Rate My Professor Richard Walter

Professor Richard Walter serves as Professor of Archaeology and Head of the Department of Anthropology and Archaeology at the University of Otago. A field archaeologist, he focuses on the archaeology of Aotearoa and the tropical Pacific. He founded and directs the Southern Pacific Archaeological Research (SPAR), a unit within the department that conducts pure, applied, and commercial research in archaeology and heritage management throughout Aotearoa and the Pacific region. SPAR employs a team of full-time and part-time staff dedicated to these efforts.

Walter's research interests include historical anthropology, the archaeology of culture contact, indigenous history and knowledge, material culture studies, the archaeology of exchange, and cultural heritage management. His ongoing projects span the Solomon Islands, where he examines prehistoric colonisation including Lapita settlement, the emergence of late-period Melanesian diversity, and the development of chiefdoms like Roviana through cult practices, headhunting, and ritual violence; he also leads village-based cultural heritage initiatives on Santa Isabel and the Arnavon Islands. In Aotearoa, his work investigates prehistoric Polynesian colonisation, the lifeways and adaptations of first settlers, and the rise of classical Māori tribal chiefdoms, funded by Marsden Fund grants across the North and South Islands. Additionally, he participates in the Coastal People: Southern Skies collaboration linking communities with interdisciplinary research to restore coastal ecosystems. He lectures on archaeological methods, material culture studies, and Oceanic prehistory. Notable publications include 'Fish from the Ōtata midden: Change and continuity in pre-European Māori fisheries' (2025), 'Ancient mitogenomes of Lapita pigs confirm continuity of the Pacific Clade in Remote Oceania' (2025), 'Reconstructing pre-European marine habitats using archaeological assemblages: A case-study from the Ōtata midden, New Zealand' (2025), 'Archaeology of the Solomon Islands' (2017, with Peter Sheppard), and contributions to 'Mass Migration and the Polynesian Settlement of New Zealand' (2017). His contributions have significantly influenced understandings of Pacific prehistory and heritage practices.