Kamyar Abdi
Kamyar Abdi | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1969 Tabriz, Iran |
| Occupation(s) | Anthropologist, archaeologist, professor |
| Years active | 1990s–present |
| Known for | Near Eastern archaeology, pastoralism studies, archaeological surveys in Iran |
Kamyar Abdi (; born 1969 in Tabriz) is an Iranian anthropologist specializing in Near Eastern archaeology and currently serves as a professor at Shahid Beheshti University. Initially enrolled in theoretical physics for one year, he shifted his academic focus to archaeology at Tehran University, where he obtained his master's degree. In 1994, Abdi advanced his studies at the University of Chicago's Oriental Institute, concentrating on Near Eastern archaeology, history, and languages. He earned his PhD in Anthropological Archaeology with an emphasis on Near Eastern Archaeology from the University of Michigan in 2002, under the mentorship of Henry T. Wright.
Prior to his tenure at Shahid Beheshti University, Abdi held teaching and research positions at several prestigious institutions such as Dartmouth College, Harvard University, University of California, Irvine, and the British Museum. Additionally, he was affiliated as a research associate with the Iranian Center for Research on Humanities and Cultural Studies and served as director of the American Institute of Iranian Studies.
Abdi has directed numerous archaeological surveys and excavation projects within Iran, supported by funding agencies including NSF, NGS, AllS, and lCAR. His scholarly work has substantially enhanced the comprehension of Near Eastern archaeology spanning from prehistoric times through the Bronze Age and into the Achaemenid era. Beyond Iran, he has participated in fieldwork across Turkey, Iraq, the United States, Mexico, and Guatemala.
An accomplished author, Abdi has published extensively in both English and Persian languages. He has also translated a wide range of academic texts into Persian and remains actively involved in mentoring undergraduate and graduate students specializing in archaeology.
Biography
Born in 1969 in Tabriz, Iran, Kamyar Abdi completed his M.A. in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at the University of Chicago in 1997. He later attained a Ph.D. in Anthropology from the University of Michigan in 2002, presenting a dissertation focused on pastoralism during the middle Chalcolithic period within the West Central Zagros Mountains. Between 2002 and 2008, he served as an Assistant Professor in Dartmouth College’s Department of Anthropology.
Abdi’s research primarily explores themes such as sedentary lifestyles, agricultural and pastoral food production systems, and political evolution within ancient Near Eastern societies—highlighting mechanisms of social cohesion within early polities. He has led archaeological investigations at sites including Malyan (historically known as Anshan), Arjan, Sorkh Dom Lori, and Ziviyeh.
In the late 1990s, Abdi directed the Islamabad Archaeological Research Project that discovered a Neanderthal tooth evidencing Neanderthal habitation in Iran’s Zagros Mountains dating back between 40,000 to 70,000 years ago. His academic roles have also included a visiting professorship at Tarbiat Modarres University in Tehran. Since 2017, he holds a Full Professorship at Shiraz University and currently teaches at Shahid Beheshti University.
Published work
- Abdi, K. (2001) Nationalism, Politics, and the Development of Archaeology in Iran, American Journal of Archaeology 105/1: 51–76.
- Abdi, K. (2003) The Early Development of Pastoralism in the Central Zagros Mountains, Journal of World Prehistory, Vol. 17, No. 4: 395–448.
- Abdi, K. (2007) The Name Game: Persian Gulf, Archaeologists, and Politics of Arab-Iranian Relations. In Selective Remembrances: Archaeology in the Construction, Commemoration, and Consecration of National Pasts. Philip Kohl et al., eds., pp. 206–243. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
- Abdi, K. (2008) From Pan-Arabism to Saddam Husayn's Cult of Personality: Ancient Mesopotamia and Iraqi Nationalism. Journal of Social Archaeology 8/1: 3–34.
- Abdi, K. (2012) The Iranian Plateau from Paleolithic Period to the Rise of the Achaemenid Empire. In Oxford Handbook on Iranian History. Edited by Touraj Daryaee. pp. 13–36. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Abdi, K. (2013) Theory and Method in Archaeology: Integrating Approaches for Better Understanding and Application. Payām-e Bāstānshenās 17: 17–30.
- Abdi, K. (2014) The Pre-Imperial Persians at Anshan: Preliminary Observations. In Excavating an Empire: Achaemenid Persia in Longue Durée, edited by T. Daryaee et al., pp. 73–87. Costa Mesa CA: Mazda Publishers.
- Naomi F. Miller and Kamyar Abdi (eds.) (2003) Yeki Bud, Yeki Nabud: Essays on Iranian Archaeology in Honor of William M. Sumner. Philadelphia and Los Angeles: Costen Institute of Archaeology UCLA and American Institute of Iranian Studies.
- Susan Pollock, Reinhard Bernbeck and Kamyar Abdi (eds.) (2010) Toll-e Bashi: A Neolithic Village in Kur River Basin, Iran. Berlin: Deutsches Archäologisches Institut-Eurasien Abteilung.