An Archaeology of Return: Implications for African Diasporic Archaeologies

ABSTRACT The prospect of return to a distant homeland preoccupied many enslaved and free people of color throughout the Americas. Long after Emancipation, return remains a fraught concept and possibility in the wake of dispossession. This article explores the archaeological possibilities for analyzing return for African diasporic peoples in the context of deep and ongoing displacement. These possibilities include archaeological considerations of the processes, both physical and spiritual, by which displaced peoples reclaim place and belonging, whether in a space of origin or otherwise. With African diaspora archaeologies traditionally framed through Africa‐to‐the‐Americas geographies, I suggest new avenues of inquiry that trace multiple, ongoing forms of diaspora from the deep past to the present. Building on the work of luminaries of African diasporic thought, I present case studies from the Caribbean and West Africa which demonstrate the political need for, and analytical benefits of, archaeological considerations of return.