Honours Program
Anthropology - Honours Program
The Anthropology Honours Program offers students a chance to design and implement a major independent research project. Students work with a committee of faculty members who guide and advise them in their research and in the production an Honours thesis. The department strongly favours research projects that involve the collection and analysis of original data, and does not typically approve those based solely on library research.
Eligibility
To be admitted to the Anthropology Honours Program, you must:
- Have declared a major in Anthropology
- Meet all requirements outlined in the Academic Calendar for the Faculty of Arts
- Have a minimum grade point average (GPA) of 3.30 in Anthropology courses
Application
An application to the Anthropology Honours Program consists of three forms:
- Honours Application Form
- Honours Committee Form
- A one page abstract of your proposed research project
Forms should be submitted to the main department email address (anthropology@smu.ca). The deadline for students intending to apply for the Anthropology Honours Program and write an Honours Thesis in 2023-2024 is June 1, 2023. More information can be found in the following documents:
Honours Student Theses
The following Honours Theses are available for viewing in the Department of Anthropology office. Recent theses can be found online through links below to the SMU Institutional Repository.
| Year | Student | Thesis title |
| 1976 | Christianson, David | Wabanaki Subsistence Strategies in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries. |
| 1976 | Connolly, John | Archaeology in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick between 1863 and 1914 and Its Relationship to the Development of North American Archaeology. |
| 1978 | Hall, Gary F. | Pebble Tool Technology: An Analysis and Replication of Bi-polar Quartz Artifacts from a Prehistoric Campsite in Nova Scotia. |
| 1979 | Heber, Robert W. | Filipino Ritual Kinship: A Study of Filipino Social Integration in Nova Scotia. |
| 1979 | Jones, Margaret L. | Sex Differences in Gaze and Their Relevance to Anthropology. |
| 1980 | Dale (Dayle), Jutta | Intensity as a Measure of Turnerian Anti-structure in Three North American Societies. |
| 1982 | Sheldon, Helen L. | Exploitation of the Guinea Pig in Andean South America. |
| 1983 | MacIntyre, Judith Anne | A Chronology for Eight Prehistoric Nova Scotia Sites. |
| 1985 | Tingley, Cheryl | Spatial Conceptualizations of the Micmac: A Content Analysis of Micmac Oral Narratives. |
| 1986 | Crowe, Susan | The Analysis of Ceramic Assemblages from Disturbed Urban Contexts: The Central Trust Example. |
| 1988 | Mcllquham, Susan | The Invisible Woman: An Examination of the Role of Woman "Behind the Scenes" in Theatre and Society in Halifax. |
| 1990 | Guilfoyle, John | Gunflint Perspectives: Old and New-- a Study in Historical Archaeology. |
| 1990 | Hiseler, George L. | Kädebunegek to Pasedooek': Environment, Resources, and Settlement Patterns. |
| 1990 | Hubbard, Shelley | An Analysis in the Technicality of the Translation Process from Letters Written by Nicholas {i.e. Nicolas} Denys. |
| 1990 | MacDonald, Susan E. | The Portrayal of the Indigenous Peoples of Vanuatu by Nineteenth Century Canadian Foreign Missionaries. |
| 1990 | McGuire, Kim | The Rural Cemetery Movement in Halifax, Nova Scotia. |
| 1990 | Monahan, Valery | Copper Technology in the Maritimes: An Examination of Indigenous Copper-working in the Maritime Provinces During the Prehistoric and Protohistoric Periods. |
| 1990 | Sanders, Michael | Private Land Use in the Halifax/Dartmouth Region, 1790-1850: McNab's Island as a Case Study. |
| 1991 | Millard, Deanna L. | Helping Hands: An Ethnographic Study of Nova Scotia Faith Healers. |
| 1991 | Rojo, Monica | A Cross-Cultural Perspective on Women and Their Occupational Roles in Television Soap Operas. |
| 1991 | Lee, Kenneth | Animal Petroglyphs of Nova Scotia. |
| 1991 | Oakley, Robin | Collectors' Interest in Melanesian Artifacts. |
