Undergraduate Program

Surveys the breadth of anthropology, introducing students to archaeology, biological anthropology, ethnology, human evolutionary ecology and linguistics. Meets New Mexico Lower-Division General Education Common Core Curriculum Area IV: Social/Behavioral Sciences (NMCCN 1113).

(Also offered as LING 101)

Dinwoodie, Gorbet 

Fundamentals of anthropological linguistics. The biological, structural, psychological and social nature of language; implications for cross-cultural theory, research and applications. Meets New Mexico Lower-Division General Education Common Core Curriculum Area IV: Social/Behavioral Sciences.

Introduction to archaeological method and theory. Lectures cover basic concepts and strategy. Labs provide hands-on experience with methods of analyzing archaeological remains.

Corequisite: 122L.

Introduction to archaeological method and theory. Labs provide hands-on experience with methods of analyzing archaeological remains.

Corequisite: 120.

Basic concepts and methods of cultural anthropology. Selected cultures, ranging from preliterate societies to aspects of urban civilization. Meets New Mexico Lower-Division General Education Common Core Curriculum Area (NMCCN 1113).

Fundamentals of biological anthropology and principles of organic evolution, in relation to the biology, ecology and behavior of primates and fossil humans.

Biological anthropology concentrators are required, and others are encouraged, to enroll concurrently in 151L.

Meets New Mexico Lower-Division General Education Common Core Curriculum Area (NMCCN 1113).

The factual basis of human evolution, from the comparative study of living and fossil primates to interpretation of recent human fossils.

Recommended, but not required, that this be taken concurrently with 150. Two hours lab.

Biology and behavior of the human life course, including the evolution of the life history patterns specific to humans and the impact of population growth and of adaptation to local conditions in promoting human diversity.

Students are encouraged, but not required, to enroll concurrently in 161L.

Introduces the computer as a tool in biological and social science research, provides first-hand experience in data collection, analysis and modeling behavior. No prior computer experience required.

Pre- or corequisite: 160.

Surveys the archeological evidence for the development of human culture from the first stone tools in Africa to the rise of civilizations in both the Old and New Worlds.

This course investigates the relationship between music and culture. Through case studies and introductory readings in the anthropology of music, ethnomusicology and related disciplines, students will examine how music makes meaning in a cultural context.

Experimental courses on topics of current interest.

This course is designed to introduce students to the forensic investigation of death. Emphasis will be on current methods and techniques and include the role of the anthropologist as an integral member of the investigation process.

This course familiarizes students with current, active research in Anthropology by the University of New Mexico faculty and visiting scholars. It also teaches students to critically assess and discuss research questions.

(A, EV, E)

(Also offered as CJ 319; LING 359 / 559)

Examination of the interrelations of language and speech with other selected aspects of culture and cognition. (E)

Prerequisite: 110 or LING 101 or LING 301.

(Also offered as LING 304 / 504)

Introduction to patterns in sound structure, with an emphasis on problem-solving. Topics include distinctive features, common phonological processes, autosegmental theory and syllable structure. (E)

Prerequisite: LING 301 and (LING 302 or LING 303 or SHS *303).

{Fall}

(Also offered as LING 322 / 522)

Principles of morphological and syntactic analysis and introduction to functional and formal theories of grammar. Descriptive analysis of grammatical structures and problems from a variety of languages. (E)

Prerequisite: LING 301 or SIGN *305 or SPAN 351.

{Spring}

The purpose and theory of the study of archaeology; relates archaeology to anthropological principles and the practice of science. (A)

Prerequisite: (101 or 130) and 120 and 122L.

{Yearly}

An intensive survey of Southwest prehistory including discussion of major interpretative problems. Covers the period from 11,000 years ago to historic times. (A)

Archaeology of South America from the Paleo-Indian to the European colonial period. Emphasizes the origins and evolution of Andean civilization and associated interpretive problems.  (A)

{Alternate years}

The prehistory of Europe with emphasis on hunter-gatherer adaptations of the Pleistocene and early Holocene, using primary data sources. (A)

Prerequisite: 101 or (120 and 122L) or 220.

