ANTH 1000 Midterm

anthropology

The study of the full scope of human diversity, past and present, and the application of that knowledge to help people of different backgrounds better understand one another

ethnocentrism

The belief that one’s own culture or way of life is normal and natural; using one’s own culture to evaluate and judge the practices and ideals of others

ethnographic fieldwork

A primary research strategy in cultural anthropology, typically involving living and interacting with a community of people over an extended period to better understand their lives

cross-cultural and comparative approach

The approach by which anthropologists compare practices across cultures to explore human similarities, differences, and the potential for human cultural expression

four-field approach

The use of four interrelated disciplines to study humanity: biological anthropology, archaeology, linguistic anthropology, and cultural anthropology

holism

The anthropological commitment to look at the whole picture of human life — culture, biology, history, and language — across space and time

biological anthropology

The study of humans from a biological perspective, particularly how they have evolved over time and adapted to their environments

paleoanthropology

The study of the history of human evolution through the fossil record

primatology

The study of living nonhuman primates as well as primate fossils to better understand human evolution and early human behavior

archaeology

The investigation of the human past by means of excavating and analyzing artifacts

prehistoric archaeology

The reconstruction of human behavior in the distant past (before written records) through the examination of artifacts

historic archaeology

The exploration of the more recent past through an examination of physical remains and artifacts as well as written or oral records

linguistic anthropology

The study of human language in the past and present

descriptive linguists

Those who desribe and analyze languages and their component parts

historic linguists

Those who study how language changes over time within a culture and how languages travel across cultures

sociolinguists

Those who study language in its social and cultural contexts

cultural anthropology

The study of people’s communities, behaviors, beliefs, and institutions, including how people make meaning as they live, work, and play together

participant observation

A key anthropological research strategy involving both participation in and observation of the daily life of the people being studied

ethnology

The analysis and comparison of ethnographic data across cultures

globalization

The worldwide intensification of interactions and increased movement of money, people, goods, and ideas within and across national borders

time-space compression

The rapid innovation of communication and transportation technologies associated with globalization that transforms the way people think about space (distances) and time

flexible accumulation

The flexible strategies that corporations use to accumulate profits in an era of globalization, enabled by innovative communication and transportation technologies

increasing migration

The accelerated movement of people within and between communities

uneven development

The unequal distribution of the benefits of globalization

Anthropocene

The current historical era in which human activity is reshaping the planet in permanent ways

climate change

Changes to Earth’s climate, including global warming produced primarily by increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases created by the burning of fossil fuels

culture

A system of knowledge, beliefs, patterns of behavior, artifacts, and institutions that are created, learned, shared, and contested by a group of people

enculturation

The process of learning culture

norms

ideas or rules about how people should behave in particular situations or toward certain other people

values

Fundamental beliefs about what is important, what makes a good life, and what is true, right, and beautiful

symbol

Anything that represents something else

mental maps of reality

Cultural classifications of what kinds of people and things exist, and the assignment of meaning to those classifications

cultural relativism

Understanding a group’s beliefs and practices within their own cultural context, without making judgments

cultural appropriation

The unwanted taking of cultural practices or knowledge from one group by another, more dominant group

unilineal cultural evolution

The theory proposed by nineteenth-century anthropologists that all cultures naturally evolve through the same sequence of stages from simple to complex

historical particularism

The idea, attributed to Franz Boas, that cultures develop in specific ways because of their unique histories

society

The focus of early British anthropological research whose structure and function could be isolated and studied scientifically

structural functionalism

A conceptual framework positing that each element of society serves a particular function to keep the entire system in equilibrium

interpretivist approach

A conceptual framework that sees culture primarily as a symbolic system of deep meaning

thick description

A research strategy that combines detailed description of cultural activity with an analysis of the layers of deep cultural meaning in which those activities are embedded

power

The ability or potential to bring about change through action or influence

stratification

The uneven distribution of resources and privileges among members of a group or culture

hegemony

The ability of a dominant group to creat consent and agreement within a population without the use or threat of force

agency

The potential power of individuals and groups to contest cultural norms, values, mental maps of reality, symbols, institutions, and structures of power

epigenetics

An area of study in the field of genetics exploring how environmental factors directly affect the expression of genes during one’s lifetime

human microbiome

The complete collection of microorganisms in the human body’s ecosystem

ethnographic fieldwork

A primary research strategy in cultural anthropology that typically involves living and interacting with a community of people over an extended period to better understand their lives

salvage ethnography

Fieldwork strategy developed by Franz Boas to collect cultural, material, linguistic, and biological information about Native American populations being devastated by the westward expansion of European settlers

reflexivity

A critical self-examination of the role the anthropologist plays and an awareness that one’s identity affects one’s fieldwork and theoretical analyses

engaged anthropology

Application of the research strategies and analytical perspectives of anthropology to address concrete challenges facing local communities and the world at large

anthropologist’s toolkit

The tools needed to conduct fieldwork, including information, perspectives, strategies, and even equipment

quantitative data

Statistical information about a community that can be measured and compared

qualitative data

Descriptive data drawn from nonstatistical sources, including personal stories, interviews, life histories, and participant observation

rapport

Relationships of trust and familiarity that an anthropologist develops with members of the community under study

key informant

A community member who advises the anthropologist on community issues, provides feedback, and warns against cultural miscues. Also called cultural consultant.