| 1992 | Murphy, Liam Donat | The Urban Archaeological Resource Inventory: A Case Study in Halifax. |
| 1993 | Howell, G. V. Burton | The Tancook Whalers: A Study in Maritime Adaptation. |
| 1994 | Overington, Sarah A. | Tales of Treeplanting: A Discussion of the Context and Culture of Treeplanting. |
| 1995 | Derrick, Donald | Patterns of Representation of Evolution in Articles Referring to Human Evolution in Eight Major English Canadian Newspapers in 1992 and 1993. |
| 1995 | Fowler, Jonathan D. | Acadian-Mi'Kmaq Intermarriage in Pre-Expulsion Acadia. |
| 1995 | Lorway, Robert | Managing One's Ego Identity in the Face of Discrediting Influences. |
| 1995 | MacLeod, H. A. | The Methodology and Artifact Patterns of Stanley South: A Case Study on the Edward How Property of Grassy Island Canso, Nova Scotia. |
| 1996 | Edge, Stephanie | Port Dauphin 1713-1719: A Discussion of the History, Archaeology and Oral Tradition. |
| 1996 | Lundrigan, Nicole | A Computer-Generated Exercise for the Introduction of Forensic Anthropology at a Precollege Level. |
| 1996 | Quinlan, Tracey | Seasonality Analysis of Mya Arenaria: From ALDF-26, Port Joli. |
| 1997 | Bishop, Lara | Women and Curing in Selected Native North American Societies West of the Mississippi River. |
| 1997 | Hodges, Kent | The Value of Soil Conductivity on the Fort Sackville Site. |
| 1998 | Meese, Zachary | Material Culture and Social Status: Can Artifacts Determine the Social Status of a Site? -- Case Study of the Rockingham Inn. |
| 1999 | Dunn, Frances | Microwear Feature Analysis of the Little Dutch Church Teeth: A Scanning Electron Microscope Study. |
| 1999 | Macey, Neil | An Analysis of the Saint Famille Skeletal Assemblage. |
| 1999 | Mitchell, April D. | An Anthropological Analysis of Burial Practices in Halifax between 1749 and 1833 as Reflected in Two Halifax Parishes with Reference to Burial in England and Germany. |
| 1999 | Stockely, Joliene | A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Study of 18th Century French Settlements in Northern Ingonish. |
| 2000 | Ellis, Melanie | A Comparative Study of Police Officers' Testimonies in a Trial in Halifax, Nova Scotia. |
| 2000 | Richardson, Andrea | The Secrets of the Stone Piles: The Birchtown Mounds. |
| 2001 | Amirault, Marni | Igoolik Isuma Productions Turning the Camera Around. |
| 2001 | Dyke, Danny | Archaeology and GIS in Halifax: A Demonstration of the Utility of GIS as a Research Tool. |
| 2001 | Swiatoniowski, Anne | A Study of Vegetation in the Lake Melville Ecoregion of Labrador from Innu and Scientific Perspectives. |
| 2001 | Whiteley, Erin | Post-Glacial Landscapes and their Influence on Palaeo-Indian Migration into Nova Scotia. |
| 2002 | Brown, Nicole | Analysis of The Clay Tobacco Pipes From the Fort Lawrence Site (B1D6:8). |
| 2002 | Bursey, John | Propaganda Analysis: An Anthropological Critique of the Mass Media. |
| 2002 | Gregory, Tim | Cemetery Records as an Indicator of Social Status in Halifax from 1844 to 1848: An Anthropological Study of the Records of Holy Cross Cemetery and Camp Hill Cemetery from the First Five Years of their Existence. |
| 2002 | Jarvis, Lisa | Women's Place in Archaeology: An Examination of Women's Experiences in the Discipline of Archaeology in Canada. |
| 2002 | Mosher, Matthew | Sacred Landscape of the Mi'Kmaw: An Analysis of the Mythology. |
| 2002 | Pentz, Ben | Examining the Development of Repatriation and Cultural Property Policy in Canada. |
| 2003 | Harvey, John | Household Assemblages of the Pre-Expulsion Acadians. |
| 2003 | Parker, Dominique | Future of the Past: A Look at the History of Museums: Current Trends and Contemporary Adaptations of their Form. |
| 2004 | Ellenberger, Tristan | War and Antiquities: The Hague Convention of 1954 Concerning the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict. |
| 2004 | Fletcher, P. Erin | The Economic Scaling of Ceramics and its Inferences on Socio-Economic Status in 19th Century Halifax: An HRM Parkade Excavation (2001) Case Study. |
| 2004 | Moores, Alura Eden | Perceptions of Canadian Culture and Identity in Four Canadian Families. |
