Weaving Practices: An Ethnoarchaeological Study of Textile Production in the Upper Salween River Basin, Mae Hong Son Province, Thailand

Chonchanok Samrit

Craft production embodies technical knowledge, aesthetics, and social meaning, making it a productive lens for examining social interaction and identity. This study investigates weaving traditions among highland communities in the Salween River basin, Mae Hong Son Province. Using an ethnoarchaeological approach that combines participant observation and interviews, the research applies the concepts of Chaîne Opératoire and Communities of Practice to analyse operational sequences, technical choices, and knowledge transmission. Comparative analysis of materials, tools, fibre preparation, weaving techniques, and patterns across different localities explores regional continuities and variation. The results demonstrate that weaving traditions are shaped through both intra- and inter-group transmission, as well as sustained interaction between highland and lowland communities. Shared operational sequences coexist with localized innovations and emergent forms. Rather than constituting bounded ethnic identifiers, weaving practices articulate relational, situational, and negotiated expressions of ethnicity shaped through social interaction and overlapping communities of practice. These findings suggest the need for multi-layered and contextual interpretations of material culture, contributing to more nuanced archaeological models of craft production, social networks, and the materialization of ethnicity in the past.