Shahina Farid is a British archaeologist who is best known for her work as Field Director and Project Coordinator at the Neolithic site of

Çatalhöyük Çatalhöyük (English: Chatalhoyuk ; ; also ''Çatal Höyük'' and ''Çatal Hüyük''; from Turkish language, Turkish ''çatal'' "fork" + ''höyük'' "tumulus") is a Tell (archaeology), tell (a mounded accretion resulting from long-term huma ...

in Turkey. She is currently the scientific dating coordinator for

Historic England Historic England (officially the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked with prot ...

Early life and education

Farid was born in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, England to

Pakistani Pakistanis (, ) are the citizens and nationals of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistan is the fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the second-largest Muslim population as of 2023. As much as ...

parents who had migrated to England. She spent her early years in Camden, England. A school visit to the Tutankhamun exhibition at the British Museum sparked her interest in archeology. She wanted to be an archaeologist by age 15, and she spent time volunteering at local excavations. She studied

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

at the

University of Liverpool The University of Liverpool (abbreviated UOL) is a Public university, public research university in Liverpool, England. Founded in 1881 as University College Liverpool, Victoria University (United Kingdom), Victoria University, it received Ro ...

Archaeological career

After college, Farid worked as a commercial

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

in England, Turkey, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates. Beginning in 1985, she was hired as field director of the

project in 1999 and worked for 20 years as Field Director and Project Coordinator at the Neolithic site, until leaving in 2012. It is here that she was given the nickname "Lady of the Höyük", which endures today. "Her work in constructing the Çatalhöyük stratigraphic sequence is the cornerstone of countless archaeological and scientific studies, reflected in her publication record of over 40 articles and reports, and without her input, the famous Hodder 'reflexive methodology' would only be a theory". In 2012, Farid joined

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...

. As a member of the Scientific Dating Team, she directs the commissioned dendrochronology program and is also honorary secretary for the

British Institute at Ankara The British Institute at Ankara (BIAA), formerly British Institute of Archaeology at Ankara, is a research institute that supports, promotes, and publishes research into the humanities and social sciences of Turkey and the Black Sea region. The ...

Selected publications

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Farid, Sharina Living people Alumni of the University of Liverpool Archaeologists from London English people of Pakistani descent English women archaeologists People from Camden Town Year of birth missing (living people)