Courses That I Teach

• ANTH 121: Archaeology of Mexico
• ANTH 124: Environmental Archaeology (forthcoming)
• ANTH 115: Origins of Agriculture (forthcoming)

Research Interests

I am interested in investigating the diverse cultural expressions of past Chibcha-speaking, non-state societies, with a focus on the development of social complexity and the relationship between humans and their environment. My research focuses on the impacts of social complexity, sedentism, agriculture, migrations, and environmental conditions on the social, economic, dietary, and residential practices of past human populations in southern Central America. I am interested in the reconstruction of ancient daily life and household economies in complex non-state societies using a combination of methods; LiDAR mapping, household excavation, lithic and ceramic analysis, and analyses pertaining to micro-residues, chemical residues, geochemistry, and starch-grains.

Interests: Archeology of southern Central America; Postclassic in Mesoamerica; development of social complexity; household archaeology; economic inequality; crafting; exchange, migration and cultural contact; activity areas; ceramic analysis; micro-archeology; diet and social inequality.

Recent publications

• Sharpe, Ashley E., Nicole E. Smith-Guzmán, Claudia P. Díaz Pérez, Luis A. Sánchez Herrera, Diana Carvajal-Contreras, Jason Curtis, Jonathan D. Cybulski, Benoit Desjardins, Ilean Isaza-Aizpurúa, George Kamenov & Yahaira Núñez-Cortés (2025). Isotopic evidence of increased societal diversification in Pre-Columbian Panama. PLoS One, 20(11), e0335678.

• Jonathan D. Cybulski, Ashley E. Sharpe, Diana Rocío Carvajal-Contreras, Brígida De Gracia, Erin M. Dillon, Irene Garcia, Ilean I. Isaza-Aizpurúa, Yahaira Núñez-Cortés, Susan Monge-Blanco, Nicole Smith-Guzman, Aaron O’Dea (2025). Historical Ecology of the Southern Central American Pacific Coast. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 380: 20240042. doi: 10.1098/rstb.2024.0042

• Suárez Calderón, Amanda, Yahaira Núñez-Cortés & Francisco Corrales Ulloa (2025). Warfare and Sociopolitical Change in Late Pre-Columbian Period in Central and Southeastern Costa Rica. In Warfare and the Dynamics of Political Control, edited by Brian B. Billman. The University of Arizona Press.

• Núñez-Cortés, Yajaira; Barba-Pingarrón, Luis; Cruz-Palma, Jorge E.; Ortiz-Butrón, Agustín & Marlene Rodríguez (2024). Domestic activities and culinary practices at Lomas Entierros, Costa Rica: a perspective from chemical residues, starch grain analyses, and micro-archaeology. Latin American Antiquity (2024), 35, 712–730. doi:10.1017/laq.2023.

• Fallas, Javier & Yajaira Núñez-Cortés (2024). Perspectivas sobre el procesamiento y consumo alimentario mediante el análisis de residuos químicos en cerámica del sitio Orocú, Costa Rica. Anales de Antropología, 58-1 (enero-junio 2024): 45-59.

• Ruiz González, Judith; Núñez-Cortés, Yajaira; Lira López, Yamile; Cruz Palma, Jorge & Carlos Serrano Sánchez (2023). Reconstrucción paleodietaria de un sector de la población preclásica de Maltrata, Veracruz. Mexicon Oktober 2023, Vol. XLV: 101-114.

• Núñez-Cortés, Yajaira (2023). Comiendo en la frontera: prácticas alimenticias en los sitios Lomas Entierros y Orocú durante el 800-1200 d.n.e. Vínculos 43(1-2): 121-142.

• Núñez-Cortés, Yajaira & Luis Barba Pingarrón (2023). Aproximación a las prácticas culinarias y al estatus socioeconómico en Lomas Entierros, Costa Rica: Una perspectiva desde el análisis de residuos químicos en recipientes cerámicos. Trace 84:131-161

Education

• 2020. Ph.D., Archaeology. Anthropology Department, University at Albany-SUNY.

• Economy, Exchange and Political Power at Lomas Entierros, Central Pacific Costa Rica.

• 2014. M.A., Archaeology. Anthropology Department, University at Albany-SUNY.

• Serving Tortillas and Paying Cacao: A Political Economy Study of Postclassic Soconusco, Mexico.

• 2012. Licenciatura, Anthropology with emphasis in Archaeology, School of Anthropology, University of Costa Rica.

• Entre lo local y lo regional. La producción alfarera en el Archipiélago de las Perlas, Panamá. Un análisis de los componentes cerámicos del sitio PGL-100, Isla Pedro González.

• 2009. Bachelor in Anthropology. School of Anthropology, University of Costa Rica, summa cum laude.