Breadcrumb
Rubén Morales Forte
Assistant Professor - Archaeology & Linguistic Anthropology
Assistant Professor - Archaeology & Linguistic Anthropology
Undergraduate & Graduate Advisor
Research Focus
Growing up in Guatemala gave me a unique perspective that has made me a multidisciplinary anthropologist grounded in community-engaged methodologies. My career has focused on the Maya world, drawing on the subdisciplines of Linguistics, Archaeology, and Ethnography to better understand Mesoamerica, past and present, and to share its history effectively beyond specialist circles through digital humanities and ludic approaches. Throughout the years, I have been involved in both academic and outreach projects and publications, connecting faculty, museums, students, and communities through interinstitutional collaboration. My current work centers on the sociolinguistic characterization of the Ch’orti’ Mayan language in Southeastern Guatemala through machine learning analyses, Maya hieroglyphic writing, and the implementation of Slow Archaeology in Dolores, Petén.
Teaching Specialties
- Introduction to the Anthropology of Language
- Maya Epigraphy
- Community-engaged Anthropology
- Mayan Languages (Ch’orti’, Kaqchikel)
- Ancient Maya Art and Religion
- Language and Society
- Mesoamerican Archaeology
- Anthropology Field Methods
- Ph.D. Anthropology, Tulane University
- M.A. Latin American Studies; Mellon Community-Engaged Scholarship Certificate, Tulane University
- B.A. and Licenciatura Archaeology, Universidad del Valle de Guatemala
Selected Publications and Presentations:
Lamoureux-St-Hilaire, Maxime and Rubén Morales Forte, 2025, Slowing Down the Archaeological Process in Dolores, Petén, Guatemala. Canadian Journal of Archaeology 49(1):1-21.
Morales Forte, Rubén, William Arnaldo Marcos, and Gregorio Pérez,
2025. Ch’orti’ Sociolinguistics: The View from Guatemala. Paper presented at the Session “Meeting at the Crossroads: Multi-Disciplinary Approaches to Identity Formation in Southeastern Mesoamerica”. Annual meeting of the American Anthropological Association, New Orleans, LA
Morales Forte, Rubén, Walter Hoil, Francisco Pérez, et al., 2021. The Maya Scripta Project: Museum, University, and Community-Engaged Scholarship in Dolores, Petén, Guatemala. The Mayanist 3(1): 39–56. Spanish version available