INTRODUCTION TO ANTHROPOLOGY

INTRODUCTION TO ANTHROPOLOGY

What is Anthropology?
- study of the development of humans
- human origin
- behavior & the physical
- social & cultural
- study of the lives & cultures of human beings
- alive or dead
- from its beginnings to present day
- anthropology is derived from greek
- anthropos (human)
- logia (study)
- anthropologists seek to understand what makes us human
- studies ancestors
- archaeological excavation
- observing living cultures
- they examine how humans;
- live
- think
- communicate
- produce
- interact with their;
  - social environment
  - physical environment
Central Questions of Anthropology
- how did humans evolve?
- how does our evolutionary history impact our lives today?
- what is culture?
- what characteristics do all cultures share?
- what lessons can we learn from other cultures?
Areas of Study in Anthropology
- two types of anthropology
- cultural
  - examines cultural variation
  - tries to prove culture is part of human nature
- physical
  - evolution
  - genetic variation
  - inheritance
  - adaptability
  - other primates
  - uses both;
  - the fossil record
  - modern day genetic research
- physical anthropology
- paleoanthropology
- primatology
- human variations
- cultural anthropology
- archaeology
- ethnology
- linguistics
Physical Anthropology
- what is it?
- examines human beings as biological organisms
- tries to differentiate them from other species
- studies & creates theories from fragments of physical evidence
  - bones
  - tools
  - charcoal
- how do anthropologists examine human beings?
- tracing the origins of the human species
- digs up & studies skeletons plus artifacts
- studying biological similarities & differences among human beings
- what research methods are used?
- use research methods of natural & physical sciences
- work with fossils, bones & other remnants of human life
- gets a rough idea of what humans looked like & the tools they used
Paleoanthropology, Primatology & Human Variation
- paleoanthropology:
- study of bones & stone remains
- of our ancient ancestors from millions of years ago
- tries to determine how humans evolved
- archaeology:
- study of human past through material remains
- aims to order & describe events
- explains their meaning
- primatology:
- studies the anatomy & behaviors of living primates
- studies what makes us different from other primates
- our closest living relatives
Cultural Anthropology
- studies past & present day cultures
- culture is made of what people:
- do (daily rituals like washing dishes)
- make (tools used for a variety of purposes)
- believe (beliefs about the supernatural)
- culture is viewed as;
- a ways of living learned over time
- shared by groups people
- focuses on things you learn about, NOT what we are born knowing;
- knowledge
- language
- beliefs
- art morals
- laws
- customs
- major conflict within cultural anthropology
- a question
- how can another culture be understood by an outsider?
- ethnology
- immerse themselves in a culture for months/years
- takes detailed notes
- tries to understand how people live in different parts of the world
- linguistics
- studies how language & other forms of human communication contribute to the reproduction, transmission, & transformation of culture
Charles Darwin
- spent 20 years gathering evidence & writing
- his theory is about evolution through natural selection
- anguished over the controversy it would create in victorian england
- the idea was going against religion & societal norms of the time
- was considered orthodox
- wanted to demonstrate that new species could be created from a common ancestor
- this was done by the accumulation of small changes over generations
- “I have called this principle, by which each slight variation, if useful, is preserved, by the term of Natural Selection.”
- “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.”

PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY

universe calendar created by the american astronomer carl sagan
- the history of the universe condensed into one year
- big bang occurred january 1st
- milky way formed on may 1st
- solar system formed september 9th
- life on earth emerged on september 25th
- humanlike primates first appeared december 31st at 10:30pm
many theories as to where humans came from
- ranges from religious to scientific
- creationism
- accounts from biological diversity
- refers to the divine act of creation
- is described in the book of genesis
- creation of adam
- michelangelo (1475-1564)
- intelligent design
- modern physics & cosmology
- intelligence is in the structure of the universe
- intelligence seems to act with us in mind
- the universe as a whole shows evidence of design
- a belief that life on earth is so complex it cannot be explained by science
- therefore, it must have been created by a supernatural force
- scientific theory
- human evolution
- developed by charles darwin
- 1831: he traveled to south america
- was a 5 year journey to study nature
- wrote a book (1859) “on the origin of the species”
- change in the heritable traits in species over time or generations
- organisms change structurally & genetically
- humans & other living organisms have also changed
- transformed to survive in changing environments
- results in the gradual development of new species
- “natural selection”
- darwin's theories based on observing a variety of species
  - observed finches on galapagos islands
  - noticed many species of finches on the island
  - all evolved differently based on what they ate
  - some finches were large & had powerful beaks
  - could break open hard seeds
  - smaller finches could not compete
  - they developed short, thick beaks
  - allowed them to eat leaves & blossoms
  - third species had long, straight beaks
  - allowed them to eat nectar from cacti
- two important concepts;
  - natural selection
  - biological change
  - reproductive success of individuals within a species
  - caused by the individual's adaptive fitness to the environment
  - survival of the fittest
  - adaptation
  - adjustment of an organism
  - changes to a particular set of environmental conditions
  - exceptionally slow process –> we can’t see it
- darwin’s theory is generally accepted in the scientific community today
- however, there are many gaps in his work
- recent genetic studies support his theory
  - all humans trace back to common african origin
- still much debate over date of origin, method of dispersal
- many scientists have studied fossilized remains
  - done to try & prove or to disprove darwin
theory of natural selection;
- on the origins of species (1859)
- said the species must adapt or face extinction
- only when circumstances require it
- example; changes in food supply
- species adapt to survive
- passes on their genetics to offsprings
- no two members of a species are 100% identical
- biological inheritance & environmental adaptation
- those better adapted to the environment will thrive
- gets food
- finds shelter
- avoids predators
- reproduces more frequently
- individuals who are not suited to the environment will perish
- will have fewer offspring
- the offspring of well adapted individuals will also thrive in that environment
- will pass on their advantaged genetic traits to their offspring (& so on…)
- the poorly adapted will eventually become extinct
- this process DOES NOT create new traits in individuals
- it chooses from traits already present in a population
- would allow for the balance between food supply & species growth to be maintained
- when an imbalance occurred, new stages of adaptation would begin
the evolution of humans;
- physical anthropologists study human biological evolution using;
- fossil evidence (paleontology)
- cultural remains (archaeology)
- DNA studies
- human beings evolved from apes over millions of years
- physical & mental characteristics so similar there must be one ancestor
- a result of changes in climate & living conditions
- “the descent of man” 🡪 origins & nature of humanity
- takes millions of years, many of our ancestors overlapped
- evolution follows no strict path
- some things that can affect evolution;
- changes in weather
- natural disasters
- new predators & prey
- we share almost 98% of our dna with chimpanzees
- humans are bipedal (walk on two feet)
- fossils of all early hominids found in east & south africa
- as the climate there changed to savannah from jungle
- forced our ancestors to walk upright
- 1924: raymond dart, an anatomist, was given a skull
- was found in taung in south africa
- skull looked to be more human than ape
- dart found out that these type of human walked upright but had a small brain
- dart named the skull & its people australopithecus africanus
- “southern ape from africa”
- declared it to be an early form of human
- 1959: louis & mary leakey found more proof that humans originated in africa
- found an australopithecine skull in olduvai gorge, kenya
- determined the skull to be 1.75 million years old
- later found fossils including those from homo habilis & homo erectus
- mary leakey (1913-1996) proved that early hominids walked upright
- done through her archaeological work
- done in tanzania, east africa
- archaeologists still unsure as to why
- helped early hominids to dissipate heat from their bodies
- they inhabited the hot african climates
- standing up straight exposed less of their body to the sun
- kept their brains cool
- must have offered greater protection
- early hominids could see predators at greater distances & run away
- allowed early hominids to use their hands to create tools
- humans communicate using language
- a variety of forms of communication
- various newspapers
- speaking
- sign language
- communicating through the internet
- earliest fossil of a bipedal hominid is australopithecus afarensis
- lived between 4 & 3 million years ago.