life history

A form of interview that traces the biography of a person over time, examining changes in the person’s life and illuminating the interlocking network of relationships in the community

survey

An information-gathering tool for quantitative data analysis

kinship analysis

A fieldwork strategy of examining interlocking relationships of power built on marriage and family ties

social network analysis

A method for examining relationships in a community, often conducted by identifying whom people turn to in times of need

field notes

The anthropologist’s written observations and reflections on places, practices, events, and interviews

mapping

The analysis of the physical and/or geographic space where fieldwork is being conducted

built environment

The intentionally designed features of human settlement, including buildings, transportation and public service infrastructure, and public spaces

zeros

Elements of a story or a picture that are not told or seen and yet offer key insights into issues that might be too sensitive to discuss or display publicly

mutual transformation

The potential for both the anthropologist and members of the community being studied to be transformed by the interactions of fieldwork

emic

An approach to gathering data that investigates how local people think and how they understand the world

etic

Description of local behavior and beliefs from the anthropologist’s perspective in ways that can be compared across cultures

polyvocality

The practice of using many different voices in ethnographic writing and research question development, allowing the reader to hear more directly from the people in the study

informed consent

A key strategy for protecting those being studied by ensuring that they are fully informed of the goals of the project and have clearly indicated their consent to participate

anonymity

Protecting the identities of the people involved in a study by changing or omitting their names or other identifying characteristics

historical linguistics

The study of the development of language over time, including its changes and variations

language continuum

The idea that variation in languages appears gradually over distance so that groups of people who live near one another speak in a way that is mutually intelligible

speech community

A group of people who come to share certain norms of language use through living and communicating together

descriptive linguistics

The study of the sounds, symbols, and gestures of a language and their combination into forms that communicate meaning

phonemes

The smallest units of sound that can make a difference in meaning

phonology

The study of what sounds exist and how they are used in a particular language

morphemes

The smallest units of sound that carry meaning on their own

morphology

The study of patterns and rules of how sounds combine to make morphemes

syntax

The specific patterns and rules for combining morphemes to construct phrases and sentences

grammar

The combined set of observations about the rules governing the formation of phonemes, morphemes, and syntax that guide language use

kinesics

The study of the relationship between body movements and communication

paralanguage

An extensive set of noises (such as laughs, cries, sighs, and yells) and tones of voice that convey significant information about the speaker

linguistic relativity

The notion that all languages will develop the distinctive categories necessary for those who speak them to deal with the realities around them

Sapir-Whorf hypothesis

The idea that different languages create different ways of thinking

lexicon

All the words for names, ideas, and events that make up a language’s dictionary

sociolinguistics

The study of the ways culture shapes language and language shapes culture, particularly the intersection of language with cultural categories and systems of power such as age, race, ethnicity, sexuality, gender, and class

prestige language

A particular language variation or way of speaking that is associated with wealth, success, education, and power

code switching

Switching back and forth between on linguistic variant and another, or one language and another, depending on the cultural context

language ideology

Beliefs and conceptions about language that often serve to rationalize and justify patterns of stratification and inequality

language loss

The extinction of languages that have very few speakers

digital natives

The generations of people born after 1980 who have been raised in the digital age

race

A flawed system of classification, with no biological basis, that uses certain physical characteristics to divide the human population into supposedly discrete groups

racism

Individual’s thoughts and actions and institutional patterns and policies that create or reproduce unequal access to power, privilege, resources, and opportunities based on imagined differences among groups

intersectionality

An analytic framework for assessing how factors such as race, gender, and class interact to shape individual life chances and societal patterns of stratification

genotype

The inherited genetic factors that provide the framework for an organism’s physical form

phenotype

The way genes are expressed in an organism’s physical form as a result of genotype interaction with environmental factors

colonialism

The practice by which a nation-state extends political, economic, and military power beyond its own borders over an extended period of time to secure access to raw materials, cheap labor, and markets in other countries or regions

miscegenation

A demeaning historical term for interracial marraige

White supremacy

The belief that White people are biologically different from and superior to people of other races

Whiteness

A culturally constructed concept originating in 1691 Virginia designed to establish clear boundaries of who is White and who is not, a process central to the formation of U.S. racial stratification

Jim Crow

Laws implemented after the U.S. Civil War to enforce segregation legally, particularly in the South, after the end of slavery