Hege Damlien

Hege Damlien is an Associate Professor in Cultural Heritage Management at the Department of Archaeology, Museum of Cultural History, University of Oslo. Her research focuses on Mesolithic archaeology, particularly the early settlement of Scandinavia and Northern Europe, social organization of prehistoric hunter-gatherers, and lithic technology.

Dr. Damlien's research interests include:

• Early settlement patterns in Scandinavia and Northern Europe during the Mesolithic period
• Social organization, mobility and settlement structure among prehistoric hunter-gatherers
• Cultural transmission, adaptation and technological traditions
• Climatic and environmental change in prehistory
• Lithic technology and stone tool production

Her recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on Mesolithic Scandinavia, particularly examining the impact of major environmental events like the Storegga tsunami on hunter-gatherer societies. She has conducted extensive research on lithic technological traditions across Northern Europe, investigating long-term patterns of cultural transmission and adaptation. Her work often employs interdisciplinary approaches, combining traditional archaeological analysis with genetic and environmental data to reconstruct past human behavior and responses to environmental change.

Dr. Damlien has received research funding for several significant projects including 'Pioneers of North-Western Europe' (NFR project 231305) and has been involved in numerous archaeological investigations throughout Norway. She has served on the editorial board of the Norwegian archaeological journal Viking and coordinated the Scientific Program for Stone Age research at the Museum of Cultural History.

Her academic journey began with a Cand.Philol in Archaeology from the University of Oslo in 2002, followed by a PhD in Archaeology from the University of Stavanger in 2016. Her doctoral research examined long-term trajectories of lithic tool-making in South Norway during the postglacial colonization period (c. 9500–7500 cal. BC).