About Us

The Department of Anthropology is one of the largest in the country with over 30 teaching and full-time research staff as well as a large number of doctoral and post-doctoral researchers. We cover all the major subfields of anthropology and carry out some of the most innovative research in contemporary anthropology.

Our programmes are delivered on two sites; Durham City Campus and Queen's Campus, Stockton. In Durham City the department is located in the recently refurbished Dawson Building which is close by the main library and the new central services building. At Queen's Campus, Stockton programmes are delivered in new, purpose-built premises on the banks of the River Tees which contain excellent laboratory and computing facilities, a specialist undergraduate teaching library and student residential accommodation.

A bit of history...

Anthropology has a long tradition at Durham University. At the end of the 19th century, a master at Hatfield College was interested in the evolution of primitive society. The first Reader in Anthropology was appointed in the 1940s. In the 1950s anthropology was taught alongside geography, mostly from King's College, which was then located in the University of Newcastle. After King's College split from the University of Durham to become the University of Newcastle, academic subjects were consolidated either in Durham or Newcastle. The Department of Anthropology, Durham, came into being at this time, more or less in its current form. Another major development came in 1992 when the Anthropology Department began offering degrees at the purpose-built Queen's Campus at Stockton.

Today the Department of Anthropology is recognised internationally for the high quality of its undergraduates, post-graduates and the research carried out by its staff.