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Architecture and Gender: Lessons from Building Archaeology in Africa

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Postcolonialism, Heritage, and the Built Environment

Part of the book series: SpringerBriefs in Archaeology ((BRIEFSARCHAE))

Abstract

This chapter focuses upon the role and contribution of women in the architectural process, specifically in earthen architecture, discussing numerous case studies from Africa. The main aim is to foster interdisciplinary research, combining building archaeology, ethnoarchaeology and postcolonial theories to shed lights on understudied aspects of earthen architecture. This contribution also presents the case for a more participative form of archaeology based on community engagement as a key aspect in the analysis of the architecture from archaeological contexts. The chapter addresses two major questions: What is the impact of postcolonial theories on the analysis of earthen architecture in building archaeology? How have gender and subaltern studies improved our understanding of the construction process and overcome pre-existing discipline bias?

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  1. Centre of Excellence in Ancient Near Eastern Empires, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

    Marta Lorenzon

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  1. Department of Ancient Studies, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, South Africa

    Jessica L. Nitschke

  2. Centre of Excellence in Ancient Near Eastern Empires, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

    Marta Lorenzon

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Lorenzon, M. (2020). Architecture and Gender: Lessons from Building Archaeology in Africa. In: Nitschke, J.L., Lorenzon, M. (eds) Postcolonialism, Heritage, and the Built Environment. SpringerBriefs in Archaeology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-60858-3_2

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