Shinu Abraham thrives on the intellectual journey she takes with her students.  Fortunately for her students, their journey usually brings them to the coast of India.

As an assistant professor of anthropology who also teaches in the Asian studies program, her broad interest is in the study of ancient Indian Ocean trade systems and their impact on socio-economic development in early South India. She explains, “I’m interested in examining how overseas trade and emerging social complexity provided a backdrop against which certain key features emerged:  urbanization, intensive inland exchange and trade, local ethnic identities, and the first Christian and Jewish communities in India.”

Her most recent publication project is a co-edited volume entitled Issues in Indian Ocean Commerce and the Archaeology of Western India. It is due out early next year from the University College of London Press.

Prof. Abraham says that two of the best features of academic life are the variety built into her professional life and the autonomy she has to carry out her work.   Over the course of the year, she cycles through semesters of teaching, campus responsibilities and conferences, and summers/winters of writing and doing field work.  Over the course of a day, she experiences a mosaic of activities that include teaching, mentoring, reading, writing, grant/research preparation, field trips and University service, such as coordinating St. Lawrence’s program in India.

“Fortunately, a lot of these activities are collaborative efforts with colleagues and students both at SLU and elsewhere,” She says. “It's hard to get bored with a life like this!”

The fact that she has close and constant interaction with her students keeps her active not only as a teacher, but also as a scholar and fellow learner. She notes, “I like to show my students that archaeology is -- believe it or not -- so much more exciting than the Indiana Jones movies.”