1. Cultural Anthropology
Cultural Anthropology
What Is
Anthropology?
Anthropology is the scientific study of
what it means to be human
!
It is the discipline of infinite curiosity
about human beings
Anthropos= man
Logos= study

2. As a scholarly discipline, anthropology
straddles the sciences, social studies and
humanities.
ANTHROPOLOGY’S
FOUR FIELDS
The Four Fields
What makes human beings unique?
Human Characteristic
Anthropological Subfield
Humans shape their material
environment
Archaeology
Humans differ in their physical form
Physical/Biological
Anthropology
Humans have a unique communication
system
Linguistic Anthropology
Humans act according to learned
knowledge systems
Cultural Anthropology

3. Archaeology
Studies the ways humans
manipulate their material
environment
! Examines material
environment of past societies
for clues about their lives
!
Chaco Canyon,
New Mexico,
settled by the
Anasazi around AD
1000.
Archaeology also studies that portion of the past
before there was writing or literate witnesses,
and this is known as prehistoric archaeology.
Physical Anthropology
Examines the ways
humans are
biologically similar
to and different
from other animals
! Primatology
! Human
Evolution

4. Linguistic Anthropology
!
!
!
!
How humans use
language to
communicate
The spread and
transformation of
language
Language acquisition
Language revitalization
Cultural Anthropology
Describes and analyzes the
beliefs people have about
their social and material
worlds, and the ways these
affect human action
The goal of
Cultural
Anthropology
• to better understand culture and how it
develops and changes over time.

5. How do anthropologists view the world?
They use the HOLISTIC PERSPECTIVE.
They see the world in the broadest possible way.
(Everything related to humans is fair game)
Interdisciplinary & Holistic
Cultural
Archaeology
Physical
Linguistic
Applying cultural anthropology
• Dr. Paula Holmes-Eber, Professor of Operational
Culture, Marine Corps University, Quantico, VA.
• Teaching culture to Marine officers about to deploy to
M.E.
• Importance of understanding tribalism, economics,
religion.
• Criticized by some in the profession for teaching this.

6. Chapter 3
Doing Cultural Anthropology
Fieldwork
■
Firsthand exploration of a society
and culture.
■
■
Holistic perspective about a culture.
Reveals the difference between
what people say they do and what
they do.
Anthropological Theory
■ Attempt to answer questions such as:
■ Why do people behave as they do?
■ How do we account for human
diversity?

7. Fieldwork Techniques
■
■
■
■
Participant observation
Photography and filming
Recording life histories
Using historical archives
Ethical Fieldwork
Anthropologists must:
■
Obtain consent of the people to be
studied.
■
Protect them from risk.
■
Respect their privacy and dignity.

8. Ethnography in History
■ Anthropology began in the late 19th
Century as a comparative science.
■ Ethnographers concentrated on
small-scale, technologically simpler
societies.
Early 20th century
■
Boas insisted that grasping the whole of
a culture could be achieved only through
fieldwork.
■
Malinowski suggested the main goal for
an ethnographer was to obtain the
native’s point of view.
Feminist Anthropology
■
Questions gender bias in ethnography
and cultural theory.
■
Men, who had limited access to women’s
lives, performed much of the fieldwork.
■
Ignoring women’s perspectives
perpetuates the oppression of women.

9. Native Anthropology
■ Study of one’s own society.
■ Anthropologists must maintain the
social distance of the outsider.
■ Becoming more common as
native cultures disappear.
The Ideal Anthropological
Journey: Thrice Born
1.
We are born into our original culture.
2.
We move away from a familiar place
to a far place to do field research.
3.
We turn back to our native land and
find the familiar has become exotic.
Postmodernism in Brief
■
Switch from cultural generalization and lawsto description, interpretation, &search for
meaning.
■
Ethnographies- written from several voices
■
Involves a return to cultural relativism.

10. Do You See People....
Really See Them?
CULTURE
๏
“culture = that complex whole which includes,
knowledge, belief, arts, morals, law, custom, and
any other capabilities and habits acquired by man
as a member of society.”
๏
Enculturation is the process by which a child learns
his or her culture.
CULTURE IS LEARNED
๏
Cultural learning is unique to humans.
๏
Cultural learning is the accumulation of knowledge
about experiences and information not perceived
directly by the organism, but transmitted to it
through symbols.

