APHuG unit 3 Vocabulary Terms

Acculturation

Adopting enough traits of a host society to function socially and economically.

Agnosticism

Belief that nothing can be known about God’s existence.

Animism

Belief that natural objects (trees, rocks, rivers) have souls.

Assimilation

Full blending of an ethnic group into host society, losing distinctive traits.

Atheism

Belief that God does not exist.

Creole

A pidgin language that becomes a native language with expanded vocabulary.

Cultural appropriation

Adoption of another culture’s traits or symbols.

Cultural landscape

Human-made changes to the environment that reflect culture.

Cultural relativism

Understanding a culture by its own values, not judging by another.

Cultural trait

A single distinguishing feature of a culture.

Culture

A people’s way of life, including speech, beliefs, and behaviors.

Dialect

Local/regional form of a language that remains mutually intelligible.

Diaspora

Scattering of people from their homeland.

Ethnic homeland

Large area tied to an ethnic group with strong attachment and some control.

Ethnic island

Small rural ethnic settlement.

Ethnic neighborhood

Voluntary community of people with shared origin.

Ethnic religion

Religion tied to a specific group, not seeking converts.

Ethnicity

Identity with people sharing cultural traditions of a homeland.

Ethnocentrism

Belief in superiority of one’s own ethnic group.

Folk culture

Traditional culture of small, isolated, homogeneous groups.

Fundamentalism

Strict, literal following of religious faith.

Isogloss

Boundary of word usage or pronunciation.

Language

System of symbolic communication, spoken or written.

Language family

Group of related languages from a common ancestor.

Lingua franca

Widely used language of trade/communication across groups.

Linguist

Scientist who studies languages.

Material culture

Physical objects made/used by a cultural group.

Monolingual

Speaking only one language.

Monotheistic religion

Belief in one god.

Multi-ethnic state

State with more than one ethnicity.

Multiculturalism

Coexistence and valuing of multiple cultures in one society.

Multilingual

Speaking several languages fluently.

Mutual intelligibility

Ability of two speakers to understand each other.

Nationality

Identity with people tied to a country.

Nativism

Policy protecting interests of native-born over immigrants.

Neolocalism

Re-embracing uniqueness and identity of a place.

Nonmaterial culture

Beliefs, traditions, and customs passed through generations.

Official language

Government-chosen language for unity, courts, and administration.

Pidgin

Simplified language with limited vocabulary for communication.

Placelessness

Loss of unique cultural identity of a place (looks like everywhere else).

Polytheistic religion

Belief in many gods.

Popular culture

Widespread, changing culture in large, diverse societies.

Race

Identity with people of common biological ancestry.

Racism

Belief in superiority of one race over another.

Secularism

Ethics and morals based on earthly life, not religion.

Segregation

Separation of groups within a population.

Sharia law

Islamic legal system based on Quran interpretation.

Syncretism

Blending of cultural traits into a new form.

Theocracy

Government controlled by religious leaders.

Universalizing religion

Religion seeking global appeal, open to all people.