{Alternate years}

The prehistory of Africa from the appearance of the first hominids to the development of complex societies.  (A)

Prerequisite: 101 or (120 and 122L) or 220.

{Alternate years}

A survey of the Near Eastern culture area from the origins of agriculture to the development of Bronze Age civilization.  (A)

{Offered periodically}

Development of ideas and theories in sociocultural anthropology; focus on topics such as integration of human societies, sources of change in economic and cultural systems.  (E)

Major culture types and selected ethnographic examples of North American Indian cultures.  (E)

{Offered periodically}

Culture and history of indigenous peoples of South America. Selected examples from lowland and highland regions.  (E)

{Offered periodically}

Ethnographic studies and a variety of anthropological approaches to ritual are read to examine the defining characteristics of ritual activity and its contemporary significance in peoples' lives. (E)

{Offered periodically}

Topics will vary from instructor to instructor but will deal with specific social and cultural matters of anthropological interest in New Mexico such as folklore and expressive culture; social relations; tourism; environmental issues.  (E)

{Offered periodically}

A description and analysis of competing theories about the content of human rights; the history, politics and economics of human rights situations. Emphasis on the interplay among power, difference, “culture” and human rights abuses. (E)

Current topics in sociocultural anthropology to be explored in experimental courses.  (E)

Cultural and social institutions common throughout Latin America and their historical antecedents. Contemporary social movements and their prognosis for the immediate future. Analysis of the variations among selected Latin American societies.

(E)

{Offered annually}

Human heredity, variation and adaptation within and between different ecological and cultural settings; genetics; quantitative variation; elements of human population biology and human ecology. (EV)

Prerequisite: 150 or BIOL 110 or BIOL 123 or BIOL 201L or BIOL 202L.

{Spring}

A laboratory course in the identification of human skeletal materials with attention to problems in the evolution of primates. Three lectures, 2 hours lab.  (EV)

{Fall}

The events and processes involved in the emergence and evolution of the human lineage–from the origins of Australopithecus, through the emergence of the genus Homo, to the evolution of early modern humans–based on the human fossil record.  (EV)

Prerequisite: 150 or 220.

{Alternate years}

Introduces students to the fundamental principles of evolutionary theory and their application to human behavior. It surveys current research on human sexuality, mate choice, reproduction and parenting from the perspective of human evolutionary ecology.  (EV)

Prerequisite: 150 or 160 or BIOL 110.

Uses the perspective of evolutionary biology to examine the diversity of sex roles played by men and women in the historical and cross-cultural record. (EV)

Restriction: upper-division standing.

{Alternate years}

Explores recent research in both captivity and the wild on cognition and behavior of great apes (chimpanzees, gorillas, bonobos, orangutans), the closest living relatives of humans.  (EV)

Restriction: upper-division standing.

{Alternate years}

Special emphasis will be on strategies of survival, reproduction, mating and rearing, in the complex social systems of apes and monkeys. The costs and benefits of alternative strategies are used to understand individual life histories. (EV)

Restriction: upper-division standing.

{Alternate years}

This course offers specific, in-depth discussions of topics of current faculty interests and student demand including collective action, single parenthood and child health, hunter-gatherers, psychological anthropology and conservation of resources.  (EV)

Archaeological survey of the cultures of ancient Mexico from earliest inhabitants to the period of the Spanish Conquest. This course explores environmental, social, and political aspects of the rise and fall of societies across Mexico.  (E)

Technical course with variable content dealing with such issues as dating, paleoenvironmental and subsistence studies in archaeology. (A)

{Offered periodically}

Intensive instruction in archaeological field and laboratory techniques and the opportunity for independent student research. (A)

Restriction: permission of instructor.

Surveys the development of the Maya civilizations in Mesoamerica from the origins of agriculture through the Spanish Conquest. The course will explore archaeological, ethno-historical, linguistic, and environmental data and accounts. (A)

Prerequisite: 101 or (120 and 122L) or 220 or 320.

Introduction to cultural and linguistic diversity of indigenous groups in Mexico, designed to prepare students for study in Oaxaca. Concentration on indigenous peoples of Southern Mexico and Mesoamerica, including Zapotec, Mixtec, Mixe, and Maya groups.