11. CULTURE IS SHARED
๏
Culture is located and transmitted in groups.
๏
The social transmission of culture tends to unify people by
providing us with a common experience.
๏
The commonalty of experience in turn tends to generate a
common understanding of future events.
CULTURE IS ALL-ENCOMPASSING
๏
The anthropological concept of culture is a model
that includes all aspects of human group behavior.
๏
Everyone is cultured, not just wealthy people with
an elite education.
Culture is the total lifeway of a
society, and includes IDEAS, such as
……….
•
•
•
•
•
•
Beliefs
Values
Morals
Attitudes
Ideals
Laws
(all the above are known as NONMATERIAL
CULTURE)

12. Culture ALSO includes .……..
• Everything made and used by a society as part
of its lifeway, such as:
• Housing
• Clothing
• Music
• Food
• Tools
• Transportation
(all the above are known as MATERIAL CULTURE)
MATERIAL CULTURE
artifacts
t.v
.
car phone
ing
housing
cloth
(you can see this part of culture)
ind
iv i
NONMATERIAL CULTURE
morality
du
alis
m
om
freed
ideas
(you can’t see this part of culture)
cy
ocra c
apitali
dem
sm
punctuality
CULTURE IS SYMBOLIC
๏
The human ability to use symbols is the basis of culture

13. CULTURE AND NATURE
๏
Humans interact with cultural constructions of nature,
rather than directly with nature itself.
๏
Culture converts natural urges and acts into cultural
customs.
CULTURE IS INTEGRATED
๏
A culture is a system: changes in one aspect will likely
generate changes in other aspects.
๏
Core values are sets of ideas, attitudes, and beliefs which
are basic in that they provide an organizational logic for
the rest of the culture.
• All humans have basic needs.
• How a particular society goes about meeting
those needs constitutes a great deal of its
culture.
• (there are many ways of getting from point A
to point B).

14. More than one way to get
from Point A to Point B
• What makes both nonmaterial and material
culture actually culture are the different
ways that each society incorporates these
ideas and artifacts into their daily lives.
So what DO we call a group of
people who share a culture?
!
a SOCIETY
The Components of Culture
• CULTURE IS:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Learned
Shared (with some variations – subcultures)
Adaptive
Cumulative
Integrated
Symbolic
and Dynamic

15. Are we BORN with a tabula rasa?
This is the question
behind the old argument
about NATURE versus
NURTURE.
(GENETICS OR LEARNING?)
The case of feral children

16. Culture is
LEARNED
Culture is
SHARED
Culture is
ADAPTIVE

17. Culture is
CUMULATIVE
Culture is
INTEGRATED
Culture is
DYNAMIC

18.
If a culture has survived a long time, that is
an indication of its success in adapting to the
environmental conditions where it developed.
LEVELS OF CULTURE
๏ National culture refers to the experiences, beliefs,
learned behavior patterns, and values shared by citizens
of the same nation.
๏ International culture refers to cultural practices which
are common to an identifiable group extending beyond
the boundaries of one culture.
๏ Subcultures are identifiable cultural patterns existing
within a larger culture.
LEVELS OF CULTURE
Levels of culture, with examples from sports and food.
Level of Culture
Sports Examples
Food Examples
International
Basketball
Pizza
National
Monster-Truck
Apple Pie
Rallies
Subculture
Bocci
Big Joe Pork
Barbecue (SC)

19. ETHNOCENTRISM & CULTURAL RELATIVISM
๏
Ethnocentrism is the use of values, ideals, and mores from
one’s own culture to judge the behavior of someone from
another culture.
๏
๏
Ethnocentrism is a cultural universal.
๏
Ethnocentrism contributes to social solidarity.
Cultural Relativism asserts that cultural values are
arbitrary, and therefore the values of one culture should
not be used as standards to evaluate the behavior of
persons from outside that culture.

20. An individual with an ethnocentric view:!
● Identifies strongly with in-group ethnicity, culture, etc.!
● Feels proud, vain, superior about in-group!
● Defines their culture elements as ‘correct’ & ‘natural’!
● Thinks in-group norms are universal!
!
● Rejects out-group ethnicities, cultures, etc.!
● Feels like other ethnicities & cultures are inferior!
● Xenophobia: a fear or hatred of persons of a different race,
or different ethnic or national origin
● American Exceptionalism: perception that US differs
from other developed nations because of its unique
origins, national credo, historical evolution, &
distinctive political & religious institutions; belief that
US is hope for humanity; moral superiority
Ethnocentrism occurs frequently here at home!
Examples:!
● Capitalism vs. Communism: for years, the US has
fought to end communism because they believe
capitalism trumps all!
!
● Driving: Ethnocentric Americans say that driving on
the left side of the road is the ‘wrong side’ & that the
right side is the ‘correct side’

