'agriculture et de collecte ont été étudiées pendant les saisons différents, et les changements de la culture matérielle ont été enregistrées. Les attitudes et réactions aux changements d'environnement, ainsi que les changements politiques et économiques, ont été documentés à l'aide d'une série continue des questionnaires. Des conclusions ont été tirées sur les effets de ces changements et les implications archéologiques sont évaluées.
Archaeology and mud wall decay in a West African village
Abstract A detailed study of the processes of deterioration of mud walls and of the physical evolution and devolution of a contemporary West African village is seen to facilitate the location of decayed mud structures at a nearby archaeological site. Various climatic and pedological conditions at the site make it unlikely that such walls will be discerned. The archaeologist wishing to obtain the fullest and least biased picture of the settlement configuration of the ancient community should therefore heed all the inferential lessons to be had from a focused ethnographic investigation. Given similar climatic situations and practices of house construction, taphonomy and ethnographic analogies may both be necessary for a valid reconstruction of an archaeological settlement.
PLEASURE, POWER, AND THE PURSUIT OF COMMUNISM: SOVIET YOUTH AND STATE-SPONSORED POPULAR CULTURE DURING THE EARLY COLD WAR, 1945-1968
art, with certain students accused of “showing political immaturity, failing to understand the Party’s positions on art.” This episode constituted part of a broader crackdown on abstract art by the Khrushchev administration from late 1962, precipitated the the Soviet leader’s derision of such art forms in December 1962 at the Manege exhibit. Such instances demonstrate the limitations of the top-level promotion of youth grassroots initiative, as the Khrushchev leadership reigned in youth autonomy when it threatened to go beyond the boundaries of the permissible. The dates cited above have particular resonance, since both 1957-58 and 1962-63 represent two periods when those at the top of the Party hierarchy moved away from pursuing a more pluralistic, tolerant policy course, due to anxiety inspired by both sharpening Cold War hostilities and domestic developments. In these periods, official rhetoric censured what it labeled as 639 TsAOPIM, f. 635, op. 13, d. 546, ll. 56-57. This is likely related to criticism of the Party associated with the fallout from the Secret Speech and the Hungary invasion. For more, see Polly Jones, “From the Secret Speech to the Burial of Stalin: Real and Ideal Responses to De-Stalinization,” in Jones ed., The Dilemmas, 41-63. 640 TsAOPIM, f. 6083, op. 1, d. 52, ll. 166-67. 641 Susan E. Reid, “In the Name of the People: The Manege Affair Revisited,” Kritika 6.4 (Fall 2005): 673716. 642 On these anxieties, see Dobson, Khrushchev’s Cold Summer, 156-88.