- first partial skeleton discovered in hadar, ethiopia in 1974
- by donald johanson
- nicknamed “lucy”
- first early skeleton of its type that could be reconstructed was 3.2 million years old
- 1978: hominid footprints were discovered nearby
- helped to prove “lucy” walked upright
- australopithecus afarensis was;
- more like a chimpanzee
- walked slightly bow legged
- chimpanzee-like hips & curved toes
- was about 4 feet tall
- possessed a small skull
- ape-like features
- low forehead
- flat nose, no chin
- brain was one third that of modern humans
- it had great muscular strength
- lacked the power of speech
- no evidence that it made tools
- homo habilis or “handy man” is arguably the first species of the hominids
- lived from approximately 2.4 million to at least 1.6 million years ago
- discovery of this species is credited to both mary & louis leakey
- there is evidence it was the first hominid to manufacture stone tools
- still had a primitive face & a brain one half the size of a modern human
- may have had rudimentary speech
- may have built first shelters
- homo erectus or “upright human”
- lived from 1.7 million to approximately 500,000 years ago
- protruding jaw, no chin, thick brow ridges, long skull
- teeth were smaller than homo habilis
- brain was much larger than homo habilis
- may have had advanced speech
- first hominid to control fire
- more sophisticated tools
- first hominid to have left africa
- spread throughout asia & europe
- those that stayed in africa sometimes referred to as homo ergaster
- neanderthals or “cavemen”
- very human-like
- 5’ 4’’ in height
- lived in cold climates
- were shorter
- tended towards thicker craniums
- a heavy brow ridge
- a stockier skeleton due to;
  - climate
  - diet of mainly meat
- gets a bad press in popular culture
- had a larger brain than modern humans
- evidence they had;
  - musical instruments
  - tools & fire
  - buried dead with flowers
- they did not live in caves but on plains
- coexisted with homo sapiens for at least 20,000 years
  - perhaps as long as 60,000 years
  - then died out
- what happened? several theories;
  - interbred with homo sapiens
  - were killed off by home sapiens
  - drove into extinction by competition
- otherwise known as the very wise or thinking human
- the earliest homo sapiens were called cro magnons
- named after the cave of cro magnon in southwest france
- was where the first specimen was found
- an excellent hunter with sophisticated weapons
- had control over its living environment
- spread to north america & australia
- was the first to develop art
evolution vs creationism;
- creationist theory
- humankind was brought forth by god in his image
- first adam & eve
- eve was made from the rib of adam
- he would not be lonely
- evolution
- man evolved over time from a lower form of animal
- believed that the strongest animals adapted to their surroundings
- famous evolutionist
- charles darwin wrote the origin of species in the 1880s
- believed man evolved from apes
- caused outrage at the time
- scopes trial
- 1925: a teacher named scopes was put on trial
- done for teaching evolution
- he was fined a $100 which is $1600 in our time
- symbolized the decline in public acceptance of the biblical version
what makes us human?
- compared to animals, humans can
- walk upright
- communicate in oral & written forms
- think & problem solve
- evolved physically & cognitively
- how has humanity become the most dominant species on earth?
