This core course will introduce students to a variety of theories and research methods relevant to the scope of the program. It will also address different research themes representing the range of studies undertaken within the Asian Sphere theme. The course is constituted of lectures of senior Hebrew University scholars. Each of these scholars will present his or her field of research and will discuss with the students fundamental issues relevant to cross-Asian research and perspectives.
West Siberian Plain is the world largest lowland that is flanked from the west by Ural Mountain range, by Altay Mountains from the southeast and by Yenisei river from the east. The rich evidence for prehistoric and proto-historic cultures derives mostly from Ural and Altay mountain ranges and from the southern part of the plain. The region is unique due to the coexistence of Neanderthals and Denisovans ca 100-50 thousand years ago. The early Modern Humans dispersed into the region ca 50-45 thousand years ago. The region is also known for the earliest occurrence of the cave art outside of western Europe (ca 15-10 thousand years ago) and for its rich and uniquely well-preserved record of the east Scythian cultures.
The course will present the geography of the region and its rich archaeological, anthropological, genetic and ethnographic records of the last 300 thousand years.
In their attempt to reconstruct ancient life-ways archaeologists have been enthusiastic consumers of theoretical advances. The recent employment of globalization theories in historical and archaeological literature have generated both excitement and controversy. In this course we will engage with the broad academic underpinnings of globalization as a theoretical model, as well as discuss its suitability for studying the past. We will focus on the application of globalization models to early China and explore archaeological studies that have oversimplified globalization as well as those that have embraced the real potential of the concept. The first part of the course will introduce key concepts in the theoretical discussion on globalization. This is followed by critical examinations of globalization research in the study of the past. The last part will provide a number of case studies through which we will investigate the many ways in which scholars have utilized globalization approach in China’s past.
