Indigenous Studies Commons^™

Books Noted: Recent Pacific Islands Publications: Selected Acquisitions, January 2012-December 2012, Riley Moffat

Pacific Studies

THIS LIST of significant publications relating to the Pacific Islands was selected from new acquisitions list received from Brigham Young University-Hawaiʻi, University of Hawai'i at Manoa, Bernice P. Bishop Museum, University of Auckland, East-West Center, University of the South Pacific, National Library of the Australia, Melanesian Studies Resource Center, Center for Pacific and Asian Studies, University of Nijmegen, University of California, San Diego, Secretariat of the Pacific Community Library, Center for South Pacific Studies, University of New South Wales, Macmillan Brown Library at University of Canterbury, and the Australian International Development Assistance Bureau's Center for the Pacific Development Training. Other …

Dams, Roads, And Bridges: (Re)Defining Work And Masculinity In American Indian Literature Of The Great Plains, 1968-Present, Joshua Tyler Anderson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In the study of contemporary American Indian literature, the definition of work and the characterization of Native and non-native laborers—farmers, ranchers, lawmen, smugglers, Indian Affairs agents, academics, activists, "traditionalists," tour guides, artists, among others—are rarely the lenses that scholars use to interpret the texts. Instead, issues of class and labor often take a backseat to those of cultural survivance and traditional and/or "mix-blood" identity, resistance to historical and ongoing acts of colonialism, reassertion of treaty rights and cultural practices, and reclamation of land and cultural artifacts. However, although the canon of contemporary Native literatures warrants close attention to these issues, …

Understanding Slave Subsistence In The Context Of Changing Agricultural Practices: Paleoethnobotany At Thomas Jefferson's Poplar Forest, Samantha J. Henderson

Graduate Masters Theses

During the 18th and 19th centuries, enslaved people at Thomas Jefferson's Poplar Forest utilized provisioned, gardened, and wild plants from local environments surrounding their homes to provide for their own subsistence. The Wingo's quarter was home to a number of these enslaved individuals at the end of the 18th century. Using macrobotanical data, I describe the subsistence strategies of the people living at this quarter, showing how enslaved Africans and African Americans at Wingo's utilized different sources of food to shape their foodways. Additionally, edible and inedible botanical remains provide a picture of the local environment around Wingo's within which …

An Historical Archaeological Investigation Of The Indianola Prisoner Of War Camp In Southwestern Nebraska, Allison Marie Young

Department of Anthropology: Theses and Student Research

Second World War military operations resulted in the capture of thousands of prisoners of war. This led to the creation of internment facilities by both the Axis and the Allies. Archaeologists have begun to examine these facilities. The United States government established a POW program with numerous camps all over the country. This study provides the results of historical archaeological research at the Indianola prisoner of war camp in southwestern Nebraska. A goal of this research is to determine if the archaeological record reflects adherence to the Geneva Convention of 1929. The investigation included archival research and archaeological fieldwork with …

Aboriginal And Non-Aboriginal Students Learn About Natural Health Products From Different Information Sources, Sarah O. Alkholy, Samiah N. Alqahtani, Audrey Cochrane, Maria Pontes Ferreira, Fidji Gendron

Nutrition and Food Science Faculty Research Publications

Natural health products (NHPs) include naturally derived botanical and nonbotanical products. Past research indicates a high prevalence of NHPs use amongst adults in the United States and Canada but does not clearly characterize NHPs use amongst students, ethnic variations of such use, or how users learn about NHPs. We hypothesize that there is a difference between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students in how they learn about NHPs. To investigate this question, we conducted a cross-sectional study at First Nations University of Canada and the University of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, during the fall of 2011. Aboriginal (n=214) and non-Aboriginal (n=749) students participated …

Rez Realities: Exploring The Perceptions Of Crime And Justice Among Tribal Police Officers In Indian Country, Favian Alejandro Martin

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

Although American Indians and Alaskan Natives (AI/NA) compose just over 1% of the general population in the U.S., they experience higher rates of crime and violence than the total population and are dramatically over-represented in the criminal justice system. In light of these realities, the paucity of research on AI/NA crime, violence, and justice problems is appalling. What research does exist suggests that AI/NA crime and victimization is correlated with social problems such as poverty and illegal drug use which are linked to the social ills of colonialism. Drawing on the work of Loader (1997), this dissertation examines the perceptions …

Evans Study Committee Update, Dean Saitta

John Evans Study: Supporting Materials

Letter from Dean J. Saitta, Professor and Chair, Department of Anthropology to John Evans Study Committee.

