Regents Professor Takeshi Inomata Awarded Prestigious NEH Grant for Maya Civilization Research Project Set to Become a Book

Today
Anna Lineberry
Man with dark hair, glasses and blue shirt stands outside in a wooded area

Takashi Inomata, Regents Professor in the Department of Anthropology in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Arizona, was recently awarded a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to write a book on the Maya Civilization. The project, Origins of the Maya Civilization: Synthesis of Recent Transformative Archaeological Findings, will explore a comprehensive new theory of the development of the Maya civilization in the Preclassic period (2000 B.C.E. to 250 C.E.)

The National Endowment for the Humanities grant provides funding to institutions like libraries, historical societies, museums and universities to strengthen their humanities resources and infrastructure.

The funding will enable Inomata to write a nine-chapter book that will contribute to advancing archaeological research. The work will explore the interaction between the Maya and Olmec civilizations, investigate social processes following the abandonment of Aguada Fénix around 750 B.C.E and address calls to revitalize traditional community-based resource management practices to promote more sustainable food systems amid climate challenges.

“I am very honored to have this fellowship. It gives me time to focus on writing the book,” Inomata said. “With twelve months of support from the NEH, I proposed to write a book that would integrate the results of my research with other archaeological data to provide a new comprehensive narrative of the Preclassic period (1200 B.C. to A.D. 250) in the Maya area.”

Inomata’s fellowship will take place during the 2025-2026 academic year, when he plans to write the majority of the book. He aims to complete the entire manuscript by the summer of 2027.

The Award for Faculty grant supports advanced research in the humanities by scholars, teachers, and staff at Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic-Serving Institutions, and Tribal Colleges and Universities. The 28 grants, totaling $1.5 million, are part of an overall award of $22.6 million for 219 humanities projects across the country. Grants awarded today invest in conservation science research and training to improve the preservation of key cultural heritage materials. 

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