Introduction: utilizing globalization and transculturality for the study of the pre-modern world

This chapter provides a framework for the use of globalization and related theories in archaeology and history. Starting with an historiographical overview of how the terms globalization, transculturality and glocalization developed, the chapter goes on to consider how these concepts have been employed by historians and archaeologists and their relations to other theoretical models. While heavy emphasis is placed on the cultural dimensions of globalization, its intersection with economic factors is also an important point of discussion. Not least because the long-distance movements of people, goods and ideas is a fundamental aspect of globalization. The salient point is that economic and cultural dimensions are considered in conjunction with each other.