This handbook, a companion to the authoritative Handbook of Archaeological Methods, gathers original, authoritative articles from leading archaeologists on all aspects of the latest thinking about archaeological theory. It is the definitive resource for understanding how to think about archaeology.

This handbook gathers original, authoritative articles from leading archaeologists to compile the latest thinking about archaeological theory. The authors provide a comprehensive picture of the theoretical foundations by which archaeologists contextualize and analyze their archaeological data. Student readers will also gain a sense of the immense power that theory has for building interpretations of the past, while recognizing the wonderful archaeological traditions that created it. An extensive bibliography is included. This volume is the single most important reference for current information on contemporary archaeological theories.

Chapter 1 Introduction: On Archaeological Theories
Chapter 2 Research Paradigms
Chapter 3 Culture History: A Culture-Historical Approach
Chapter 4 Processualism and After
Chapter 5 Ecology in Archaeology
Chapter 6 Classical
Chapter 7 Marxism
Chapter 8 Agency
Chapter 9 Darwinian Archaeologies
Chapter 10 Post-Processual Archaeology and After
Chapter 11 Ideas from Neighboring Disciplines
Chapter 12 History and Continental Approaches
Chapter 13 Latin American Archaeology in History and Practice
Chapter 14 Cultural Anthropology and Archaeology: Theoretical Dialogues
Chapter 15 Evolutionary Biological Methods and Cultural Data
Chapter 16 Archaeology and the Origins of Language Families
Chapter 17 Complexity Theory
Chapter 18 Research Concerns
Chapter 19 Stimulating Society
Chapter 20 Mind
Chapter 21 Materiality
Chapter 22 Ethnicity: Theoretical Approaches, Methodological Implications
Chapter 23 Gender
Chapter 24 Philosophy in Archaeology
Chapter 25 Contexts of Archaeological Study
Chapter 26 Cultural Resource Management
Chapter 27 Archaeology and Society
Chapter 28 Archaeological Ethics in Context and Practice
Chapter 29 Towards a Post-Colonial Archaeology of Indigenous Australia
Chapter 30 Theory into Practice
Chapter 31 Hunters and Gatherers
Chapter 32 The Origins and Spread of Agriculture
Chapter 33 The Archaeology of Rank
Chapter 34 Chiefdoms
Chapter 35 The Rise of the State
Chapter 36 Religion