Disruptions In The Dream City: Unsettled Ideologies At The 1905 World's Fair In Portland, Oregon, Kat Cleland

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis examines the experiences of fairgoers at the Lewis and Clark Centennial, American Pacific Exposition and Oriental Fair held in Portland, Oregon from June to October of 1905. Historians have framed world's fairs and international expositions as sites of legitimating narratives and restagings of empire and nationhood. This thesis focuses on women, Asian Americans, and Native Americans who interrupted and disrupted the performance and exhibition of U.S. imperialism in the specific case of Portland, Oregon. It considers who benefitted from or endured loss in the demonstrations of imperial culture at the Fair. Following the premises that metropolitan and colonial …

"As Our Elders Taught Us To Speak It": Chinuk Wawa And The Process Of Creating Authenticity, Kylie N. Johnson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Chinuk Wawa (also called Chinook Jargon) began as a trading language of the Pacific Northwest in the late eighteenth century. As it developed, it became the major heritage language of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde, an intertribal nation located in Oregon. Now, as older speakers of the language pass on, there is an effort by the Grand Ronde to revitalize this language not only on the Grand Ronde Reservation, but also in nearby Portland, Oregon. However, revitalization can be a complicated process, as tribal leaders attempt to define Chinuk to maintain its traditions while adapting its vocabulary for …

Cultural Continuity In A Nipmuc Landscape, Joseph Bagley

Graduate Masters Theses

This thesis examines the lithic assemblage from the 2005-2012 field seasons at the Sarah Boston site in Grafton, Massachusetts. The Sarah Boston site is associated with a multi-generational Nipmuc family living on the site during the late 18th through early 19th centuries. In total, 163 lithic artifacts, primarily quartz flakes and cores, were found throughout the site with concentrations north of a house foundation associated with the Nipmuc family. Reworked gunflints and worked glass were examined as examples of lithic practice associated with artifacts that are conclusively datable to the period after European arrival. Presence of quartz artifacts in an …

Many Worlds Converge Here: Vision And Identity In American Indian Photography, Alicia L. Harris

School of Art, Art History, and Design: Theses and Student Creative Work

Photographs of Native Americans taken by Frank A. Rinehart at the Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition in 1898 were then and continue to be part of the construction of indigenous identities, both by Anglo-Americans and Natives. This thesis analyzes the ramifications of Rinehart’s portraits and those of his peers as well as Native American artists in the 20^th and 21^st centuries who have sought to re-appropriate these images to make them empowering icons of individual or tribal identity rather than erasure of culture.

This thesis comprises two sections. In the first section, the analysis is focused on the historical …

The Adair Site: Ouachita River Valley Relations Through Ceramic Analysis, Joanne Demaio

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The Adair site (3GA1), located in the Upper Ouachita River Valley in Garland CO, Arkansas is an Upper Ouachita Caddo site. The people at the site are presumed to be at the center of cultural dominance for the area and had interaction with Caddo sites in the region. This thesis explores this by studying the whole vessel collections that were excavated at the Adair site in the 1930s. Comparing the Adair collection to three other Caddo sites provides information about the Social standing of the Adair site, its relations with other sites, and how it fits into the greater fabric …

Battle Mound: Exploring Space, Place, And History Of A Red River Caddo Community In Southwest Arkansas, Duncan Mckinnon

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research is a synthesis of archaeogeophysical and archaeohistorical data collected from the Battle Mound site (3LA1). Using these data, this research seeks to understand how the site is organized in terms of architectural variability and how differential use areas, such as domestic or community space, can be compared to ethnographic and archaeological data concerning Caddo community structure and landscape use. The research is formulated around three research questions related to spatial organization and settlement patterning, intrasite behavioral practices, and Caddo culture history. Results show that an examination at multiple scales of resolution can inform about the spatial organization and …

The Impacts Of Colonial And Environmental Processes On Ceramic Plainware At Salinas Province, New Mexico, Lindsey Elizabeth Daub