21. HUMAN RIGHTS
๏
The idea of universal, unalienable, individual human rights
challenges cultural relativism by invoking a moral and
ethical code that is superior to any country, culture, or
religion.
๏
Cultural rights are vested in groups and include a group’s
ability to preserve its cultural tradition.
CULTURE: UNIVERSAL AND PARTICULAR
๏
Cultural universals are features that are found in
every culture.
๏
Cultural generalities include features that are
common to several, but not all human groups.
๏
Cultural particularities are features that are unique
to certain cultural traditions.

22. UNIVERSALITY
๏
Cultural universals are those traits that distinguish
Homo sapiens from other species.
๏
Some social universals include: incest taboos, life in
groups, families (of some kind), and food sharing.
DIFFUSION
๏
Diffusion—defined as the spread of culture traits
through borrowing from one culture to another—has
been a source of culture change throughout human
history.
ACCULTURATION
๏
Acculturation is the exchange of features that results
when groups come into continuous, firsthand contact.
๏
Acculturation may occur in any or all groups engaged
in such contact.
๏
A pidgin is an example of acculturation, because it is
a language form that develops by borrowing language
elements from two linguistically different populations
in order to facilitate communication between the two.

23. INDEPENDENT INVENTION
๏
Independent invention is defined as the creative
innovation of new solutions to old and new
problems.
๏
Cultural generalities are partly explained by the
independent invention of similar responses to
similar cultural and environmental circumstances.
๏
The independent invention of agriculture in both
the Middle East and Mexico is cited as an example.
CONVERGENT CULTURAL EVOLUTION
๏
Cultural convergence is the development of similar
traits, institutions, and behavior patterns by
separate groups as a result of adaptation to similar
environments.
๏
Julian Steward pointed to instances of cultural
convergence to support the hypothesis that cultural
change is governed by scientific laws.
GLOBALIZATION
๏ Globalization encompasses a series of processes that work
to make modern nations and people increasingly
interlinked and mutually dependent.
๏ Economic and political forces take advantage of modern
systems of communication and transportation to promote
globalization.

24. LINGUISTICS
/l/i/n/g/w/i/s/t/i/k/s/
!
!
!
!
!
!
The anthropological study of languages
What is language?
Def: A system of arbitrary vocal symbols learned
and shared by members of a society for the
purpose of communication.
Language
• Language is usually thought of as (1) words;
and (2) grammar.
!
• However, it can also include (3) paralanguage;
and (4) non-verbal communication.
!
• Non-verbal communication includes:
(5) proxemics; and (6) kenesics.

25. Paralanguage
The use of intonation, pacing and the
emphasis of certain words to communicate.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7RMiJUVDj8
Non-Verbal Communication
1) PROXEMICS – communicating through the
manipulation of space.

26. Personal Space
Preferences for personal space vary by culture.
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
In the U.S. we prefer to maintain an 18” invisible
wall.
Personal Space
In urban areas, there is greater
tolerance for people being in closer
contact.
Non-Verbal Communication
2) KENESICS – Communicating through the use of
body movements – true BODY LANGUAGE.

27. Gender and Non-Verbal Signals
Females
–Claim less territory as
their own
!
Stand closer to each
other in conversation
–Use more eye contact
than men
–Use more facial
expression and are
generally more
outwardly expressive
–More likely to return a
smile when smiled at.
In General Women
smile more
–
Males
– More likely to have a
room at home (den,
workshop, office) that is
off limits
– Maintain greater
distance from each other
– Use less eye contact
than women
– Reveal less emotion
through facial
expressions than women
– Less likely to return a
smile. In general, men
smile less than women
Gender and Non-Verbal Signals
Females
–Take up less space - Women
hold legs more together and
keep arms close to body
–Stand farther from people
who speak loudly
!
Women use fewer gestures.
Women use more gestures
with men than with women.
Women use more gestures
when seeking approval.
–
!
Cross legs at the knees or
cross ankles with knees
slightly apart.
–
!
More likely to play with hair
or clothing, and place hands
in their laps
–
Males
– Men tend to have legs apart
at 10-15 degree angle and
hold arms 5-10 degrees
away from body.
– Men maintain the same
distance whether people
speak loudly or normally.
– Men use more gestures than
women in general social
situations. Men use about
the same amount of gestures
with men or women.
!
– Men tend to set with legs
apart or stretched out in front
and ankles crossed.
– More likely to use sweeping
arm and hand gestures.
Gender and Non-Verbal Signals
Females
– Women do not
necessarily interpret
a man’s touch as a
sexual invitation.
– More likely to keep
hands on arms of a
chair.
Males
– Men often interpret
a woman’s touch as
a form of sexual
communication.
– Men rarely keep
hands on the arms
of chairs.

