Assistant Professor, Anthropology; Postdoctoral Fellow, Michigan Society of Fellows
tankov@umich.edu
Anthropology;
Archaeology
Education/Degree:
Ph.D., Anthropology, University of Connecticut
M.A., Anthropology, University of Connecticut
B.A., Anthropology, New York University
About
I am a Paleolithic archaeologist studying Neanderthal and Homo sapiens behavior in the southern Caucasus. My research examines the role that cultural transmission and ecological factors had in the evolution and dispersal of lithic technologies across the Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic transition. I am particularly interested in the role that interaction between populations and groups may have had in the development of what we call the “Upper Paleolithic”, and the ways in which both Neanderthals and modern humans adapted their lifeways to the diverse ecologies of the Caucasus. My current field and research projects in Armenia and Georgia explore the last Neanderthal occupations in the region, the earliest evidence for modern human dispersal into the Caucasus, and the development of Upper Paleolithic technologies throughout the Late Pleistocene.
Research Interests
- Lithic technology
- Neanderthal and modern human behavior
- Cultural transmission
- Pleistocene hunter-gatherers