Restriction: permission of instructor.

This class explores ethical issues and debates surrounding heritage-making practices and discourses through lens of ethnological, archaeological, and evolutionary anthropology. It problematizes the boundaries between different constructions of the past and present.

Intensive instruction in ethnographic field and analysis techniques and the opportunity for independent student research.

Restriction: permission of instructor.

Presents and interprets the earliest archeology of North America from the terminal Pleistocene through the early Holocene including relevant archeological evidence from eastern Eurasia and South America.

Restriction: permission of instructor.

Directed study under the supervision of a faculty member.  (A, E, EV)

Restriction: permission of instructor.

{Offered upon demand}

(Also offered as ARTH 402 / 502)

Archaeological and historic art forms of the Arctic Northwest coast and the eastern woodlands of North America.  (E)

{Fall}

(Also offered as ARTH 406 / 506)

Archaeological and historic art forms of the Plains, Southwest and western regions of North America.  (E)

{Spring}

Topics from various areas of anthropological linguistics including, but not limited to, ethnosemantics, the ethnography of communication and the biology of language.  (E)

Topics of archaeological interest including gender in archaeology, European contact and post-processualism.  (A)

(Also offered as MUS 444 / 544)

The study of musical globalization, concentrating on the 100 year background of indigenous and ethnic sound recordings that led to the creation of the World Music genre in the late 20th Century. (E)

(Also offered as MUS 448 / 548)

The cultural study of music and sound. Course materials are drawn from written and audio music ethnographies of contemporary indigenous, diasporic, refugee, exile, and industrial communities. (E)

(EV)

The analysis of the skeletal remains from past human populations, oriented at the mortality, morbidity and genetic affinities of those extinct populations. (EV)

Prerequisite: *351L.

{Alternate years}

This seminar reviews issues in primate taxonomy, functional and behavioral reconstructions, phylogenetic relationships, and macroevolutionary patterns. The intent of this course is to put primates into a broader evolutionary perspective.

This course explores reconstruction of paleoecosystems, climates, and ecologies. Students receive laboratory training in techniques including dental microwear and stable isotope analyses. We also examine paleoecological studies through readings of recent literature.

Ancient disease through the study of normal and abnormal bone remodeling processes and dental conditions. Population health evaluated by descriptive and radiologic analyses of human remains.  (EV)

Prerequisite: *351L.

{Alternate years}

This course examines theory, data and methods used by genetic anthropologists to address questions about human origins and prehistory, race, natural selection, disease, and the social and scientific implications of research in genetic anthropology.  (EV)

Prerequisite: 150 or BIOL 110 or BIOL 123 or BIOL 201L or BIOL 202L.

{Alternate years}

Events and processes leading from the appearance of the human lineage to the beginnings of agriculture, with discussions of Australopithecus and the genus Homo, through Homo sapiens.  (EV)

Prerequisite: *351L.

{Alternate years}

A laboratory class that explores the application of data from human and non-human dentitions to anthropological questions. Topics covered include dental anatomy, development, evolution, variation, and pathology.

Prerequisite: 150.

This course is to further develop the skills of graduate and senior undergraduate students in human osteology and to introduce advanced methods of skeletal analysis. Both lecture and laboratory components.  (EV)

Prerequisite: *351L.

Behavioral transitions throughout human evolution, including social systems, diet, life history, intelligence and locomotion. Focus on hominid origins, the transition from ape-like to human-like hominid, and the origin of our own species.

Prerequisite: 357.

Emphasizes the methods and techniques employed to construct and analyze archaeological materials. Style, function and technology of flaked and ground stone and ceramics are considered. Course work includes readings, discussions and laboratory exercises. Exercises focus on the construction, analysis and interpretation of data.  (A)

Prerequisite: 320.