28. Gender and Non-Verbal Signals
Question
– Situation 1: A
man and a
woman sit next to
each other on an
airplane. Which
most often uses
the armrest in the
middle?
Answer
– In a study of 426
male-female
pairs, 284 men
claimed the
armrest and only
57 women
claimed it.
Language
• The system of arbitrary vocal symbols used to
encode one’s experience of the world and of
others.
!
Linguistics
• The scientific study of language.
http://www.alphadictionary.com/articles/yankeetest.html

29. Acquiring Language
Humans would speak no language if
they were taught none.
! Humans may have a predisposition for
learning language patterns or rules.
! The human brain and body are
biologically adapted for language.
!
Studying Language: Breaking it
down
!
• Linguists can break down a language into two
very small units: phonemes and morphemes
!
• PHONEMES – smallest units of sound
!
!
• MORPHEMES – smallest units of meaning
Semantics: The Lexicon
!
!
Semantics is the subsystem of a language
that relates form to meaning.
A lexicon is the total stock of words in a
language.

30. SOCIOLINGUISTICS
Sociolinguistics is the study of the effect of any
and all aspects of society, including gender,
age, social class, regionalism, and cultural
norms on the way language is used.
!
• Vicky Pollard
Queen Elizabeth II
• I ain't done nothing.
• I done it yesterday .
• It weren't me that done it.
I haven't done anything.
I did it yesterday.
I didn't do it.
Historical Linguistics
!
Focused on discovering the history of
languages.
Language is Dynamic
Faeder ure, thu the eart on hepfonum,
si this nama gehalgod. Tobecum thin
rice, Gewurthe dhin willa on eordhan
swa on heofonum. Irne
gedaeghwamlican hlaf syle us to daeg.
And forgyf us ure gyltsa, swa we
forgyfadh urum gyltendum. And ne
gelaed thu us on consnunge, ac alys us
of yfele, sothlice.
English, A.D.
1350-1400

31. The Great Vowel Shift
Middle
English
Vowel
Modern
English
Vowel
Middle
English
Word
Rhymed
with
Became
i
aj
mis
piece
mice
u
aw
mus
moose
mouse
e
i
ges
place
geese
o
u
gos
close
goose
a
e
name
comma
name
Is the English language still changing?
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Some words added to the dictionary recently include:
Muggle
Gaydar
Cyberslacking
Frankenfood
Ego-surfing
Noob
Texting, Sexting, Tweeting
Dropped include: cassette recorder, millennium bug,
pant dress, record changer, long play
• http://phrontistery.info/clwdef.html lists many words no
longer used.
FOCAL VOCABULARY (a.k.a. Jargon)
• a specialized set of terms and distinctions that
is particularly important to a certain group.
• Truckers language

