Cultural astronomy, through the exploration of archaeology and traditional knowledge, offers an avenue for exploring the broad scope of ideas, discoveries, and inspirations the night has informed over the course of human history and prehistory, including the knowledge and traditions of indigenous peoples.
The Dark Skies & Culture Toolkit includes resources to learn more about archeoastronomy, ethnoastronomy. and other cultural astronomy concepts and traditions.
Kate Magargal, a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the University of Utah Anthropology Departments shares perspectives on the importance of cultural astronomy.
Kate Magargal
Daniel Bulletts, Tribal Administrator Assistant for the Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians, describes his tribe’s relationship to the sky and how a dark sky designation in 2015 has led to the tribe uncovering songs, stories and dances that were long forgotten.
Daniel Bulletts
The night sky touches countless aspects of human culture: music, painting, literature, poetry, film noir, philosophy, and even psychology. What can you add to this list?
Janet Muir
Designed by Annette S. Lee (2007), the Native Skywatchers initiative seeks to remember and revitalize indigenous star and earth knowledge. The overarching goal of Native Skywatchers is to communicate the knowledge that indigenous people traditionally practiced a sustainable way of living and sustainable engineering through a living and participatory relationship with the above and below, sky and earth.
Native Skywatchers
Constellations and star knowledge of the Anishinaabek.
Michael Wassegijig Price, Revolving Sky
A collection of photographs, slides and diagrams from Von Del Chamberlain, whose career has focused on cultural astronomy - a field of study that focuses on the investigation of astronomy from cultures around the world, past and present.
Von Del Chamberlain, Published by Utah Valley University Library