| 2004 | Hollett, Michelle Lela | Congregants' Experience of Public Prayer in a Particular Anglican Parish. |
| 2004 | Keen, Jonathan | Interdental Grooves: Experimental Implications. |
| 2004 | MacLellan-Mansell, Alanna | Media Images: An Examination of Their Influence on Cultural Perception. |
| 2004 | Rei, Inés | Immigration and Integration: An Exploration of Canadian Immigration and Integration into Canadian Society. |
| 2005 | Cosgrove, Joseph | Retracing the Burials of Displaced Inuit Afflicted with Tuberculosis. |
| 2005 | Magee, Lesley | Language as a Factor in African Nova Scotian Education: What Can Be Learned from the Oakland Ebonics Debate? |
| 2005 | Stewart, Christine | Reproductive Attitudes and Experiences. |
| 2005 | Surette, Flannery | Mapping Catholic Acadia—Parishes, Churches, Chapels, and Missions. |
| 2006 | Babbitt, James | Mapping of Indigenous Knowledge: Acts of Self-Determination or Colonialism? |
| 2006 | Langan, Dean | A Study of Gravestone Features in Halifax's Holy Cross Cemetery. |
| 2006 | Munro, Matthew | The Salter's Gate Stable: An Exercise in Historical Archaeological Investigation. |
| 2007 | Comeau, Jennifer | The Construction of Gender in Scripted Dialogue: A Case Study of the Television Sitcom Friends. |
| 2007 | Matheson-LeFort, Donna L. | Black Presence in Early Halifax: Examining Burial Samples from the Little Dutch Church. |
| 2007 | Power, Katherine | The Use of Patent and Proprietary Medicines in Halifax: A Case Study in Salter's Gate. |
| 2007 | Knox, Zachary | The Shubenacadie Canal Community and Feature 15: A Cultural Analysis. |
| 2008 | Bishop, Colette | Sound of a Culture: Inuit Hip-Hop as a Tool of Resistance. |
| 2008 | Cormier, Cynthia | Sacred Places in the Landscape of African United Baptist Association Churches and Cemeteries from c. 1800 to 1900. |
| 2008 | Kraft, Katrina | Animal Use in Black Loyalist Communities: Faunal Analysis of Remains Recovered from Birchtown and Delap's Cove, Nova Scotia. |
| 2008 | Landry, Christine M. | Belief in an Afterlife for Animals? Egypt from 1549 B.C.E. to 332 B.C.E.: An Interpretation of the Evidence. |
| 2008 | Whalen, Alie | Edward Jordan's Skull: A Case Study on the Political and Ethical Issues Surrounding the Exhibition of Mortuary Artifacts and Remains. |
| 2009 | de Boer, Laura | Behind the Walls: The Hidden Architectural History and Archaeology in Downtown Halifax. |
| 2009 | Taylor, Aaron | The 1747 Trek to Grand Pré: A Study in Historical Archaeology. |
| 2010 | Allain, Lyne | An Evaluation of Four Moulding Materials: Understanding the Safety and Effectiveness of Casting Archaeological and Forensic Materials. |
| 2010 | Atchison, David J. | Hanging with a Recycler for a Day: A Case Study of Informal Recycling on the Halifax Peninsula. |
| 2010 | Bell, Ian Carter | Bone Histology in the Maritimes: A Forensic and Archaeological Perspective Utilizing Nonhuman Remains. |
| 2010 | Christian, Lauren | Little Mysteries of the Forgotten and a Search for the Early Defenses of Halifax, 1749-1762. |
| 2010 | Cusack, Jeffrey | Perception Meets Reality: How Healthcare Professionals' Perception of Their Patient's Health Literacy Alters Patient Treatment. |
| 2010 | Redden, Emily | The Impacts of Collaborative Approaches on Archaeological Research in Nova Scotia. |
| 2010 | Sutherland, Keenan | An Analysis of Archaeological Predictive Modeling and its Applications in Nova Scotia. |
| 2011 | Hiltz, Tia Heather | The Integration Transmission of Traditional Innuit Spirtuality. |
| 2011 | Kocay, Mariek | The Pull of Home in Return Migration: Coming Back to the HRM. |
| 2011 | Jess, Natalie | Where Fallen Soldies Lie: An Archaeological Investigation into the Burial Sites Associated with the 1747 Battle at Grand Pré. |
| 2012 | Totten, Megan | Dental Age Estimation of Juvenile Skeletal Remains: Testing Standard Methods of Dental Age Estimation by Moorrees, Fanning, & Hunt and Demirjian, Goldstein, & Tanner on a Modern Canadian Population. |
| 2013 | Hines, Ellen | Quinceañeras: Continuity, Change and Meaning. |