32. Skiers’ Terms For Snow (Skiers’ Focal Vocabulary)
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
BASE: Heavy, wet snow laid down before a resort opens to create a foundation to last the entire season.
BOILERPLATE: A slippery, glazed covering of ice on a run that can occur after it rains or when wet snow freezes.
BREAKABLE CRUST: A hard snow surface atop a softer layer. Such a crust could break under the weight of a turning ski.
BROKEN POWDER: Fresh powder that has been chopped up by skiers and snowboarders into soft mounds or chunks.
Intermediates may find them tricky to navigate.
CHAMPAGNE POWDER: Coveted snow that's exceptionally light and fluffy, like feathers in a pillow. It occurs under
ideal weather conditions in higher elevations of Rocky Mountain states such as Colorado and Utah.
CORDUROY: Best of the best for intermediates. It's an early morning snowpack that has just been machine-groomed to
perfection on wide, easy-to-navigate runs.
CORN: A springtime delight is the pellet snow that resembles corn. It's ideal for grooming.
CORNICE: An overhanging accumulation of wind-blown snow on the edge of a ridge or cliff.
DUST ON CRUST: thin layer of powder on top of crusty or icy surface.
FIRST TRACKS: A prearranged opportunity to ski on ungroomed or freshly groomed snow – depending on your skill – a
half-hour or hour before the entire mountain opens to the public.
FLURRIES: Snow falling for short durations with changes in intensity. They usually result in little accumulation.
GROOMED: Slope terrain that is machine-groomed by snowcats to a smooth surface, with no moguls or hardpack.
HARDPACK or BULLETPROOF: Snow that seems as firm, solid and unforgiving as a city sidewalk because of weather
conditions or because there hasn't been recent snowfall. Turning and edging is more difficult, skis have a tendency to
slide and taking a spill on hardpack can be painful. Many beginner and intermediate skiers and boarders mistakenly call
hardpack ice.
MAN-MADE: Snow artificially produced by high-tech snowmaking systems.
MOGULS: Bumps of varied sizes on snow created by many skiers and snowboarders turning in the same places.
PACKED POWDER: Soft snow turned over and compacted by grooming machines to make slopes easier to ski.
POWDER: A thin, dry surface of snow consisting of loose, fresh ice crystals.
RAILROAD TRACKS: Hard, corrugated snow with ridges. Skis make a clickety-clack sound as they drop down a slope.
Lesser-skilled riders should avoid such slopes. The ridges are rock-hard and can throw riders off balance. Falling on this
snow type can be especially painful.
SIERRA CEMENT: Heavy wet snow, hard to ski through (opposite of champagne powder)
SLAB: Compacted or frozen snow lying beneath freshly fallen snow. It has the potential of sliding and starting an
avalanche.
SLUSH: The sluggish, sticky morass caused by a hot, cloudless spring day that melts snow at the base of a ski mountain.
SNOWFALL: The depth of newly fallen snow.
SNOWPACK: Total snow on the ground, including new and old snow.
TABLETOP: A mound of snow with the top sheared off to provide a flat, level surface for snowboarders to jump over.
Jazz Age Glossary
All wet
Applesauce
Bee’s Knees
Belly Laugh
Berries
Big Cheese
Bull Session
Bump Off
Carry A Torch
Cat’s Meow
Cheaters
Copasetic
Crush
Wrong; arguing a mistaken notion or belief
A term of derogation; non-sense; baloney
A superb person or thing
A loud, uninhibited laugh
Anything wonderful; similar to bee’s knees
An important person
An informal group discussion
To murder
To suffer from unrequited love
Anything wonderful; similar to bee’s knees
Eyeglasses
Excellent
An infatuation with a person of the opposite
sex
Jazz Age Glossary
Dogs
Fall guy
Flapper
!
Giggle Water
Gin Mill
Goofy
Hard-Boiled
Heebie-Jeebie
Human feet
A scapegoat
A typical young girl of the
20’s
An alcoholic drink
A speak-easy
Silly
Tough; without sentiment
The jitters

33. 90’s Language
404
411
Bag On
Check It Out
Clueless
Cool
Da Bomb
Dig It
Dipstick
Dis
Dog
Drop
Drop Knowledge
Dude
Clueless or naïve
Information
To tease, nag or complain
Pay attention
Unaware; naïve; lacking knowledge
Calm, fine, acceptable, neat exciting
Great; awesome; extremely cool
Do you understand?
A stupid person
To disrespect
To criticize sharply or act like a jerk
To give or tell
To share information or experience
Person, especially male – greeting
90’s Language
Get outta here
Hang out
Jam
Rag
Rap
Rents
School
Totally
For Real
Trip
Turkey
Way
What’s Up
You must be kidding
To relax or to gather
To leave; to go
To tease, put down, criticize
To talk or a kind of music
Parents
To teach a lesson to
Very, very much
True? Is it true?
Unusual or strange, overreact
Someone who is stupid or silly
Yes, positive affirmation to “no way”
Hi. What’s new or happening?

34. Text Language
BFF
LOL
BRB
LMAO
A3
CMIIW
FOMCL
IYKWIM
JJA
MTFBWU
OTTOMH
PRW
SBTSBC
SMHID
UGTBK
Best friends forever
Laugh out loud
Be right back
Laughing my @$$ off
Anytime, anywhere anyplace
Correct me if I'm wrong
Falling off my chair laughing
If you know what I mean
Just joking around
May the force be with you
Off the top of my head
Parents/people watching
Same bat time, same bat channel
Scratching my head in disbelief
You’ve gotta be kidding