- we are not the largest or the fastest
- species classification by carolus linnaeus
- during the age of exploration during the 15th & 16th centuries
- new species of plants & animals were discovered
- new types of people were being discovered
- beothuk in newfoundland
- the aztecs
- new information needed to be organized if a thorough study could be done
- one of the earliest naturalists to start classifying humans was carolus linnaeus
- believed a classification system was required to organize the results of divine creation
- his first idea was to classify plants & animals according to their anatomical structures
- if they looked similar they could be classified together
- he also believed that humans & plants were fixed & could not change
- meant god’s work was perfect as created & could not change its composition or evolve
- later revised his ideas as he saw the results of crossbreeding plants
- some oppose the theory of evolution as it goes against biblical writings
- they state that god made the earth in 7 days
- some believe that fossil evidence is sketchy & not clearly defined
- some resist the idea that humans evolved from other animal species
- gregor mendel – conducted a series of breeding experiments with pea plants
- mendel’s work indicates;
- humans inherit a variety of characteristics from their biological parents
- still maintain a unique DNA code
- over the generations certain traits could be passed down & altered
- if a parent has red hair some grandchildren may also have red hair
- this trait may skip a generation

CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY

what is cultural anthropology?
- a social science that studies cultures around the world
- cultural anthropologists have to remain objective and discourage generalizations
- the goal of cultural anthropology is to;
- prevent ethnocentrism
- promote cultural relativism
aims of cultural anthropology
- provide objective insight into other cultures
- help preserve valuable knowledge, cultural practices and languages around the world
- to foster cross-cultural empathy, understanding and collaboration
- to emphasize similarities among human cultures and help bridge their differences and misunderstandings
ethnocentrism
- the belief that one’s cultural group is centrally important and superior to others
- we are ethnocentric when we use our cultural norms to make generalizations about other cultures and customs
- leads to cultural misinterpretation
- often distorts communication between humans
- examples;
- british drivers driving “on the wrong side” of the road
- hebrew or arabic as reading “backward”
- viewing certain types of art as “naive” or “primitive”
xenocentrism
- the belief that other cultures are superior than your own
- examples;
- many americans believe europeans make better cars
- belief that other countries produce better children’s toys, clothing trends, etc.
- embracing hygge (hoo-gah) lifestyle
  - coziness and comfiness - candles, comfy clothes, warm blankets
cultural relativism
- the principle that an individual human’s belief and activities make sense in terms of his or her own culture
- a relativist perspective explains human diversity as a logical outcome of the diverse environments in which humans live
- when it comes to right or wrong, there is no fixed truth but rather all is relative
3 terms about cultural expectations
- taboo - something that is forbidden (banned) for religious, moral and/or social reasons
- norms - the rules within a group that indicate how members should behave
- folkways - informal practices based on tradition
3 terms about cultural interactions
- cultural diffusion
- “borrowing” culture, alter/adapt new elements to fit in their culture
- borrowing elements that fit within existing culture
- elements that do not fit are rejected
- elements only accepted if they are useful to the group
- social groups that borrow elements are more likely to do it again
- cultural assimilation
- the process in which a minority group of culture takes on the traits of the dominant culture of a society
- referred to as cultural extinction
- undertaken voluntarily or by force
- multiculturalism
- the existence, acceptance, or promotion of multiple traditions (and cultures) within a specific area
communication
- language (speech & writing)
- non - verbal (body language, tone & character of voice, interactive distances, clothing, makeup, etc)
- human communication occurs via:
- verbal (oral
- written language
- body language
- side language
- verbal language
- is under the study of anthropological linguistics
- studies the development of language as it evolved over millions of years
- language - a sophisticated communication system that includes vocabulary & a set of rules (grammar) outlining its proper use
- need language to work together (hunting/warning others of danger)
- language is a distinctive feature of human species
- first evolved from body gestures (earliest form of communication)
- slowly developed and fewer body gestures were used
- as our ancestors evolved;
  - brain sizes increased
  - brain organization changed to allow abstract thought
  - broca’s area of the brain that controls speech developed
  - physical attributes developed to allow for speech
- broca’s area
  - section of the brain involved in speech production
  - specifically accesses arrangement of words while listening to and understanding complicated structures
  - found in our ancestors over 1.8 million years ago (may not have functioned as it does today)
