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Heartland As Hinterland: The Mesoamerican Core And North American Periphery Of Book Of Mormon Geography, Mark Alan Wright

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

The best available evidence for the Book of Mormon continues to support a limited Mesoamerican model. However, Alma 63 indicates that there was a massive northward migration in the mid-first century bc. I argue that these north-bound immigrants spread out over the centuries and established settlements that were geographically distant from the core Nephite area, far beyond the scope of the text of the Book of Mormon. I introduce the Hinterland Hypothesis and argue that it can harmonize the Mesoamerican evidence for the Book of Mormon with Joseph Smith’s statements concerning Nephite and Lamanite material culture in North America. Archaeological …

John L. Sorenson’S Complete Legacy: Reviewing Mormon’S Codex, Brant A. Gardner, Mark Alan Wright

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

Mormon’s Codex: An Ancient American Book is unquestionably a monument to an impressive career defending, defining, and explaining the Book of Mormon. John L. Sorenson has been for the New World setting of the Book of Mormon what Hugh Nibley was for the Old World setting. From his earliest 1952 publications using anthropology and geography to defend the Book of Mormon to the 2013 publication of Mormon’s Codex, Sorenson has been the dominant force in shaping scholarly discussions about the Book of Mormon in its New World setting.1 With an impressive 714 pages of text with footnotes, Mormon’s Codex is …

References

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Wolf Village: New Insights On The Fremont, James R. Allison

Faculty Publications

Wolf Village is remarkable for its architectural diversity, its large and diverse artifact assemblages, and the insights into Fremont social organization and ritual practices it offers. Officially designated 42UT273, the site is on and just below a hill adjacent to Currant Creek, near the town of Goshen at the south end of Utah valley. From 2009 through 2013, the Brigham Young University archaeological field school spent five field seasons there, uncovering the remnants of seven semi-subterranean pit structures and two adobe surface houses. People built and used those structures in the A.D. 1000s or early 1100s, although the radiocarbon dates …

Notes For The Next Century: Kiva Mini Essay, Michael T. Searcy

Faculty Publications

Northwest Mexico and the U.S. Southwest are in reality one region divided by a modern political border. Bi-national archaeological research and collaborations have been difficult to conduct due to the recent crime-wave that has take hold of Northern Mexico in recent years. Fear and U.S. sanctioned travel bans have driven scholars out of this region. In addition, the recent and pending retirements of academics have contributed to the diminishing number of archaeologists conducting research in Northwest Mexico. As a dual-citizen ad as an archaeologist with research interests on both sides of the border, I believe that research institutions and governments …

Beginning Of What? A Reflection On Hugh Nibley's Legacy And Lds Scholarship On Late Antique Christianity, Daniel Becerra

Studies in the Bible and Antiquity

No abstract provided.

Toward A Mormon Systematic Theology: Essay On Wrestling The Angel By Terryl L. Givens, Stephen H. Webb

BYU Studies

Can Mormon theology be made systematic? That question presupposes, of course, that it is not systematic already, and this is where the skeptics of system building have an advantage. If Mormon theology appears to be a bit protracted, improvised, and even makeshift if not positively byzantine, then forcing it into a schematic form might be inappropriate. Organizing Mormon thought might even be a violent act, like cramming a lot of priceless pieces of glass art into a small, unpadded box for shipping. Under such conditions, how could any theologian guarantee that breakage won’t occur?

Postponing Heaven: The Three Nephites, The Bodhisattva, And The Mahdi, Jad Hatem

Maxwell Institute Publications

Christianity, like other world religions, surprisingly acknowledges the existence of a plurality of human messiahs. In this comparative work, philosopher Jad Hatem examines Mormonism’s Three Nephites, Buddhism’s Bodhisattva, and Islam’s Mahdi—distinctive messianic figures who postpone Heaven, sacrificially prolonging their lives for the benefit of humankind.

Originally published in French, this translation includes two additional papers written by Jad Hatem dealing with aspects of Latter-day Saint belief and a new interview between Hatem and Latter-day Saint philosopher James E. Faulconer.