{Alternate years}

Basic concepts, methods and approaches used in the analysis of archaeological pottery. Lectures cover concepts and strategies. Labs give practical experience with techniques of analysis.  (A)

{Spring}

(Also offered as EPS 482L / 582L)

Application of geological concepts to archaeological site formation with emphasis on pre-ceramic prehistory of the southwestern United States. Quaternary dating methods, paleoenvironment, landscape evolution, depositional environments. Quaternary stratigraphy, soil genesis, sourcing of lithic materials, site formation processes. Required field trip.  (A)

Prerequisite: 120 and 122L and 220 and EPS 101 and EPS 105L.

Restriction: junior standing.

{Alternate years}

(Also offered as ARTH, MSST 485 / 585)

Theoretical and practical work in specific museum problems. May be repeated as subject matter changes. (E)

Prerequisite: ARTH 407 or MSST 407.

{Offered upon demand}

(Also offered as ARTH, MSST 486 / 586)

Practicum in museum methods and management. (E)

Prerequisite: ARTH 407 or MSST 407.

Restriction: permission of instructor.

{Offered upon demand}

(Also offered as BIOL 491 / 591)

This course investigates how genetic variation is patterned within and between and how these patterns change over time. Topics include neutral theory, population structure, phylogenetics, coalescent theory, molecular clock, and laboratory methods.  (EV)

Directed study of topics not covered in regular courses.  (A, E, EV)

Readings and discussions concerning anthropological research methods, sources, goals and professional ethics. Open to upper-division majors and concentrators whose applications for the honors program have been approved.  (A, E, EV)

Restriction: permission of instructor.

{Fall}

Field research for qualified advanced undergraduate or graduate students with previous experience in archaeology, biological anthropology, human evolutionary ecology, linguistics or general ethnology. Problems are selected on the basis of student-faculty interest and field research opportunities.  (A, E, EV)

Restriction: permission of instructor.

{Offered upon demand}

(Also offered as ARTH 502 / 402)

Archaeological and historic art forms of the Arctic Northwest coast and the eastern woodlands of North America.  (E)

{Fall}

(Also offered as ARTH 506 / 406)

Archaeological and historic art forms of the Plains, Southwest and western regions of North America.

(E)

{Spring}

(Also offered as ARTH 559)

(E) 

Restriction: permission of instructor.

{Offered upon demand}

Topics from various areas of anthropological linguistics including, but not limited to, ethnosemantics, the ethnography of communication and the biology of language.  (E)

(Also offered as LING 559 / 359)

Examination of the interrelations of language and speech with other selected aspects of culture and cognition.  (E)

Prerequisite: 110 or LING 101 or LING 301.

{Spring}

(Also offered as LING 554)

Current topics and issues in phonology, syntax or semantics. (E)

An intensive survey of Southwest prehistory including discussion of major interpretative problems. Covers the period from 11,000 years ago to historic times.(A)

{Fall}

Examines how flaked stone artifacts can be studied and contribute to archaeological research. Includes such topics as raw material procurement; manufacturing technology; tool morphology, function, and style; debitage; and theoretical frameworks.

Restriction: admitted to Anthropology graduate program.

Archaeology of South America from the Paleo-Indian to the European colonial period. Emphasizes the origins and evolution of Andean civilization and associated interpretive problems.  (A)

{Alternate years}

The prehistory of Europe with emphasis on hunter-gatherer adaptations of the Pleistocene and early Holocene, using primary data sources.  (A) 

Prerequisite: 101 or (120 and 122L) or 220.

{Alternate years}

Straus

The prehistory of Africa from the appearance of the first hominids to the development of complex societies.  (A)

Prerequisite: 101 or (120 and 122L) or 220.

{Alternate years}

A survey of the Near Eastern culture area from the origins of agriculture to the development of Bronze Age civilization.  (A)

{Offered periodically}

Comparative approach to origin and development of stratified societies and pristine states as known from the archaeological record.  (A)

Current topics in ethnology to be explored in experimental seminars.  (E)

Culture and history of indigenous peoples of South America. Selected examples from lowland and highland regions.  (E)

{Offered periodically}

Ethnographic studies and a variety of anthropological approaches to ritual are read to examine the defining characteristics of ritual activity and its contemporary significance in peoples' lives. (E)

{Offered annually}

Examination of data and theories relevant to study of Indian, Hispanic and dominant society cultures in southwestern U.S. and northwestern Mexico. Student research generated from students professional interests. Non-majors admitted.  (E)

A description and analysis of competing theories about the content of human rights; the history, politics and economics of human rights situations. Emphasis on the interplay among power, difference, “culture” and human rights abuses.  (E)

Current topics in sociocultural anthropology to be explored in experimental courses.  (E)

A practicum in ethnographic methods and theory.  (E)

Cultural and social institutions common throughout Latin America and their historical antecedents. Contemporary social movements and their prognosis for the immediate future. Analysis of the variations among selected Latin American societies.