| 2013 | Mussett, Michelle | Sex Estimation in African Americans using Diagonal Diameter Measurements of Molar Teeth. |
| 2014 | Bitter-Suermann, Magdalene | Food, Modernity, and Identity in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. |
| 2014 | Davies, Dai | Coming Out: A Rite of Passage Toward the Creation of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Identities. |
| 2014 | Green, Randi | A Tale of Two Theatres: Discourse and Outcome in Preservation Attempts. |
| 2014 | Houghton, Brittany | Questioning Kennetcook: An Archaeological Investigation of Upper Burlington. |
| 2014 | Hudson, Allison | Sex Estimation in a Mexican Population Using the Scapula. |
| 2014 | Kilback, Leena | The Use and Distribution of Roman Glass at the Villa Site of San Felice, During Pre- and Post-Imperial Occupation. |
| 2014 | Smith, Vanessa | Peter McNab's Island: Scottish Settlement on McNabs Island, 1782 to 1847. |
| 2015 | Crowell, Travis | Beneath the Waves: Assessing the Archaeological Potential of Submerged Shorelines in the Bedford Basin |
| 2015 | Fraser, Allison | Atop Gallows Hill: Magnetic Susceptibility in Archaeological Reconnaissance |
| 2015 | Gooding, Kaitlyn | Individuality and Anonymity within the Furry Fandom |
| 2015 | Parsons, Nicholas | Determining Population Change in the Basentello River Valley in Basilicata, Italy |
| 2016 | O’Bright, Laurel | The Estimation of Sex in a Chilean Population Using the Tibia: Applications for Human Rights Cases |
| 2016 | Randle, Elaine | "Puff, Puff, Pass: A Case Study of Contemporary Cannabis Consumption on the Saint Mary's University Campus" |
| 2016 | Sukaroff, Paul | Reflecting the Mir Image: Representations of the Doukhobors in Late 19th Century Nova Scotia Newspaper Media |
| 2017 | Locke, Jenna | The Archaeothanatology of Identity: Freed-People Burials in Nuceria Necropolis, Pompeii |
| 2018 | Freeman Marr, Laura | The Ritual Origins of the Roof-Box at Newgrange |
| 2018 | Nickerson, Brianna | Fictive Kinship in a Sorority |
| 2018 | Walker, Kieran | Why Learn Irish? |
| 2019 | Clark, Rachel | A Comparison of Outpost Acadian Communities to a Heartland Acadian Community |
| 2019 | Desjardins, Haley | Interpreting Material Culture: An Exploration of "Precolumbian Mesoamerican Ceramics" |
| 2019 | Hart, Amber | Shaping Autism Self-Advocates' Identities Through the Neurodiversity Movement |
| 2019 | Lütz, Katherine | The Rock-art of Point Pleasant Park in Halifax, Nova Scotia |
| 2019 | Peters, Michaela | Conflict Resolution in a Halifax Elementary School |
| 2019 | Ryan, Kristina | Property Crime of 18th-century Halifax: An Anthropological Approach |
| 2020 | Denman, Olivia | Hygge and Denmark |
| 2020 | Fox, Adeena | Public Engagement with Historical Burying Grounds in Halifax, Nova Scotia |
| 2020 | Nolan, Emily | The Power of Consultation and Repatriation |
| 2020 | Payne, Rebecca | Reuse and Reoccupation in the Sabine Valley: Analyzing the Villa of Titus and the Baths of Vespasian |
| 2021 | Jackson, Avery | The Forgotten Missionary, Thomas Wood |
| 2021 | Kemp, Emma | Toponomy and Cultural Landscape in Central Cape Breton, Unama’kik, and Cheap Breattain |
| 2021 | Madinsky, Emily | Tourist Motivations and the Interpretation of Place at Pollett’s Cove |
| 2021 | Robertson, Logan | Halifax Cholera: An Anthropological and Geographical Analysis of an Epidemic's Social Determinants of Health |
| 2022 | Barker, Brooke | Chasing Evangeline: How archaeology and heritage shaped the Grand-Pré National Historic Site |
| 2022 | McLean, Jordan | The Importance of Language to Minorities in Urban Areas: Acadian Identity in Halifax |
| 2022 | Miller, Emily | Digging for Vikings: Leif’s Legacy and the Archaeology of L’Anse aux Meadows: A New Methodology for Validating Oral Traditions as Historical Sources Through Comparison to the Archaeological Record |
| 2022 | Simon, Shannon | Linear Enamel Hypoplasia as a Proxy for Environmental Stress in Fossil Apes |
Contact us
Faculty of Arts
Department of Anthropology
902-496-8109
Mailing address:
McNally South 218
923 Robie Street
Halifax, NS B3H 3C3