"Hard" Evidence Of Ancient American Horses, Daniel Johnson

BYU Studies

The suggestion of horses and chariots in pre-Columbian America has long been an easy target for critics of the Book of Mormon. Those who believe in this unique book of scripture have been hard-pressed to defend this aspect of the record and some may have wavered in their faith while trying to circumnavigate this stumbling block. Finding proof of horses in the New World has been a goal for many scholars of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who have offered various theories as a means of explanation, yet hard evidence still remains elusive.

Viracocha: Christ Among The Ancient Peruvians?, Scott Hoyt

BYU Studies

There came from a southern direction a white man of great stature, who, by his aspect and presence, called forth great veneration and obedience. This man who thus appeared had great power, insomuch that he could change plains into mountains, and great hills into valleys, and make water flow out of stones. As soon as such power was beheld, the people called him the Maker of created things, the Prince of all things, Father of the Sun. For they say that he performed other wonders, giving life to men and animals, so that by his hand marvellous great benefits were …

New Perspectives On 2 Enoch: No Longer Slavonic Only, David J. Larsen

BYU Studies

This book contains the proceedings of the Fifth Enoch Seminar, held in Naples, Italy, on June 14–18, 2009. The theme of the conference was “Adam, Enoch, Melchizedek: Mediatorial Figures in 2 Enoch and Second Temple Judaism,” covering topics of intrinsic interest for biblical scholars generally, as well as for Latter-day Saints. The book’s subtitle, No Longer Slavonic Only, refers to an important discovery announced at the seminar. The book of 2 Enoch is also commonly referred to as “Slavonic Enoch” because the text has been known only in its Slavonic translation; now Coptic fragments of the text have been …

Neutron Activation Analysis Of San Juan Red Ware Pottery, James R. Allison, Jeffrey R. Ferguson

Faculty Publications

San Juan Red Ware pottery is most common in southeastern Utah, where most of it appears to have been made, but is widely distributed throughout the Four Corners region from about A.D. 750 to 1100. Neutron Activation Analysis of San Juan Red Ware potsherds shows that there were numerous production locales, and red ware pottery from southeast Utah falls into several distinguishable chemical groups. These chemical groups have distributions that suggest relatively little exchange among the production area sites. Despite differing from red ware producers in styles of material culture (ceramics, architecture, and settlement patterns), and probably social identity, Pueblo …

Introducing The Fremont, James R. Allison

Faculty Publications

“Fremont” is a label archaeologists use for the northern con- temporaries of Ancestral Pueblo people. Fremont peoples lived mostly in what is now the state of Utah, in the eastern Great Basin and on the northern Colorado Plateau. Their range extended slightly beyond the modern borders of Utah. Sometime during the first few centuries A.D., people began growing maize (corn) in the region. The first farmers might have been immigrants from the south, or indigenous hunter-gatherers who incorporated maize into their diet; most archaeologists think evidence shows a combination of both patterns. Over the next several hundred years, people across …

Explorations In Viejo Period Archaeology At The Vista Del Valle Site In Chihuahua, Mexico, Michael T. Searcy, Todd Pitezel

Faculty Publications

Since Charles Di Peso’s excavations from 1958 to 1961, there has been little research on the Viejo period (700–1200 A.D.) in the northern Casas Grandes area. As director of the Proyecto Arqueológico Chihuahua, Jane Kelley and her colleagues have added significantly to our knowledge of this time period in the southern area where this cultural tradition also flourished. Following her lead, we recently embarked to better understand the Viejo period in the north by excavating at a site along the Palanganas River, just south of the Casas Grandes River valley. This paper reports the initial results of our 2015 excavations …

A Snohomish Telling Of “The Seal Hunters”, Deryle W. Lonsdale

Faculty Publications

Oral-based indigenous cultures have stories that persist over time, though some variation may exist in various details and in overall context. Related cultures in particular have similar stories, and assessing the similarities and differences across their tellings of these stories provides valuable historical and cultural background. In the case of endangered languages and cultures, every telling of every story provides important insight. This article presents a recently discovered archived account of a Snohomish version of “The Seal Hunters”, a captivating story that has many variant forms across Salish cultures. The story was written down in the nineteenth century by an …