(E)

{Offered annually}

Early history of anthropology from 19th-century cultural evolutionists to anthropology of the mid-20th century. Contributions of Historical School, Structural Functionalists and Neo-Evolutionists.  (E)

{Fall}

Early history of anthropology from 19th-century cultural evolutionists to anthropology of the mid-20th century. Contributions of Historical School, Structural Functionalists and Neo-Evolutionists.  (E)

{Fall}

(Also offered as MUS 448 / 548)

The cultural study of music and sound. Course materials are drawn from written and audio music ethnographies of contemporary indigenous, diasporic, refugee, exile, and industrial communities. (E)

Restriction: permission of instructor.

(EV)

This seminar reviews issues in primate taxonomy, functional and behavioral reconstructions, phylogenetic relationships, and macroevolutionary patterns. The intent of this course is to put primates into a broader evolutionary perspective.

This course explores reconstruction of paleoecosystems, climates, and ecologies. Students receive laboratory training in techniques including dental microwear and stable isotope analyses. We also examine paleoecological studies through readings of recent literature.

Ancient disease through the study of normal and abnormal bone remodeling processes and dental conditions. Population health evaluated by descriptive and radiologic analyses of human remains.  (EV)

Prerequisite: *351L.

{Alternate years}

This course examines theory, data and methods used by genetic anthropologists to address questions about human origins and prehistory, race, natural selection, disease, and the social and scientific implications of research in genetic anthropology.  (EV)

Prerequisite: 150 or BIOL 110 or BIOL 123 or BIOL 201L or BIOL 202L.

{Alternate years}

Events and processes leading from the appearance of the human lineage to the beginnings of agriculture, with discussions of Australopithecus and the genus Homo, through Homo sapiens.  (EV)

Prerequisite: *351L.

{Alternate years}

Topics of interest including Critical reading, Anthropological economics, Life history strategies, Primate reproductive strategies, Game theory.  (EV)

In-depth treatment of human life history evolution. Covers basic population demography; mortality, senescence, menopause, mating, reproduction, parental investment with additional focus on brain evolution. Experiences in evaluation and building mathematical models of fitness trade-offs.  (EV)

Prerequisite: (360 or BIOL 300) and MATH 121.

Special emphasis will be on strategies of survival, reproduction, mating and rearing, in the complex social systems of apes and monkeys. The costs and benefits of alternative strategies are used to understand individual life histories. (EV)

{Alternate years}

Behavioral transitions throughout human evolution, including social systems, diet, life history, intelligence and locomotion. Focus on hominid origins, the transition from ape-like to human-like hominid, and the origin of our own species.

Prerequisite: 357.

(A)

(A)

Emphasizes the methods and techniques employed to construct and analyze archaeological materials. Style, function and technology of flaked and ground stone and ceramics are considered. Course work includes readings, discussions and laboratory exercises. Exercises focus on the construction, analysis and interpretation of data.  (A)

Prerequisite: 320.

{Alternate years}

Advanced discussion of concepts and theories within world archaeology. The course emphasizes the structure of archaeological thought in culture history, new archaeology, evolutionary theory and post-modernism.  (A)

Restriction: admitted to Anthropology graduate program.

{Fall}

Intensive instruction in archaeological field and laboratory techniques and the opportunity for independent student research. (A)

Restriction: permission of instructor.

In-depth analysis of current research issues and topics in Southwest archaeology.  (A)

Explores critical issues and debates in different periods of European prehistory, based on primary sources.  (A)

Introduction to cultural and linguistic diversity of indigenous groups in Mexico, designed to prepare students for study in Oaxaca. Concentration on indigenous peoples of Southern Mexico and Mesoamerica, including Zapotec, Mixtec, Mixe, and Maya groups.

