With 14 full-time faculty members and 150 majors, we are the largest undergraduate-only anthropology department in the United States. The Department of Anthropology is committed to a comparative and holistic approach to the study of the human experience. The anthropological perspective provides a broad understanding of the origins as well as the meaning of physical and cultural diversity in the world - past, present, and future. As such, the program in anthropology offers the opportunity for understanding world affairs and problems within the total context of the human experience and for constructing solutions to world problems which are firmly grounded in that context. Cultural anthropologists study people and their cultural practices and beliefs both within and outside of the United States as well as the topics of identity, power, inequality, and social praxis. Archaeologists study the material culture of past peoples in order to reconstruct their cultures, traditions, and practices in order to understand both what came before and how this may help us understand the present. Biological anthropologists study primate evolution and behavioral ecology, human biological variation, biocultural adaptations, bioarchaeology, and human paleontology. Together, we strive to understand both past and present variation in human societies. [ Why study anthropology? ]
News

Appalachian State's Archaeological research team ventures into Linville Gorge Wilderness
Dr. Alice Wright and Dr. Cameron Gokee lead an Archaeological research team into Linville Gorge Wilderness to discover archaeological sites. ...

Talk: Inscribing the Criminal Skin: Underworld Aesthetics and the Flesh of Post-Liberal Futures in Honduras
Dr. Jon Carter to give guest lecture at Princeton University: Jon Carter | Inscribing the Criminal Skin: Underworld Aesthetics and the Flesh of ...

Conference Talk: Ethnographic Evidence in the Americas
Dr. Jon Carter and Dr. Christina Sornito are presenting in the Annual Conference at the University of Florida, Center for Latin American Studies. ...

Talk: It climbs up inside of you, from the soles of the feet
Dr. Jon Carter to give guest lecture at University of Tennesee, Chattanooga and by zoom (registration link below)IT CLIMBS UP INSIDE OF YOU, FROM THE ...

Dr. Susan Keefe receives award from North Carolina Genealogical Society for Excellence
Dr. Susan Keefe has received an award from the North Carolina Genealogical Society for Excellence for her book Junaluska: Oral Histories of a Bla...

Anthropology faculty bring Hostile Terrain 94 Exhibit to Appalachian State University
August – September 2021Sponsored by the Dean’s Office of the College of Arts and Sciences Organized by the Department of AnthropologySpecial thank...
Featured Stories
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Dr. Dana Powell named a "Faculty Member of Distinction" in Appalachian Magazine
Dr. Dana Powell has been named a "Faculty Member of Distinction" in Appalachian Magazine. Her research covers the cultural politics of energy development, political ecology, and critical Native/Indigenous studies.
Alumni spotlights
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Kelsey Rothenberg ('15), Physician Assistant student
I graduated from Appalachian State University with my anthropology degree in May 2015. As I entered my first undergraduate year, I knew my ultimate career goal would involve healthcare and medicine. I had always assumed that a career in health care would automatically enable me to achieve my aspiration to help better the lives of underserved members in my community. However, as I began interacting with more and more individuals of different backgrounds, it became clear that serving people in a meaningful way is far more complex than I had previously understood.
Faculty spotlights
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Dr. Christina Verano Sornito participates in performance event at Black Mountain College
Saturday, March 30, 2019
3 - 10 p.m.
Camp Rockmount in Black Mountain, N.C.
Student spotlights
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Anthropology major, Edgar Villeda, awarded Rachel Carson Council Fellowship
Edgar Villeda, a senior majoring in Anthropology (BS) - biological anthropology from Selma, has been awarded a fellowship with the Rachel Carson Council (RCC). With this fellowship, Villeda hopes to shed light on racial disparities and injustices to the Latinx community that have taken place in Eastern North Carolina with particular emphasis on Johnston County, his home county.