Measuring Worth: Relative Worth Calculators And Data Sets, Leticia Camacho

Faculty Publications

Measuring Worth was founded in 2006 by Lawrence Officer and Samuel Williamson (both, Univ. of Illinois at Chicago). They are also the founders of the Economic History Association's EH.net (CH, May'04, 41-5036). Measuring Worth explores alternative ways to compare and measure the relative worth of things. The site includes historical data on economic aggregates from the US, UK, and Australia, and to a lesser extent, Japan and China.

War Banners: A Mesoamerican Context For The Title Of Liberty, Kerry Hull

Journal of Book of Mormon Studies

No abstract provided.

Avi Steinberg, The Lost Book Of Mormon: A Journey Through The Mythic Lands Of Nephi, Zarahemla, And Kansas City, Missouri, Reviewed By Michael Austin

Journal of Book of Mormon Studies

No abstract provided.

Joseph B. Keeler, Print Culture, And The Modernization Of Mormonism, 1885-1918, David J. Whittaker

BYU Studies

The years flanking the start of the twentieth century represented a time of transition for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Seventy years old in 1900, the Church and the larger Mormon society in which it resided still displayed much of their traditional character. Although some members congregated in urban densities that edged out along the Wasatch Front from Salt Lake City (Utah’s capital and the Church’s headquarters), most still lived in small, relatively self-contained agricultural communities in the Great Basin’s interior. Wherever they lived, however, they expected charismatic leaders to continue organizing the Church, directing devotional life, …

Family Leisure: An Integrative Review Of Research From Select Journals, Camilla Hodge, Jason N. Bocarro, Karla A. Henderson, Ramon Zabriskie, Toby L. Parcel, Michael A. Kanters

Faculty Publications

Understanding the relationship between leisure and families has been and will continue to be an important area of study. The purpose of this study is to review existing family leisure research from four select journals between 1990 and 2012. Articles are examined for sample characteristics, methods, analytical approaches, and thematic trends. Overall, 181 articles regarding family leisure, leisure in context of family life or roles, and individual experiences of family leisure are identified. Findings suggest scholars made strides toward expanding methods, analyses, and sampling diversity, though more diversity in sampling and analytical approaches is needed. Three major research themes are …

Conceptualizing Structured Experiences: Seeking Interdisciplinary Integration, Mat D. Duerden, Peter Ward, Patti A. Freeman

Faculty Publications

While consensus exists around the importance of providing structured experiences, the industries interested in offering such experiences lack a common body of shared knowledge about how most effectively to do so. Potentially complementary research on structured experiences remains fragmented across multiple fields such as leisure, tourism, and marketing. The purpose of this paper, therefore, was first to review and then integrate this scattered literature into a structured experience framework in order to facilitate experience-related research with broader applicability for both commercial and public organizations interested in providing structured experiences.

Obsidian Provenance Studies Of Sites In Northern Utah, Jeffrey Ferguson, James R. Allison

Faculty Publications

Previous studies of obsidian from archaeological sites in Utah Valley and the Salt Lake Valley have used relatively small samples to document temporal shifts in obsidian procurement, with southern sources (especially Black Rock) dominating Fremont assemblages, while most post-Fremont obsidian comes from the Malad source to the north. Our greatly expanded XRF analysis of almost 4,000 obsidian artifacts from sites in Utah and Salt Lake Valleys confirms the temporal change noted by earlier researchers, but also shows site- and source-specific patterns of obsidian use, as well as variation in the frequency of different obsidian sources in tools, debitage, and micro-debitage.

