Although shorter than the more formal obituaries that were once common in academic journals, timely reports in the Anthropology News Death Notices now serve an important function within the discipline. These notices are designed to provide information for the record and, at a minimum, typically include: name, dates and places of birth and death, graduate and final affiliation, disposition of papers, accomplishments, and immediate survivors. Family, as well as friends, colleagues, and future generations will appreciate your effort.

Here is an example that could serve as a model, although this exact format is not required:

James F Deetz, 70, world-renowned historical archaeologist, died of pneumonia on November 25, 2000, in Charlottesville, VA. He was born in Cumberland, MD, and received his undergraduate training at Harvard U, where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1957 and earned his PhD three years later. Deetz began to teach anthropology at Harvard in 1957 and led excavations of pilgrims' houses near the original landing site around Plymouth. He found a lifelong interest when introduced to efforts to establish Plimoth Plantation, a reconstruction designed as an outdoor history museum in Plymouth, MA. The museum brought to life the story of the pilgrims in 1627, just before they dispersed throughout what became known as Plymouth Colony.
In 1960 he accepted an appointment at the U of California, Santa Barbara; he rose to full professor of anthropology there by 1966. After that, he taught at Brown, the U of Cape Town and UC Berkeley. When he was a visiting professor of New World studies at the U of Virginia, in 1994, he was appointed Harrison Professor of historical archeology.
Deetz was one of the country's foremost specialists in colonial North America. His studies, spanning several decades, focused on the earliest English settlements in New England and Virginia. He was counted among the "new" American archaeologists who sought to build a general theory of anthropological archaeology. Influenced by structuralism, he sought to discern patterns underlying historical finds that reflected changes in past human behavior, values and thought. He and colleague Ted Dethlefsen published a series of papers on stylistic changes in old New England gravestones. He also wrote on ceramics, the "ethnogastronomy" of Thanksgiving and African-American settlers at Plymouth. His several books, clearly written in an accessible style, include Invitation to Archaeology, In Small Things Forgotten: The Archaeology of Early American Life (both still widely read) and, most recently, The Times of Their Lives: Life, Love and Death in Plymouth Colony.
James F Deetz is survived by six sons, four daughters, one sister and 16 grandchildren. His earlier marriage to Eleanore Kelley Deetz, a resident of Albany, CA, ended in divorce.

Details

• Death Notices may be no more than 500 words in length (approximately 2 double-spaced type-written pages).
• Verify death and check facts with the family or through the deceased's department.
• Submissions are requested via email, disk or CD (please mark the disk/CD clearly with the format and type of software), and accompanied by a hard copy as a back up.
• Photographs are welcome and can be returned if you make a specific request. Photos are cropped to include just the head.
• List no more than 3-4 major publications and their dates (publisher and location are not necessary).
• Focus on the highlights of the person's career and contributions to the discipline.
• Personal opinions, reminiscences, and eulogies are appropriate, but best kept to a minimum. There is usually little space left over for direct quotes.
• To honor the deceased and as a service to the discipline Death Notices should appear as soon as possible. Please try to honor the deadline given for the next edition.
• Contributions will be edited for grammatical accuracy and appropriate length.

Thank you sincerely for your help. Please feel free to contact the managing editor of Anthropology News, Stacy Lathrop, directly for assistance or clarification: AAA, 2200 Wilson Blvd, Suite 600, Arlington, VA 22201-3346; 703/528-1902 ext 3005; fax 703/528-3546.