Kulturen, Technokomplexe, Völker und Identitätsgruppen: eine Skizze der archäologischen Diskussion

Abstract

Archaeology uses a variety of terms for social groups which are also used in interdisciplinary projects, including those with palaeo-genetics, as a reference point for comparisons. This contribution investigates the conceptual difference between the various group designations and presents the differences in their genetic relevance. The diverging models of the term culture within archaeology are presented according to Clarke (1968) and distinguished from the term technocomplex, on the one hand, and especially from the term ethnic group on the other. The ethnicity model introduced by Barth (1969), which distinguishes between cultural and ethnic groups, is especially significant here. The overview attempts to outline the consensus and the dissent within the discipline in relation to these terms. In archaeology these terms for groups are always understood to be social systems which do not necessarily have a biological significance as well.