Being and Becoming Indigenous Archaeologists

George Nicholas is a professor of archaeology at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia

• Introduction; 1: Being and Becoming a South American Archaeologist; 2: The Challenges of a Ghanaian Archaeologist; 3: Understanding Archaeology from a Samoan Perspective; 4: Raise Your Head and Be Proud Ojibwekwe; 5: Searching for Identity through Archaeology; 6: Indigenous Journeys—Splinterville, Drenthe, Amherst; 7: Being a Yorta Yorta Heritage Man; 8: The Experience of a Mayan Student; 9: My Life as a Kaqchikel Mayan Tour Leader and Maya Researcher in Guatemala; 10: Who Am I and How Did I Get Here?; 11: Indigenous Archaeology and Being Indian in New England; 12: Written Voices Become History; 13: Archaeology in My Soul; 14: The Flying Alien—An Outsider Archaeologist; 15: Archaeological Reflections of a 68-Year-Old Bushman; 16: Take Only What You Need, and Leave the Rest; 17: Archaeology and Perceptions of the Past in Papua New Guinea; 18: Being an African Archaeologist in the United States; 19: The Journey of a L'nu Archaeologist in a Mi'kmaw Place; 20: Echoes from the Bones; 21: “An Encounter”; 22: The “Other” Accidental Archaeologist; 23: (Re)Searching for Ancestors through Archaeology; 24: Archaeological Battles and Triumphs; 25: Working for My Own; 26: Living Archaeology for the Ainu in Hokkaido; 27: Being an Inuvialuk Archaeologist and Educator from Tuktoyaktuk; 28: Nach'En or Transforming into a Squamish Nation Indigenous Archaeologist; 29: Haere Tika Tonu Atu—Keep Going Forward; 30: Indigenous Archaeology in Mexico; 31: Munk-?xwáp (íli?l Khapa Nayka Anqati Shawash Tillixamikta; 32: What Better Way to Give Back to Your People; 33: Being an Indigenous African Archaeologist; 34: Becoming One of “Them”…; 35: Becoming an Ngarrindjeri Archaeologist; 36: My Eclectic Career in Archaeology

"What an extraordinary volume! A decade ago, when I asked whether we needed a "new and different" archaeology, Indigenous archaeology barely was on the discipline's radar. There were but a few practitioners, most of them not Indigenous people. A sizable Indigenous cadre of Indigenous archaeologists has emerged since then, and many of their remarkable stories are in this book. The pathways these scholars have taken to become archaeologists are varied and fascinating, their achievements are remarkable, and their work broadens archaeology's perspectives in much needed, truly positive ways. George Nicholas, who probably has trained more Indigenous archaeologists than anyone else, was the right person to assemble and edit the volume. He introduces the biographies with sensitivity and compassion, providing a solid introduction to Indigenous archaeology(ies) along the way, and even better, he lets the authors' voices come through." - Larry Zimmerman