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This thesis investigates whether Spanish demands on native time, labor and diet resulted in changes to the plainware ceramics used by the Salinas Pueblo Indians of New Mexico from the early 1600s to the 1670s. Increased pressures on native women's time may have resulted in a decline in the quality of the ceramic pastes, an increase in the presence of mend holes, changes in household size and composition that may have resulted in changes in the sizes of cooking vessels, and a decrease in food availability that may have resulted in decreased sizes or quantities of storage jars. While the …

Chronologies Of Pain And Power: Violence, Inequality, And Social Control Among Ancestral Pueblo Populations (Ad 850-1300), Ryan Patrick Harrod

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Analysis of human remains in the Greater Southwest offers important insights into mechanisms underlying cultural processes, human adaptability as well as behavioral flexibility and resilience in the face of change. Data collected from human remains from several sites throughout the Four Corners region of the Greater Southwest provides information on the ways that violence and social inequality were used to maintain a regional complex between AD 850 to AD 1300. Human remains were used to provide empirical data on biological (age, sex, stature, and robusticity) and cultural (mortuary context, burial practice, and site layout) identity. Skeletal remains provided information on …

Attitudes Toward Science (Ats): An Examination Of Scientists' And Native Americans' Cultural Values And Ats And Their Effect On Action Priorities, Adam T. Murry

Dissertations and Theses

Science has been identified as a crucial element in the competitiveness and sustainability of America in the global economy. American citizens, especially minority populations, however, are not pursuing science education or careers. Past research has implicated `attitudes toward science' as an important factor in the public's participation in science. I applied Ajzen's (1991) Theory of Planned Behavior to attitudes toward science to predict science-related sustainability-action intentions and evaluated whether scientists and Native Americans differed in their general attitudes toward science, cultural values, and specific beliefs about science. Analyses revealed that positive attitude toward science and the cultural value of individualism …

Eastern Pequot Archaeological Field School, 2003 - 2013, Stephen W. Silliman

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

The Eastern Pequot Archaeological Field School began in 2003 as a cooperative effort between Anthropology Professor Stephen Silliman and the Eastern Pequot Tribal Nation, a Native American community in southeastern Connecticut. It uses a six-credit summer archaeological field course to achieve four objectives set within a model of community-engaged scholarship.

Highlights And Impacts: 2012 Naisa Conference & Other Events, J. Cedric Woods, Institute For New England Native American Studies, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

The Native American and Indigenous Studies Association (NAISA) is the premier organization for scholars in Native and Indigenous Studies, representing numerous indigenous peoples and their non-indigenous allies. The Institute for New England Native American Studies (INENAS) played a key role in planning 2012 conference, with Director Cedric Woods serving as co-chair of Executive Host Committee.

Culturally Relevant Resources To Meet The Changing Priorities Of Tribal Communities, J. Cedric Woods, Institute For New England Native American Studies, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

The mission of INENAS is to develop collaborative relationships, projects, and programs between Native American tribes of the New England region and all of the UMass campuses so that the tribes may participate in and benefit from university research, innovation, scholarship, and education. As the interests, needs, and demographics of Native New England shift, these changing priorities will be reflected in its programming, grant submissions, and outreach efforts.

Beacon Voyages For Service: 2013 Alternative Spring Break Trip To The Pine Ridge Reservation, South Dakota, Sherrod Williams

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

This March, fourteen UMass Boston students traveled to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota to address the pressing issues of poverty faced by the Oglala Lakota people by assisting in construction efforts such as repairing stairwells, building children’s bunk beds, and installing protective skirting around mobile homes to help increase the overall quality of life on the reservation. In conjunction with the service work, special attention was placed on fostering relationships and participating in a cultural exchange with the Oglala Lakota community that has created awareness about the tribulations faced by the United States of America’s most disadvantaged …

Report Of Meeting With Chancellor And Provost, Dean Saitta

John Evans Study: Supporting Materials

Meeting notes regarding formation of a John Evans study.

