Date of Award

2023

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

Submission Date

October 2026

Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]

Corr, Rachel

Abstract

As a tangible linkage to the past, archaeological material culture plays a vital role in constructing contemporary identities. In Ecuador, archaeology focused on the state societies of the Andean highlands has long informed a hill-centric national narrative about the indigenous past, leaving coastal peoples on the margins. Conversely, more recent efforts at investigating overlooked coastal sites have paralleled the process of coastal communities publically reclaiming their indigenous status. This thesis investigates the historical trends in the field of Andean archaeology which have contributed to a popular conception of highland indigeneity in Ecuador that excludes coastal peoples. However, coastal peoples’ recent expressions of indigeneity have reciprocally drawn from and shaped the work of contemporary archaeologists working in coastal sites, articulating a vision of indigenous ethnicity rooted in a living relationship to the archaeological record which subverts predominant highland centric narratives.

Comments

Thesis (B.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, 2023

Extent

31 p.

Identifier

FAUHT00286

Download

Share

COinS