Department of Anthropology

Research by our Anthropology department has provided the inspiration for a podcast drama looking at the history of smoking and tobacco addiction.

A new study has revealed that vertebrate species involved in the live wildlife trade have distinctive life history traits that determine the frequency and timing of reproduction.

A new study led by a pioneering researcher from our Department of Anthropology has found that birds build hanging-nests, particularly those with extended entrance tunnels, to help protect offspring against nest invaders like snakes and parasitic cuckoos.

As Halloween approaches, we talk to Dr Efram Sera-Shriar, Associate Director of Research for the Centre for Nineteenth-Century Studies, International, at Durham. His research explores the study of the occult and its intersection with the sciences. He is the lead organiser for Beyond the Veil: Cross-Cultural & Interdisciplinary Studies of Horror, Gothic, and the Occult in the Nineteenth Century, taking place on Halloween, 31 October.

If you’re interested in conservation and ecology, our MammalWeb project needs your help to chart the activity of the UK’s mammals.

We’ve contributed to a report which shows that the negative effect of the Covid-19 pandemic on mental health was largest and most prolonged in the North of England.

The Anthropology Department at Durham is sorry to announce the death of Dr Iain Edgar, a dearly loved colleague and friend.

India’s bidi cigarette workers need to be at the heart of discussions about finding alternatives to working in the tobacco industry, according to a new study.

A group of academic experts, including Durham University Anthropology's Professor Simone Abram, calls for more attention to the justice implications of the transition to a post-carbon economy.

On 27th April 2022, students and staff participated in an exciting day of presentations and discussions at the Calman Learning Centre – the Postgraduate Conference, in what promised to be the department’s flagship event of the year.

Prof. Jamie Tehrani from our Anthropology department features in the Netflix series 'Explained'.

The Anthropology Department would like to congratulate each and every one of our 2021 graduates on their degree results.

Durham University's Mothers and Mothers-to-be Network (MAMS) has launched a research report: "The impact of Covid-19 on mothers working in UK Higher Education Institutions". The research was led by Anthropology's Fire Kovarovic and other members of the MAMS network from across the university including Michelle Dixon (RIS), Nicole Westmarland and Kirsten Hall (both from Sociology).