Native Circles
This podcast features Native American and Indigenous voices, stories, and experiences for everyone to learn, not only in North America but also throughout the world. The founders of Native Circles are Dr. Farina King (Diné) and Sarah Newcomb (Tsimshian), who were inspired to start this podcast to educate wider publics about the interconnections and significance of Native American, Alaska Native, and Indigenous experiences and matters. The primary co-hosts of the podcast are Dr. King, Dr. Davina Two Bears, and Eva Bighorse. Dr. King is the Horizon Chair of Native American Ecology and Culture and a professor of Native American Studies at the University of Oklahoma. Dr. Two Bears (Diné) is an assistant professor in the School for Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University. Bighorse (Cayuga and Diné) is an Indigenous human development advocate with expertise in tribal healthcare relations. Brian D. King is an editor for the podcast with experiences in journalism and writing. Learn more about the podcast and episodes on the official website of "Native Circles" at https://nativecirclespodcast.com/.
Native Circles
Indigenous Deep History with Diné Archaeologist Wade Campbell
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This episode of Native Circles, with co-hosts Dr. Davina Two Bears and Dr. Farina King, features a conversation with Dr. Wade Campbell on Indigenous archaeology, Diné (Navajo) deep history, and how Diné communities have navigated relationships with ancient sites, land, and story over generations. Wade reflects on growing up in the Four Corners, reconciling Diné teachings with archaeological practice, and why he approaches ruins and ancestral places with respect rather than fear. He discusses his work on 18th-century Diné defensive sites, the importance of recognizing mobile Indigenous lifeways in the historical record, and how archaeology, oral history, and community knowledge together illuminate longer-term Diné histories that stretch far beyond the written archive.
Dr. Wade Campbell (Diné, Kinyaa’áanii and Bilagáanaa) is an assistant professor of Archaeology and Anthropology at Boston University. His research traces the historical relationships between Diné communities and other local groups in the US Southwest, including the Pueblos, Spanish, and Americans. Wade is engaged with a range of questions related to patterns of Diné settlement and economic activity across the greater Four Corners region, with a particular focus on incipient Indigenous pastoralism and related shifts in land-use, social organization, and diet/subsistence practices.
Resources:
Wade Campbell, assistant professor of archaeology and anthropology, Boston University webpage.
The Four Heavens: A New History of the Ancient Maya (2026) by David Stuart (see https://www.thefourheavens.com/)
Becoming Hopi: A History, co-edited by Wesley Bernardini, Stewart B. Koyiyumptewa, Gregson Schachner, and Leigh J. Kuwanwisiwma (University of Arizona Press, 2023).
Campbell, Wade, Thompson, K. F., & Begay, R. M. (2021). "Naasgo: Moving Forward—Diné Archaeology in the Twenty-First Century." Kiva, 87 (3), 253–267. https://doi.org/10.1080/00231940.2021.1951553
Campbell, Wade. (2024). "Collaborating with Diné communities: Reconsidering the 'pueblito' through a Diné-oriented archaeological lens." Archaeology Southwest Magazine, 36 (3&4), 24–27.
"Wade Campbell: Diné Pastoral Landscapes: A Lens on Power & Equity in the US Southwest" YouTube video (2023).