Experimentation In Sling Weaponry: Effectiveness Of And Archaeological Implications For A World-Wide Primitive Technology, Eric T. Skov

Department of Anthropology: Theses and Student Research

The sling is a simple, cheap and effective weapon that was widely distributed among prehistoric and historic populations. Well-known archaeological and textual evidence attests to its widespread military usage in Europe, South America, andCentral America. However, ethnographic and archaeological evidence also suggest that the sling was widely distributed among Native American populations. Experimentation presented herein suggests that previous scholarship and experimental efforts have significantly underestimated potential velocity, range and potential damage to target organisms. Given the world-wide distribution of sling technology, revision of basic assumptions of weapon capability can have a profound effect on interpretation of archaeological problems internationally and …

Oppression, Sexual Violence And Their Effects On Native American Women, Isabella J. Baxter

Student Publications

This paper is a response to the chapter “Sexual Violence as a Tool of Genocide” in Andrea Smith’s book Conquest: Sexual Violence and American Indian Genocide. Smith argues that U.S. colonial culture strategically uses sexual violence against Native women as a weapon to ensure the oppression and marginalization of Native people. This paper details and examines Smith’s argument and also considers the influence of Native Women on White feminism. Despite the great influence Native culture has on White feminism, White Feminists’ perceptions of Native women is often skewed and biased, as a result of the systematic oppression that is utilized …

Memo To Du Provost And Chancellor, Dean Saitta

John Evans Study: Supporting Materials

Memorandum sent to the University of Denver's Provost and Chancellor about interest in a study on John Evans and the Sand Creek Massacre.

Faculty Email Exchanges, Dean Saitta, Richard Clemmer-Smith, Billy J. Stratton, Gary A. Fine, Paul Colomy

John Evans Study: Supporting Materials

Email exchanges between University of Denver and Northwestern University on studies of John Evans and the Sand Creek Massacre.

Inuit Myth In The Film “Brother Bear”, Tali M. Schroeder

Oglethorpe Journal of Undergraduate Research

The objective of this paper is to examine the 2003 film Brother Bear and note any mythological aspects that are accurately represented. The film displays an Inuit village and many correct cultural features of Inuit myth and legend. The paper examines the usage of music and dance, animal spirits, revenge, and shamanism in both the film and in Inuit culture. In my research, I found that the film represented these and other facets of Inuit myth extraordinarily well. While some parts of the film were inaccurate, the mythological parts were accurately represented for the most part. The depictions of Inuit …

Recognizing The 150th Anniversary Of The Dakota-U.S. War Of 1862 And Declaring 2012-2013 The Year Of The Dakota In Redwood Falls, City Council Of Redwood Falls

John Evans Study: Supporting Materials

Resolution adopted by the city of Redwood Falls in response to the city's history with the Dakota People. This resolution was used as a precedent in the University of Denver's study of its relationship with John Evans and the Sand Creek Massacre.

From Scouts To Soldiers: The Evolution Of Indian Roles In The U.S. Military, 1860-1945, James C. Walker

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The eighty-six years from 1860-1945 was a momentous one in American Indian history. During this period, the United States fully settled the western portion of the continent. As time went on, the United States ceased its wars against Indian tribes and began to deal with them as potential parts of American society. Within the military, this can be seen in the gradual change in Indian roles from mostly ad hoc forces of scouts and home guards to regular soldiers whose recruitment was as much a part of the United States’ war plans as that of any other group. The gradual …

"Kill The Indian, Save The Man," Americanization Through Education: Richard Henry Pratt's Legacy, Lindsay Peterson

Honors Theses

"Even wild turkeys only need the environment and kind treatment of domestic civilized life to become a very part of it.” Richard Henry Pratt made this observation while preparing for Thanksgiving with his family in 1867 in response to his interactions with Native Americans on the frontier. He served out West as second lieutenant in the 10th United States Cavalry, an African American regiment. The basic idea behind Pratt’s mentality was that the Indians’ inferiority was cultural, not racial, and that even Native Americans could become educated and “civilized” if only given the same opportunities provided to white Americans, African …

Intergenerational Mythweaving And Cultural Identity, Ethelyn Anguluan-Coger

Expressive Therapies Dissertations

The study explored how intergenerational mythweaving as a form of expressive arts therapies affected the cultural identity of an intergenerational Filipino-American group. The specific research question addressed was, “Is Indigenous Artivism or IA an effective medium for fostering awareness of kapwa-based cultural identity?” IA was the theoretical framework with three components: the indigenous approach of storytelling, the indigenous process called kapwa-based intergenerational mythweaving or KIM, and an indigenous knowledge of helping and healing as a means for decolonization. IA was assumed to increase the awareness of cultural identity when participants achieved symbolic synthesis and cultural healing on the individual and …