Department of Anthropology

The Seattle Art Museum will remove five Native American cultural items from public view, a spokesperson said Thursday. The museum said the items are all of Tlingit origin, a group Indigenous to what is now Southeast Alaska. They include three headdresses, a dagger and a staff. The UW's Justice McNeeley, repatriation coordinator and assistant registrar at the Burke Museum; and Sara Gonzalez, associate professor of anthropology and curator of archaeology at the Burke Museum, are quoted.

Holly Barker, a University of Washington teaching professor of anthropology, and three current members of the UW football team â Ulumoo Ale, Makell Esteen and Faatui Tuitele â are studying how the skills they develop to maximize their chances of victory on the field have applications outside the stadium. Their work, which is ongoing, is showing that the research methods and analytical abilities of student-athletes are applicable in academic and research settings, as well as jobs in a variety of fields.

Over the course of some 44,000 years, humans occupying the island of Timor-Leste, just north of Australia, changed their methods of making stone tools in lockstep with climate change, according to a recent study in Quaternary Science Reviews. Ben Marwick, professor of anthropology at the UW, is quoted.

This week, check out the Fall Concert hosted by DXARTS (Department of Digital Arts and Experimental Media), attend the Dance Graduate Research Symposium, listen to guest composer concerts, and more. October 25, 7:30pm | DXARTS FALL CONCERT: Ritual-Entropy-Storm, Meany Hall  Join the Department of Digital Arts and Experimental Media (DXARTS) as they host a Fall...

In the College of Arts & Sciences, we are proud to support the success of first-generation students, faculty, and staff, and celebrate their many contributions to our university community.

This week, explore “how to use art for resistance” with Elisheba Johnson, head to Meany Hall for an engaging performance by the Turtle Island Quartet, and more.

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week. This week, attend gallery exhibitions, Dawg Daze events, and more. As the UW community returns to campus, consider taking advantage of campus perks available to UW employees and students.

Researchers from the University of Washington and Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture will be partners in the newly announced $30M NSF Center for Braiding Indigenous Knowledges and Science.  

As the world's best-known fictional archaeologist goes after what may be his last ancient mystery in "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny," new generations of real-life archaeologists are ready to dig in with 21st-century technologies and sensibilities. Sara Gonzalez, associate professor of anthropology at the UW, is quoted. Peter Lape, professor of anthropology at the UW, is referenced.

An analysis of foraging societies from around the world has found that women hunt in the vast majority of those looked at, confirming that the idea of gender division in providing food is a myth. Cara Wall-Scheffler, affiliate assistant professor of anthropology at the UW, is quoted.

The four new graduates honored as College of Arts & Sciences Dean's Medalists for 2023 are all working to improve our world, in different ways. 

No one can really describe what milk is -- least of all the people who think most often about it. Melanie Martin, assistant professor of anthropology at the UW, is quoted.

"The COVID-19 pandemic shined a light on the deep need that people feel for human touch and connection in hospital settings. Having relatives peering through windows at their loved ones or unable to enter hospitals altogether exacerbated the lack of human intimacy that is all too common in health care settings" writes Marlaine Gray, affiliate assistant professor of anthropology at the UW.

The Husky 100 recognizes 100 UW undergraduate and graduate students who are making the most of their time at the UW.

In “Woman, Captain, Rebel: The Extraordinary True Story of a Daring Icelandic Sea Captain,” UW professor Margaret Willson chronicles the true life story of the Icelandic female sea captain, Thurídur. Read writer Megan Matti’s interview with Willson in preparation for Willson’s University Book Store reading on March 8.