Abstract
The important aspect of the contemporary development of archaeological science in Kazakhstan is the examination of the scientific trends and directions that have shaped its development throughout the 20th – early 21st century. Of particular interest at present is how archaeological evidence has been used to reconstruct the gender history of the populations of the Eurasian steppes. The aim of this article is to examine the evolution of ideas within Kazakhstani archaeology in the 20th – early 21st century and to identify the main stages in the formation of scholarly approaches to reconstructing the social roles of men and women in ancient societies. Among the topics under discussion is the status of women in ancient societies. At the stage of collecting material on this topic, it is now possible to examine how research perspectives have changed over time, what methodologies archaeologists employed to reconstruct the gender roles of people in the past, what priority areas emerged in this process, and for what further purposes this information was utilised. The study of gender issues in Kazakhstani archaeology allows us to focus on and broaden our understanding of the following aspects of the history of science: to identify the main stages in the development of scientific conceptions regarding the roles of men and women in ancient societies; to trace changes in the methods of interpreting archaeological sources; as well as to identify prospects for the further use of archaeological data in reconstructing the social history of the populations of the Eurasian steppes.