Recent Explorations For Casas Grandes Viejo Period Settlement, Todd Pitezel, Michael T. Searcy

Faculty Publications

Much is known about political, social, economic, and ritual organization during the Casas Grandes Medio period (ca. A.D. 1200-1450). A looming question is, What are the roots of the Medio period? The preceding Viejo period, assumed to begin around A.D. 500, is poorly understood because so little work has been conducted at Viejo sites, and few sites from this time period are known. We recently conducted reconnaissance and systematic survey north and south of the Medio capital settlement of Paquimé and identified six previously unrecorded sites. We present the characteristics of each site, including a ground stone quarry, and how …

Navigating The Faa’S Turbulent Airspace In The United States Regarding Uavs, Michael T. Searcy

Faculty Publications

There has been a significant increase in the use of UAVs throughout the world to aid in archaeological investigations. Unfortunately the current U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has enforced strict policies that prohibit most institutions and private firms to use these aerial vehicles. As a result archaeologists in the United States are falling behind in implementing an important tool in archaeological reconnaissance. This paper outlines the progress made thus far by the FAA to reform these regulations.

Beginnings: The Viejo Period, Jane H. Kelley, Michael T. Searcy

Faculty Publications

he history of the Medio Period is marked by population growth, aggregation, ideological shifts, and the building of the large, central polity of Paquimé (Casas Grandes). But before this colossal social transformation took place, people in northwest Chihuahua lived a lifestyle that had persisted for at least 400 years, which is known as the Viejo Period. his period is far from the beginning of human occupation in this area; Paleo points, extensive Archaic remains, the early agricultural site of Cerro Juanaqueña (Hard and Roney 1998), and an early pithouse period preceded Paquimé and can be seen as more distant precursors …

New Essays On Clint Eastwood, Dennis Cutchins

Faculty Publications

As John M. Gourlie and Leonard Engel state in their introduction to New Essays on Clint Eastwood, the intention of this collection of essays is “both to expand our understanding of individual films and to deepen our overall appreciation of Eastwood’s artistry as, through the various stages of his career, he becomes an even greater master of his craft” (2). In these goals the collection succeeds. The essays are not all equal in their value, and the collection lacks an overall unity, but for Eastwood scholars this is a useful and worthwhile book.

Full Issue, Vol. 7

Monographs of the Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

Generality Of The Terminal Investment Hypothesis: Effects Of Extrinsic Mortality And Resource Availability On Age-Related Reproductive Investment, Allystair Jones

Theses and Dissertations

A central question in life history theory is, what combination of traits and behaviors will lead to the highest reproductive success throughout a lifetime. The trade-off between current and future reproduction is central to the lifetime reproductive success of an organism. If there is a cost to reproduction, then allocation of energy to current reproduction will come at a cost to future reproduction. We expect young individuals to favor future reproduction over current reproduction and that balance shifts to current reproduction as they age (i.e. terminal investment hypothesis). However, how this transition from an emphasis on future reproduction to emphasis …

Leisure Defined By Free Choice: Ugandan Women's Perceptions Of Leisure, Emilie Adams

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the meaning of leisure among women in the developing East African nation of Uganda. In this study, I evaluated the leisure experiences of 38 Ugandan women of various backgrounds and socioeconomic statuses through semi-structured interviews. I analyzed the data using the constant comparative method. Themes for the meaning of leisure include fortifying leisure, enjoyment, and rest and relaxation. Results point to free choice as the core variable. Finally, I discuss the implications and suggestions for future research.

Comparative Analysis Of Ceramics From Three Great Houses And One Small House Site In Southeast Utah, Rachel Marie Harris

Theses and Dissertations

Ceramics from three Utah great houses, Bluff, Cottonwood Falls, and Edge of the Cedars, were analyzed and compared with ceramics from Three Kiva Pueblo, which is not a great house site but was occupied contemporarily. Data on jar and bowl rim diameters were considered to understand great house feasting dynamics. Cooking jars with large rim diameters were more common at Three Kiva than they were at the great houses. This suggests that Three Kiva residents prepared large batches of food more frequently than great house residents. Distributions of Mancos Black-on-white bowl diameters were very similar at great houses and Three …