Portrait of Lewis Binford

Birthday profile

Lewis Binford

Lewis Binford, American archaeologist and academic (died 2011)

Born
November 21, 1931
Died
April 11, 2011
Zodiac sign
Scorpio
Birth year
1931

About Lewis Binford

Lewis Roberts Binford (November 21, 1931 – April 11, 2011) was an American archaeologist known for his influential work in archaeological theory, ethnoarchaeology and the Paleolithic archaeology. He is widely considered among the most influential archaeologists of the later 20th century, and is credited with fundamentally changing the field with the introduction of processual archaeology (or the "New Archaeology") in the 1960s. Binford, a highly productive writer, who achieved an extraordinary level influence in ideas, methodology, and behavioral research internationally, a legacy that continues to the present. His influence was controversial, however, as he seemed to pit theoretical work in archaeology in the late 1980s and 1990s as either a reaction to or in support of the processual paradigm. Recent appraisals remain spit, some judging his contributions mainly in terms of his innovative ideas and approaches, and others focusing on the fact that his approach owed more to prior work in the 1940s and 50s than he recognized. Binford's influence was controversial, however, and most theoretical w.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

The world when Lewis Binford was born

Lewis Binford was born in 1931. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1931

  • #1 song"Stardust" – Artie Shaw
  • Top movieFrankenstein
  • Best-selling bookThe Good Earth – Pearl S. Buck

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentKnute Rockne dies in plane crash
  • Top headlineAl Capone convicted of tax evasion
  • Technology milestoneEmpire State Building completed
  • Defining fadJigsaw puzzles
  • Notable inventionElectric razor
  • World population2.10 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderHerbert Hoover
  • Sports championSt. Louis Cardinals (World Series)
  • U.S. population124.0M

1931 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Lewis Binford's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19312026
Gas$0.17$3.45/gal
Average home$5,500$435,000
Average income$3,000$67,500
Movie ticket$0.25$11.95
Postage stamp$0.02$0.73
Population124.0M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Library of Congress, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.