Dissertation committee:
Κ. Κοπανιάς, Αν. Καθηγητής , Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, ΕΚΠΑ
Ε. Μαντζουράνη, Ομ. Καθηγήτρια, Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, ΕΚΠΑ
Π. Κουσούλης, Καθηγητής, Τμήμα Μεσογειακών Σπουδών, Παν/μιο Αιγαίου
Ε. Πλάτων, Αν. Καθηγητής, Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, ΕΚΠΑ
Ι. Παπαδάτος, Αν. Καθηγητής, Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, ΕΚΠΑ
Νένα Γαλανίδου, Καθηγήτρια, Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, Παν/μιο Κρήτης
Anna Gómez Bach, Senior Lecturer, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Summary:
Northern Mesopotamia represents a unique geographical area where dry farming was early achieved thanks to favorable climate and vegetation. The so-called Halaf Culture flourished during the 6th millennium BC in an area that borders on the Fertile Crescent region, i.e., northern Mesopotamia, northern Syria, and southern/southeastern Anatolia. This period deviates from the norms set by previous chronological periods with its fundamentally different cultural and technological elements that start to appear in Near Eastern settlements.
One of the central questions that this thesis aims to answer is: Was there a specific Halaf Culture identity? Since identity is not only related to culture but also to origin, gender, age, language, religion, status, ethnicity, and even political beliefs, how can we define the term identity for such an early period? Are there ethnic, tribal, social, cultural, or other elements that determine the identity of a group of people?
To achieve these objectives this thesis is structured in three parts. In the first part I will discuss theoretical models of identity, i.e., ethnic, tribal, social, and cultural identity, and the sense of identity and community in antiquity, from an anthropological perspective. The second part includes an intra–site microanalysis, where I explore all aspects of material culture at seven settlements serving as case studies. These seven settlements are: Tell Arpachiyah, Yarim Tepe II, Tell Umm Qseir, Girikihaciyan, Fıstıklı Höyük, Kazane Höyük, and Kerküşti Höyük. The third part provides a detailed intra–cultural analysis of architecture, burial customs, pottery, lithic artefacts, small finds, and cultural connections. This analysis highlights the similarities and differences in material culture between several settlements in Upper Mesopotamia in the hopes of understanding and identifying Halaf Culture identity in the 6th millennium BC.
Keywords:
Halaf Culture, 6th mill. BC, cultural identity, Mesopotamia, Near East
