Introduction: The Critical Junctures of Archaeology, Heritage, and Communities

Abstract

Recent years have witnessed a rapid increase in the field of cultural heritage studies worldwide, especially in the mechanisms and consequences of community participation. This trend has brought to the forefront debates about who owns the past, who has the knowledge, and how heritage values can be shared more effectively with communities of stakeholders. Practice shows that people can ascribe new meanings and relationships to sites, with technical or scientific interpretation being just one of many variations of meaning (Jameson 2016; Jameson and Baugher 2007; Nassaney 2004).