SOA Research Series: Coalescence and Community Making at the Noble-Wieting Cultural Site
Friday, January 24 , 12:00 pm – 1:15 pm CST
The Sociology and Anthropology Department will be hosting its first research series talk of the semester. For this event, Dr. Logan Miller, associate professor of anthropology at ISU, will be giving a research talk titled, “Coalescence and Community Making at the Noble-Wieting Cultural Site.”
This presentation takes a multi-scalar view of coalescence and community formation at Noble-Wieting, a late 13th Langford-Mississippian village in what is now central Illinois. Coalescent communities are said to form during periods of social, political, or environmental upheaval. In the context of increased migrations, social unrest, and climate change in the 13th through 15th century North American Midwest, feelings of unease, fear, and anxiety likely colored the social fields in which residents interacted and were the driving force behind the construction of coalescent communities like Noble-Wieting. Archaeological evidence from the ongoing student-centered and collaborative project at Noble-Wieting shows that the location, layout, and the activities that occurred at the village focused on community integration and thus mitigated, and were mitigated by, residents’ fear, insecurity, and anxiety. This evidence shows that the physical layout and materiality of communities are crucial in altering residents’ experiences and emotions.
This lecture is open to the public.
This lecture will also be accessible via Zoom meeting ID 836 2757 4839. An ISU account is not necessary.
309-438-8668
SociologyAnthropology@IllinoisState.edu