Anthropolgy Key Terms

Culture

the total system of ideas , values , behavoirs , and attitudes of a society commonly shared by most ,members of a society

Informant

a reliable and knowledgeable person who provides speciifc information to an anthropologist studying his/her community.

ethnology

the study of the origins and culture of different races and people

kinship

the relationship between two/more people that is based on common ancestry marriage or adaption

participant observation

the careful watching of a group , in some cases living with it’s members and participatingg in their culture

ethnography

the written amount of a culture

subjective

type of conclusion shaped by a person’s cultural and personal perspective feelings and beliefs

objective

types of conclusion based on facts and uninfluenced by personal perspectives , prejudices or emotions

reflexivity

the pratice of reflecting on your own world view and impact on the culture you are studying

haminin

a human ancestor

fossil

preserved remains of biological matter

radiometric dating

a proccess that is used to determine the age of an object based on measuring the amount of radioactive material it has

subculture

a small group within a large group who shares a common system of values , beliefs , behaviours and lifestyle distinct from those of the larger group

ethnocentric

believing that one’s own culture is superior to all others

bipedalism

habitually walking on two legs

culturally constructed

created or shaped by a culture

hypothesis

a testable statement or prediction about the reflectionship between varibales based on prior knowledge / knowledge