Bio


Yahui He is a PhD candidate in the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures, specializing in Chinese archaeology. Her research interests include human-plant relationship, food production and consumption, and their discourses in the environmental and social dimensions of prehistoric China. Her dissertation focuses on long-term plant food and drink practices in the north borderland region of China (northern Shaanxi and south-central Inner Mongolia) during the Neolithic period by employing microbotanical (starch, phytolith, fungi) and usewear approaches. In addition, she has been engaged in collaborative projects from other regions in mainland China and beyond (Erlitou, Taiwan, Honduras, etc.) and a series of experimental studies.

Education & Certifications


  • Master, Yale University, Archaeology Studies (2015)
  • Bachelor, Xiamen University, China, History, Archaeology track & Law (2013)

2022-23 Courses


All Publications


  • Brewing and Serving Alcoholic Beverages to Erlitou Elites of Prehistoric China: Residue Analysis of Ceramic Vessels FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION He, Y., Zhao, H., Liu, L., Xu, H. 2022; 10
  • Fermented maize beverages as ritual offerings: Investigating elite drinking during Classic Maya period at Copan, Honduras JOURNAL OF ANTHROPOLOGICAL ARCHAEOLOGY Chen, R., He, Y., Li, X., Ramos, J., Li, M., Liu, L. 2022; 65
  • 陕西榆林石峁遗址皇城台地点酒类残留物及相关陶器分析 (A study on the fermented beverages and related pottery assemblage from the Huangchengtai Locality at the Shimao site in Yulin, Shaanxi) 考古与文物 (Archaeology and Cultural Relics) He, Y., Liu, L., Shao, J., Di, N., Sun, Z. 2022: 146-154
  • "Proposing a toast" from the first urban center in the north Loess Plateau, China: Alcoholic beverages at Shimao JOURNAL OF ANTHROPOLOGICAL ARCHAEOLOGY He, Y., Liu, L., Sun, Z., Shao, J., Di, N. 2021; 64
  • 黄瓜山文化彩陶分析 (A study on the painted pottery from the Huangguashan Culture) 南方文物 (Cultural Relics in Southern China) He, Y. 2019; 6: 89-100