Harry Truman Simanjuntak

Indonesian archeologist and prehistorian

Harry Truman Simanjuntak (born 1951) is an Indonesian archaeologist and prehistorian.

## Education

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Born 27 August 1951 in Pematangsiantar, North Sumatra, he first studied law in Medan and Yogyakarta and received a bachelor's degree in law, but later followed his main interest and earned a bachelor's degree in archaeology in 1979 at Gajah Mada University. His post-graduate studies brought him to the Institut de paléontologie humaine [fr] in Paris, where he obtained a master's degree in 1987 and a Ph.D. in 1991.[1][2]

## Career

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He worked as a researcher at the Yogyakarta Bureau of Archaeology [id] until 1986. Following his return from Paris, he has worked at the National Research Center for Archaeology [id] from 1992 until present.[3] In 2007, he founded the Center for Prehistory and Austronesian Studies.[2] He was awarded in 2015 with the Sarwono Award of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences.[4][5]

## Research

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Truman Simanjuntak engaged in fieldwork in most parts of Indonesia. He studied archaic human remains from the Paleolithic in Java, Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sumba, and the Maluku Islands. He led excavations of the early modern human inhabitants of Indonesia from the Late Paleolithic to the Neolithic, and also studied Megalithic and early Metal Age sites.[5][3] According to Truman Simanjuntak, the Indonesian archipelago has harbored a wide cultural diversity from prehistorical times until now.[4] Based on archaeological evidence from distinct pottery styles, he proposes a two-way entry of the Neolithic populations of western Indonesia: the Eastern Route Migration from the northeast, connected to the Austronesian expansion, and the Western Route Migration from the northwest from Mainland Southeast Asia. This two-fold origin is also corroborated by archaeogenetic evidence.[6][7]

## References

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1. ^ Iskandar Zulkarnain (22 August 2015). "LIPI Sarwono Award 2015". Lembaga Ilmu Pengetahuan Indonesia (LIPI). Archived from the original on 28 December 2019. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
2. ^ a b Widianto, Harry (2017). "Prolog: Truman Simantjuntak, Sang Peneliti Sejati". In Harry Widianto (ed.). Jejak Austronesia Di Indonesia. Yogyakarta: Gajah Mada University Press.
3. ^ a b "Harry Truman Simanjuntak". Pusat Penelitian Arkeologi Nasional. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
4. ^ a b Aloysius Budi Kurniawan (27 August 2021). "Truman Simanjuntak: Arkeolog Jangan Pernah Puas Hanya di Belakang Meja" [Truman Simanjuntak: The archaeologist who is never content just to stay behind his desk]. Kompas  (in Indonesian). Retrieved 26 November 2022.
5. ^ a b Ratih Anbarini (20 August 2015). "Harry Truman Simanjuntak, 38 Tahun Mengabdi di Dunia Arkeologi" [Harry Truman Simanjuntak, 38 years of service in the world of archaeology] (in Indonesian). Ministry of Education and Culture. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
6. ^ Simanjuntak T (2017). "The Western Route Migration: A Second Probable Neolithic Diffusion to Indonesia" (PDF). In Piper PJ, Matsumura H, Bulbeck D (eds.). New Perspectives in Southeast Asian and Pacific Prehistory. terra australis. Vol. 45\. ANU Press. pp. 201–212\. doi:10.22459/TA45.03.2017.11. ISBN 9781760460952. JSTOR j.ctt1pwtd26.18. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
7. ^ Hung, Hsiao-chun (2019). "History and Current Debates of Archaeology in Island Southeast Asia". In C. Smith (ed.). Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology. Cham: Springer. pp. 1–22\. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-51726-1_3373-1. ISBN 978-3-319-51726-1. S2CID 219881892.

## External links

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* Center for Prehistory and Austronesian Studies

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