Restriction: permission of instructor.

Advanced discussion of current theoretical debates in archaeology, including Processual and Post-processual paradigms, formation processes; middle-range, optimal foraging, evolutionary, hunter-gatherer mobility theories; cultural ecology; and origins of agriculture and complex society.  (A)

Basic concepts, methods and approaches used in the analysis of archaeological pottery. Lectures cover concepts and strategies. Labs give practical experience with techniques of analysis.  (A)

This class explores ethical issues and debates surrounding heritage-making practices and discourses through lens of ethnological, archaeological, and evolutionary anthropology. It problematizes the boundaries between different constructions of the past and present.

(Also offered as EPS 582L / 482L)

Application of geological concepts to archaeological site formation with emphasis on pre-ceramic prehistory of the southwestern United States. Quaternary dating methods, paleoenvironment, landscape evolution, depositional environments. Quaternary stratigraphy, soil genesis, sourcing of lithic materials, site formation processes. Required field trip.  (A)

{Alternate years}

Intensive instruction in ethnographic field and analysis techniques and the opportunity for independent student research.

Restriction: permission of instructor.

(Also offered as ARTH, MSST 585 / 485)

Theoretical and practical work in specific museum problems. May be repeated as subject matter changes.  (E)

Prerequisite: ARTH 507 or MSST 507.

{Offered upon demand}

(Also offered as ARTH, MSST 586 / 486)

Practicum in museum methods and management. (E)

Prerequisite: ARTH 507 or MSST 507.

Restriction: permission of instructor.

{Offered upon demand}

(Also offered as BIOL 591 / 491)

This course investigates how genetic variation is patterned within and between and how these patterns change over time. Topics include neutral theory, population structure, phylogenetics, coalescent theory, molecular clock, and laboratory methods.  (EV)

Examines the history and philosophy of statutes, regulations, consultation processes, research directions and funding sources underlying management of archaeological sites, traditional cultural properties, historic buildings, cultural and historical landscapes, and museum collections.  (A)

This course covers basic business practices in archaeological consulting; research designs and proposals in a contract environment; best-practice fieldwork and analytical strategies; and the requirements for legal compliance.

Presents and interprets the earliest archeology of North America from the terminal Pleistocene through the early Holocene including relevant archeological evidence from eastern Eurasia and South America.

Summer Institute in Cultural Resource Management. Two weeks lecture, six weeks internship. Classes introduce knowledge/skills needed for a career in CRM. Supervised work experience in government or private firms.

Limited to graduate majors in the master’s program.  (A, E, EV)

Limited to graduate majors in the master’s program.  (A, E, EV)

Offered on a CR/NC basis only.

(A, E, EV)

(Also offered as BIOL, CS, STAT 520, ECE 620)

Varying interdisciplinary topics taught by collaborative scientists from UNM, SFI, and LANL.

The analysis of the skeletal remains from past human populations, oriented at the mortality, morbidity and genetic affinities of those extinct populations.  (EV)

Prerequisite: *351L.

Uses the perspective of evolutionary biology to examine the diversity of sex roles played by men and women in the historical and cross-cultural record.  (EV)

{Alternate years}

Explores recent research in both captivity and the wild on cognition and behavior of great apes (chimpanzees, gorillas, bonobos, orangutans), the closest living relatives of humans.  (EV)

{Alternate years}

Provides an overview of research design and methods utilized in the social/behavioral sciences and public health. It introduces a ‘top-down,’ problem-oriented approach to question development, sample selection, design decisions, specific methods, data analysis.  (EV)

{Alternate years}

Exploration and evaluation of practical anthropological research designs. Exhaustive preparation of realistic grant proposals for specific student-generated projects, with intensive group criticism.  (A, E, EV)

Limited to graduate majors in the doctoral program.  (A, E, EV)

Limited to graduate majors in the doctoral program.  (A, E, EV)

Offered on a CR/NC basis only.

(A, E, EV)