A History of Research on Warfare in Anthropology

In this brief history of warfare research, I identify four major periods: Foundation Period, Classical Period, Golden Age, and Recent Period. The myth of the peaceful savage arose in the Classical Period rather than in the later periods, as argued by Lawrence Keeley. The myth has its origins in an early evolutionary approach as well as in cultural relativism. It continues to play a major role in warfare research with some anthropologists arguing for the peaceable nature of man, while others argue that man has engaged in warfare from the beginning of prehistory, [ war, theories of warfare, history of warfare research, myth of peaceful savage ]