Anthropology Final

Anthropology

The holistic study of humans, cultures, and societies.

Holism

Approach focusing on whole systems rather than isolated parts.

Cultural relativism

Understanding a culture on its own terms without judgment.

Ethnocentrism

Belief that one’s own culture is superior.

Cultural anthropology

Study of contemporary human cultures.

Kinship

Culturally constructed system of relationships based on descent and marriage.

Patrilineal

Descent traced through the father's line.

Matrilineal

Descent traced through the mother's line.

Cross-cousin

Child of a parent's opposite-sex sibling.

Parallel cousin

Child of a parent's same-sex sibling.

Eskimo kinship

system emphasizing nuclear family (U.S. model).

Hawaiian kinship

system merging many relatives under broad, generalized terms.

Joint family advantages

Shared labor, support, pooled resources.

Joint family disadvantages

Less privacy, more conflict, economic strain.

Arranged marriage

Marriage arranged by families for alliance and stability.

Companionate marriage

Marriage based on love and individual choice.

Dowry

Wealth transferred from bride’s family to groom’s family.

Bridewealth

Wealth transferred from groom’s family to bride’s family.

Marriage as family alliance

Marriage forms social, political, and economic alliances.

Exogamy

Marriage outside one’s social group.

Endogamy

Marriage within one’s social group.

Changing global kinship

Kinship is culturally constructed, not biologically fixed.

Nanda article

Marriage in India focuses on family alliances over personal choice.

Ethnicity

Shared cultural identity based on heritage and descent.

Nation-state

Political unit where national identity and state coincide.

Nationalism

Strong loyalty to and belief in a nation-state.

Ethnic boundary markers

Shared traits that distinguish ethnic groups.

Diaspora

Ethnic groups living outside their traditional homeland.

Imagined communities

Anderson’s idea that nations are socially constructed.

Ethnicity as wedge

Using ethnicity to divide groups or create conflict.

Ethnic cleansing

Forced removal or killing of ethnic groups.

Genocide

Intentional destruction of a cultural, ethnic, or racial group.

Multiculturalism

Promotion of cultural diversity within society.

Assimilation

Adoption of dominant cultural traits.

Melting pot metaphor

Cultural blending into one dominant culture.

Salad bowl metaphor

Different cultures coexist but remain distinct.

Situational identity

Identity shifts depending on social setting.

Simpson article

Mohawk identity shaped through border-crossing experiences.

Egalitarian society

Society with minimal differences in wealth and power.

Stratified society

Society with significant inequalities.

Caste system

Hereditary, fixed stratification with no mobility.

Class system

Stratification based on economic position with some mobility.

Dalit

Lowest caste in India; historically “untouchables.”

Ascribed status

Status assigned at birth.

Achieved status

Status earned through personal actions.

Redistribution

Collection and reallocation of goods; e.g., potlatch.

Potlatch

Social ceremony redistributing wealth to gain prestige.

Meritocracy

Belief that success is based only on merit.

Marx

Identified bourgeoisie and proletariat class struggle.

Weber

Developed concepts of life chances, prestige, and status.

Bourdieu

Created ideas of habitus and social reproduction.

Intersectionality

Interlocking systems of inequality (race, gender, class).

Mullings

Applied intersectionality to health disparities.

Holmes (FFBB)

Documented stratified suffering among farmworkers.

Race (anthropology)

Race is a cultural construct, not biological.

Racialization

Assigning racial meaning to a group.

Racism

Discrimination based on race.

Hypodescent

Assigning mixed-race individuals to the lower-status group.

Eugenics

False belief in improving the population through controlled breeding.

White privilege

Unearned advantages experienced by white individuals.

Fish article

Race has no biological basis; it is culturally constructed.

Smedley article

Historical creation of Black/White racial categories in the U.S.

Sonya Clark's art

Shows hair as a racialized cultural symbol.

Angelica Dass project

Reveals skin tone variation without clear racial boundaries.

Gender (anthropology)

Culturally constructed ideas about roles, identities, and expectations.

Sex vs. gender

Sex = biological; gender = cultural and social identity.

Sexual dimorphism

Biological differences between males and females.

Multiple genders

Gender systems with more than two categories (Hijra, Two-Spirit, etc.).

Transgender

Identity differs from assigned birth sex.

Intersex

Biological variation not fitting binary categories.

Gender socialization

Learning gender roles via culture and institutions.

Gender performance

Butler’s idea that gender is enacted through behavior.

Gender violence

Violence rooted in gender inequality.

Weiner

Highlighted missing women’s roles in Malinowski’s research.

Landers & Fine

T-ball study showing gender socialization in sports.

West & Zimmerman

Gender understood as ongoing social performance.

Biopower

Control of bodies through political/medical regulation.

Sexuality (anthropology)

Culturally shaped beliefs and practices around desire and behavior.

Kinsey scale

Measure of sexual orientation as a continuum.

Mati sexuality

Flexible female sexuality described by Wekker in Suriname.

Antioch consent policy

Early model for affirmative, verbal consent.

Priest

Full-time religious specialist.

Shaman

Part-time ritual specialist and healer.

Pilgrim

A person journeying for spiritual purposes.

Magic

Use of supernatural techniques to achieve a desired effect.

Contagious magic

Power believed to pass through direct contact.

Oracle

System used to obtain divine guidance.

Ritual

Structured, symbolic religious practice.

Anomie

Feeling of normlessness; Durkheim’s concept.

Sacred

Set apart; holy.

Profane

Ordinary, everyday.

Rites of passage

Separation, liminality, and reintegration phases.

Symbol

Thing representing deeper meaning within a culture.