  - people suffering brain damage to this area are unable to understand or make complex sentences
- physical attributes
  - all elements were in place only the last 300 000 years for speech
  - position of the larynx or voice box
  - hyoid bone (to control muscles in the jaw, larynx & tongue)
- human language constantly evolves resulting in new terms being developed to describe new concepts
- unless newly developed words can be translated into french, the language may become stagnant and english may become dominant
- languages that fail to evolve tend to die (latin)
- written language
- first stage of true writing began with picture writing - ‘pictography’
- second stage began with symbols that could express abstract ideas - ‘hieroglyphics’
- picture writing & idea symbols were eventually altered by the use of symbols linked to the sound of the word - ‘phonography’
- phonography led to the development of the alphabet & modern day writing
- pictography is still used today in the form of bliss symbols & allows nonverbal, physically challenged individuals to communicate
- body language
- means of communicating information & attitudes in a non-verbal manner
- may be conscious or subconscious
- an important part of converting the message intended
- early communication may have relied less on words and more on grunts and facial expressions & body language
- email has developed emoticons to provide body language cues
- what is considered respectful and polite is different in different cultures
- we use body language to compliment our language & reinforce our messages
- effective body language helps ensure that communication is clear
- sign language
- language that uses hand gestures and facial expressions to share a message
- variety of different forms of sign language exist
- most common is american sign language (asl)
rites of passage
- ceremonies that mark a person’s progress from one phase to another
- often involves rituals which are ceremonial acts prescribed by tradition or religion that set humans apart from other species
- common cross cultural examples include birth, puberty, death
- may be related to religion, historical traditions, cultural expectations
- adoption process;
- you are changed from what you were to something new
- you remove yourself from society temporarily
- you are readmitted to society as a new person
- the socialization process is directly involved in rites of passage as it relates to parental, peer & societal instruction & is culturally specific
- reasons for rites;
- contribute to an individual & a society’s stability
- they help people cope with unexpected & sometimes difficult stages in life
- recognition that one is not alone in the transition
- can help relieve stress & help individuals understand their personal growth
- entertainment value as public events that can be serious or humorous
- rites may also be accompanied by important symbols (new clothing or jewelry)
- coming of age ceremonies
- initiation into puberty is universal
- demarks the significant transition from childhood to youth
- all societies mark this transition in important ways involving ceremonies
- often are public events to recognize that the young people will now be given more responsibility in society
- initiations
- around the world puberty rites often have common features
- some rites involve mutilation: scarring, piercing of body parts, tattooing
- others may demand endurance: beating, rigorous fasting, trials of pain
- may involve the use of ritual pain or markings, special clothing, etc
- the emphasis is on instruction in proper adult behaviors
- lessons involve dress, speech, morality
- biological changes
- during ceremonies, males are ritually separated from all women
- this is to show how they were leaving their mother
- meaning of body hair, shaving in various cultures
- women often have ceremonies surrounding the onset of menses
- perspectives
- anthropologists focus on historical & cross-cultural perspectives
- psychologists look at the impact on the individuals, mental health & stability
- sociologists examine these in terms of the different social groups of teens & impact on gender, race & economic status
- moving away from family
- a gradual process that happens at different time for everyone
- anthropologists view this cross culturally
- psychologists look at the development of personal identity as the individual matures; need for personal space & an independent life
- sociologists look at the format of ‘new’ [family] groupings
- first serious relationship is part of the moving away from the safety of the family & into the new safety of outside relationships
arranged marriages
- typically done in middle eastern cultures, traditional cultural & strongly religious groups
- typically arranged by family, close friends, matchmakers
- considered a decision too important to be left up to young people
- choices of partner are based on;
- what others know of you (qualities, interests, values, beliefs)
- what is best for you and for your family
- not based on love - love will follow
- strengths;
- you don't need to spend time looking for a mate
- you have more time for other important things in life
- mothers may be more objective and aware of your needs than you are
- problems;
- little opportunity to divorce if it doesn’t work out
- you may have little input into the decision
- you may not like the selected mate
- little personal choice - familial expectations