what is anthropology?

WHAT IS ANTHROPOLOGY?

Anthropology

• Greek origins of word: – anthropos “man” – -ology “study of”

Anthropology

• Greek origins of word: – anthropos “man” – -ology “study of”

• The study of human biological and cultural variation, past and present

Anthropology

• Greek origins of word: – anthropos “man” – -ology “study of”

• The study of human biological and cultural variation, past and present

• Goal: understand uniqueness and diversity, and discover universal similarities

Anthropology

• Greek origins of word: – anthropos “man” – -ology “study of”

• The study of human biological and cultural variation, past and present

• Goal: understand uniqueness and diversity, and discover universal similarities

• