Yuki Tanaka

3530 Faner Hall
Department of Anthropology
Southern Illinois University
Carbondale IL 62901-4502
Phone: (618) 453-5037
Fax: (618) 453-5037
Email: yukitnka@siu.edu

   Majoring in history, I have developed skills in paleography, philology, and epigraphy which enable us to probe into the causes of events and to understand the meaning of historical issues (in terms of Japanese History.) These skills enabled me to compare a great number of documents, and to understand the abstract meaning hidden behind the texts. I used to think: the new models of the Mayan research and the important breakthroughs in understanding the Mayan inscriptions are remarkable. This progress has made it possible for scholars to do historical studies of this literate civilization. However, issues are more complicated than I thought these would be.

   Thanks to my advisor Dr. Hofling and his lectures as well as to those cutting edge sholars and friends I have met mostly at the Maya Meetings, I have become more aware of and interested in linguistic features of Mayan Hieroglyph, especially its writing systems. Currently my primal focuse is on learning theories and methods especially in Historical Linguistics, Phonology and Morphology while keep working on hieroglyphs acquisition. 

   Besides the study of Mayan hieroglyph, I am also interested in expanding my knowledge of ancient Mayan religion, of philosophies of life and death, of mourning, and of funeral rites. My motivation to pursue this subject is deeply rooted, arising, in part, from my personal experiences, especially the loss of my brother in childhood. Since that event, death issues, how living people treat the dead, how the deceased or death is considered, and how people bury a dead person have become my specific fields of interest. I consider funeral rituals as an important way of understanding people and cultures, particularly in an ancient era. Yet that's another story and work in the future...

a. Professional Preparation
(i) Degree
2002      B.A. in History(Ancient Japan), Ibaraki University, Japan
Current  M.A. in Anthropology,  Southern Illinois University Carbondale

(ii) Current Project
A comparative study of Maya Hieroglyphic Writing and Japanese Orthography (Tentative subject for MA thesis)

(iii) Membership in Professional Associations
2006-present   Society for the Study of the Indigenous Languages of the Americas (SSILA)
2004-present   American Anthropological Association (AAA)
2004-present   Society for Latin American Anthropology
2004-2005       Society for American Archaeology (SAA)
2000-present   Japan Societies for Studies of the Ancient America (JSSAA)

b. Appointments
2007     Linguistic Workshop: Participation in the 2007 Maya Meetings at Texas including Long Maya hieroglyphic workshop at the University of Texas at Austin
[ Supported by University Women's Professional Advancement(UWPA) and Graduate and Professional Student Council(GPSC) ]
2006     Linguistic Workshop: Participation in the 2006 Maya Meetings at Texas including Long Maya hieroglyphic workshop at the University of Texas at Austin
2005     Linguistic Workshop: Participation in the 2005 Maya Meetings at Texas including Long Maya hieroglyphic workshop at the University of Texas at Austin
2004a   Linguistic Workshop: Participation in the 2004 Maya Hieroglyph Weekend at Cleveland State University
2004b   Linguistic Workshop: Participation in the 2004 Maya Meetings at Texas including Long Maya hieroglyphic workshop at the University of Texas at Austin
2001     Participation in the 2001 Japan Society for Studies of Ancient America (JSSAA) 6th Annual Meeting at Saitama University, Japan
2000     Archaeological Fieldwork: Participation in the Belize Valley Archaeology Reconnaissance Project (BVAR) under the direction of Dr. Jaime Awe of the University of New Hampshire, Department of Archaeology
1999     Archaeological field work (excavation of an ancient burial mound) at Tokai-mura, Ibaraki, Japan (directed by Archaeology Major of Ibaraki University)

c. Publications
2002  Kodai Nihon no sousou girei: Mogari no tayousei to hirogari (Funeral and mourning rituals in Ancient Japan: Diversity and broadening of Mogari rite's meaning), Manuscript, archived into Ibaraki University Library

d. Honors and Awards
2007 Fall     Graduate Assistantship in the Department of Anthropology
2007 Summar     Graduate Assistantship in the Department of Anthropology
2007 Spring     Graduate Assistantship in the Department of Anthropology
2006 Fall         Teaching Assistantship in the Department of Foreign Languages & Literatures
2006 Summer  Graduate Assistantship in the Center for Archaeological Investigations
2006 Spring     Graduate Assistantship in the Department of Anthropology

e. Synergistic Activities
2007   Tayata Project Stuff. Mostly engaged in pottery drawing and measurement(profiling).
2006-2007   Departmental computer support staff. Including Web development on the SIUC Anthropology Department, maintenance of computing equipments both in Department computer lab and in language lab, advising individual questions and requests regarding computing and networking.

f. Collaborators and Other Affiliations
MA Thesis advisor - Dr. Charles Andrew Hofling
MA Thesis committees - Dr. Anthony K. Webster, Dr. Prudence M. Rice