Unit 3 Gradesavers

Culture

Culture

a particular group's material characteristics, behavioral patterns, beliefs, social norms, and attitudes that are shared and transmitted

Cultural Traits

The specific customs that are part of the everyday life of a particular culture, such as language and religion.

Cultural Complex

a series of interrelated traits such as the process of steps and acceptable behaviors related to greeting a person in different cultures

Cultural Hearth

the area in which a unique culture or a specific trait develops

Taboos

behaviors heavily discouraged by a culture

Folk Culture

the beliefs and practices of small, homogenous groups of people

Popular Culture

culture that is not tied to a specific location but rather a general location based on widespread diffusion (ex: music, sports)

Global Culture

Cultural traits that are spread and adopted worldwide

Indigenous Community

When members of an ethnic group reside in their ancestral lands, and typically possess unique cultural traits

Urbanization

the process by which people live and are employed in a city

Globalization

increasing connection of economic, cultural, and political characteristics across the world.

Material Culture

tangible things, or those that can be experienced by the senses such as art, food, and music.

Artifacts

An object that is man-made and represents a certain culture

Mentifacts

concepts that don't have a physical presence that are apart of a certain culture

Nonmaterial Culture

anything on the landscape that comprises culture that cannot be physically touched (ex: religion)

Sociofacts

ways people organize their society and relate to one another

Architecture

the look of housing, affected by the availability of materials, the environment the house is in, and the popular culture at the time.

Cultural Landscape

human imprint on the environment that shows the visible reflection of culture

Traditional Architecture

reflects a local culture's history, beliefs, values, and community adaptations to the environment and typically utilizes locally available materials

Postmodern Architecture

a movement away from boxy, mostly concrete or brick structures toward high rise structures made from large amounts of steel and glass siding

Land-Use Patterns

complex interaction between humans and the physical environment

Linguistic Characteristics

a related set of cultural traits descriptive of one aspect of a society's behavior or activity.

Gender

the differences between men and women in cultures

Religion

a strong belief in a supernatural power(s) that control human destiny

Ethnic Neighborhood

an area where culturally distinct communities maintain their way of life, seperate from larger communities.

Diaspora

when one group of people is dispersed to various locations

Christianity

A monotheistic system of beliefs and practices based on the Old Testament and the teachings of Jesus as embodied in the New Testament and emphasizing the role of Jesus as savior.

Islam

A religion based on the teachings of the prophet Mohammed which stresses belief in one god (Allah), Paradise and Hell, and a body of law written in the Quran. Followers are called Muslims.

Buddhism

a widespread Asian religion or philosophy, founded by Siddartha Gautama in northeastern India in the 5th century bc.

Sikhism

a monotheistic religion founded in Punjab in the 15th century by Guru Nanak.

Hinduism

A religion and philosophy developed in ancient India, characterized by a belief in reincarnation and a supreme being who takes many forms

Judaism

A religion with a belief in one god. Followers believe that the Torah expresses divine will. It originated with Abraham and the Hebrew people.

Sequent Occupancy

the notion that successive societies leave their cultural imprints on a place, each contributing to the cumulative cultural landscape

Cultural Relativism

understanding a culture on its own terms rather than judging it by the standards or customs of one's own culture

Ethnocentrism

belief that one's own culture group is more important and superior to other cultures

Ethnicity

membership in a group of people who share characteristics such as ancestry, language, customs, history, and common experiences

Sense of Place

emotive bonds and attachments people develop or experience in particular locations

Placemaking

way to strengthen the connection between people and the places they share

Centripetal Force

unifies a group of people or region

Centrifugal Force

divides a group of people or region

Relocation Diffusion

spread of culture and/or cultural traits by people who migrate and carry their cultural traits with them

Expansion Diffusion

the spread of cultural traits outward through exchange without migration

Contagious Diffusion

when a cultural trait spreads continuously outward from its hearth through contact among people

Hierarchical Diffusion

spread of culture outward from the most interconnected places or from centers of wealth and influence

Reverse Hierarchical Diffusion

when a trait diffuses from a lower class to a higher class

Stimulus Diffusion

when an underlying idea from a culture hearth is adopted by another culture, but the adopting group modifies or rejects one trait

Creolization

the process in which two or more languages converge and form a new language

Lingua Franca

a common language used by people who do not share the same native language (ex: English)

Colonialism

a type of imperialism in which people move into and settle on the land of another country

Imperialism

broader concept that includes a variety of ways of influencing another country or group of people by direct conquest, economic control, or cultural dominance

indigenous Language

a language that is native to a region and spoken by indigenous people

Social Constructs

ideas, concepts, or perceptions that have been created and accepted by people in a society or social group and are not created by nature

Time-Space Convergence

the greater interconnection between places that results from improvements in transportation

Cultural Convergence

when two or more cultures influence each other and become similar with increased contact

Cultural Divergence

the idea that a culture may change over time as the elements of distance, time, physical separation, and modern technology create divisions and changes

Language Family

a collection of languages related to each other through a common ancestor long before recorded history.

Dialect

variations in accent, grammar, usage, and spelling

Isogloss

boundaries between variations in pronunciations or word usage

Indo-European Language Family

large language family that includes all European, Indian, and Iranian languages that might have descended from a language spoken around 6,000 years ago

Universalizing Religion

actively seeks converts to its faith regardless of their ethnic backgrounds

Ethnic Religion

belief traditions that emphasize strong cultural characteristics among their followers

Polytheistic

believing in many gods

Monotheistic

believing in one god

Acculturation

The adoption of cultural traits, such as language, by one group under the influence of another.

Assimilation

when one ethnic group can no longer be distinguished from the receiving group

Syncretism

fusion or blending of two distinctive cultural traits into a unique hybrid trait

Multiculturalism

the coexistence of several cultures in one society, with the ideal of all cultures being valued and worthy of study

Nativism

the policy of protecting the interests of native inhabitants against those of immigrants.