The Papuan languages of Yapen Island: History and typology
Knowledge of world history
is unevenly distributed: we know a great deal about some places, yet
almost nothing about others. Until recently, many parts of the world
had no written language, meaning there are no written historical
sources either. In some regions, this circumstance coincides with a
climate that causes natural materials to decay rapidly, which means�
�there are few clues for archaeological research. We therefore know l
ittle about the ancient history of such places.
Read more in the <
a href="https://onlinemagazine.vu.nl/idea-social-sciences-humanities-
alumni-magazine-8/300-words-with-anne-van-schie" data-new-window="tru
e" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">news item
More information on the thesis
DESCRIPTION: Knowledge of world history is unevenly distributed: we kn ow a great deal about some places, yet almost nothing about others. U ntil recently, many parts of the world had no written language, meani ng there are no written historical sources either. In some region s, this circumstance coincides with a climate that causes natural mat erials to decay rapidly, which means there are few clues for archae ological research. We therefore know little about the ancient history of such places.