Unit 3 culture vocab

culture

culture

the beliefs, values, practices, behaviors, and technologies shared by a society and passed down from generation to generation

culture trait

At the tip of the cultural iceberg are material objects shared by a group, such as food and clothing, as well as language and other shared cultural practices, which include activities that most group members do. Each attribute is considered to be a(n) _______________.

artifact

the visible objects and technologies that a culture creates, such as houses and buildings, clothing, tools, toys, and and-use practices. They change readily/often.

Sociofact

structures and organizations that influence social behavior, such as families, governments, educational systems, and religious organizations

mentifact

the central, enduring elements of a culture that reflect its shared ideas, values, knowledge, and beliefs—are the slowest to change. Examples include religious beliefs and language

cultural landscape

A natural landscape that has been modified by humans, reflecting their cultural beliefs and values,

identity

how humans make sense of themselves and how they wish to be viewed by others

sequent occupancy

successive societies, one after another, leave behind their cultural imprint, a collection of evidence about human character and experiences within a geographic region, which shapes the cultural landscape

ethnicity

the state of belonging to a group of people who share common cultural characteristics

ethnic neighborhood

cultural landscapes within communities of people outside of their areas of origin; examples are Chinatown in Vancouver or Little Italy in New York

traditional architecture

established building styles of different cultures, religions, and places—was originally influenced by the environment and is based on localized needs and construction materials. It tends to reflect local traditions, and usually evolves over time to reflect the environmental, cultural, and historical context in which it exists

postmodern architecture

"a desire to make architecture a vehicle of cultural expression". Values diversity in design and public spaces that can be enjoyed by anyone are integral

religion

a system of spiritual beliefs that helps form cultural perceptions, attitudes, beliefs, and values—the motives behind observable cultural behaviors and practices

pilgrimage

a journey to a holy place for spiritual reasons

language

the carrier of human thoughts and cultural identities, a system of communication in speech or in a literary tradition, or both, which has been adopted by a group of people over time

toponym

place names

gendered spaces

certain spaces may be designed and deliberately incorporated into the landscape to accommodate traditional male and female roles

safe spaces

spaces of acceptance for people such as members of the LGBTQIA+ community who are sometimes marginalized by society

gentrification

the renovations and improvements conforming to middle-class preferences in a community or portion of a, this process is common to many urban landscapes and generally ends in improved buildings and common spaces along with higher prices for renting and buying a place to live in affected areas

third place

communal space such as a coffee shop, fitness center, or bookstore that is separate from home (first place) or work (second place)

sense of place

People fill a geographic location with meaning by connecting memories and feelings to it. As memories and stories of a place accumulate, transform, and even fade over time, an individual's interpretations will continue to adjust, which impacts that person's understanding of that place.

placemaking

a community-driven process in which people collaborate to create a place where they can live, work, play, and learn facilitates creative patterns of use of a landscape, and in turn, the landscape reflects the culture, feelings, experiences, and perceptions of the people who use the place

gender identity

"one's innermost concept of self as male, female, a blend of both or neither—how individuals perceive themselves and what they call themselves...(this) can be the same or different from their sex assigned at birth."

dialect

a variation of a standard language specific to a general area, It is distinguished by differences in pronunciation, degree of rapidity in speech, word choice, and spelling

adherents

the people who are loyal to a belief, religion, or organization

denominations

sometimes religious branches split and form separate organizations that unite a number of local congregations

sect

in religions, this is a relatively small group that has separated from an established denomination

centripetal force

a force that unites a group of people

centrifugal force

a force that divides groups of people

lingua franca

the common language used among speakers of different languages

creolization

Sometimes, rather than leading to the adoption of a common cultural trait, interactions between cultures can result in two or more cultural elements blending. This process is called __________ when specifically referring to the syncretism of cultures in the Americas that resulted from interactions between European colonizers, African slaves, and Indigenous peoples. This process is displayed in language. Examples can be heard in Haiti and Louisiana today. Describes the process of acculturation in which Amerindian, European, and African traditions and customs have blended with each other over a prolonged period to create new cultures in the New World. These cultural traits are found in the southern United States, parts of Latin America, and in the Caribbean.

cultural convergence

As cultures interact with one another, they become more similar, sharing and adopting one another's ideas, innovations, and other cultural traits

cultural divergence

Conflicting beliefs or other barriers can cause two cultures to become less similar. This process is called...

acculturation

people within one culture adopt some of the traits of another while still retaining their own distinct culture

assimilation

a category of acculturation in which the interaction of two cultures results in one culture adopting almost all of the customs, traditions, language, and other cultural traits of the other

syncretism

Sometimes traits from two or more cultures blend together to form a new custom, idea, value, or practice. This process of innovation combining different cultural features into something new is called...

Multiculturalism

Sometimes diverse cultures coexist within a shared space. People in these spaces do not belong solely to one culture or another. They may share some cultural features with others around them while retaining some of their original cultural traits. Ideally, it can create an atmosphere of acceptance and lead to a rich, vibrant blend of cultural traits

collectivist cultures

societies where people are expected to conform to a primary responsibility within the family and to be obedient to and respectful of elder family members

language family

the largest grouping of related languages and includes those languages that share a common ancestral language from a particular hearth or origin

isolated language

one that is not assigned a language family, has no known historic or linguistic relationship with any other known language

language branch

The second level in the language hierarchy in which languages share a common origin and were separated from other branches in the same family thousands of years ago

language group

languages within a branch that share a common ancestor in the relatively recent past and have vocabularies with a high degree of overlap

universalizing religion

attempt to appeal to a wide variety of people and are open to membership by all, regardless of a person's location, language, or ethnicity

ethnic religion

Religion that is closely tied with a particular region or family group. Examples include Hinduism and Judaism, as well as Shinto, found in Japan; Confucianism and Taoism, which originated in China; and the indigenous religions of Africa, North and South America, and Oceania

secularized

not religious