Cultural Anthropology

from textbook terms

anthropological perspective

the approach to social research that seeks to understand culture from the point of view of the people within that cultural context

anthropology

the holistic study of humankind

applied anthropology

the branch of anthropology in which practitioners use anthropology in the service of particular social concerns

archaeology

the subfield of anthropology focused on the study of material artifacts to understand a people’s culture and society, usually in the past

cultural anthropology

the subfield of anthropology focused on the description, interpretation, and analysis of similarities and differences in human cultures

cultural other

a term used to refer to the subjective experience of difference at the cultural level; identifying ‘us/me’ and ‘them/you’ through cultural symbols and markers

ethnoarchaeology

An approach to archaeology that combines the analysis of material life with information taken from contemporary populations

ethnographic fieldwork

anthropology’s hallmark research method, based on the anthropologist’s direct experience in a culture

ethnographic interviews

purposeful, documented conversations with research participants that may be formal or informal

ethnography

1. a rich description and analysis of a culture that includes the anthropologist’s experience of ‘being there’. 2. the method of research involving firsthand fieldwork, participant observation, and other qualitative data

focus groups

a type of interview in which small groups of people are asked to discuss a particular topic while the anthropologist takes notes

globalization

the integration of economies, political systems, societies, and culture into a large community on a global scale

linguistics

the subfield of anthropology devoted to the study of language

participant observation

an approach to research that combines participation and observation in various ways to optimize understanding of the culture being studied

physical/ biological anthropology

the subfield of anthropology devoted to the study of human anatomy, nonhuman primates (primatology), and human origins

primatology

the study of nonhuman primates

rapid ethnographic assessment procedures (REAP)

the time-compresses use of focus groups, ethnographic interviews, mapping, and other methods within a framework of participant observation

cultural relativism

the view that various cultural practices and beliefs are best understood in relation to their entire context

cultural superiority

the belief that one culture is more enlightened, advanced, civilized, or intelligent than another

culture

the total way of life of a group of people that is learned, dynamic, shared, power laden, and integrated

epistemological relativism

the belief that the validity of knowledge itself is limited to the context in which it was produced

historical particularism

an early anthropological theory that argues that each culture embodies a unique representation of its history and context

monogenesis

the view that all humans originate from a single creation of God

polygenesis

the theory that various groups of humans appeared on earth or were created separately

racism

the belief that humans are organized into race groupings that are different from one another in intelligence and worth

tacit ethnocentrism

the assumption that one’s own way of life is just normal, not cultural

unilinear cultural evolution

an early anthropoligcal theory that states all cultures evolve from simple to complex, along a single trajectory of progress

comparative method

linguistic study that identifies related words, establishes sound correspondences, and identifies correspondences between words to establish relationships between languages

creole

a type of language formed when speakers of different languages combine their languages

descriptive grammar

the rules of language that exist and are used in a particular linguistic community

descriptive linguistics

the study of specific features of individual languages, such as patterns of grammar and sounds, as they are actually used by a given language community

diachronic

study of any phenomenon that focus on change over time

ethnosemantics/ ethnoscience

the study of the culturally and linguistically specific ways people make sense of the world

historical linguistics

the study of how languages develop and change over time and how different languages are related to one another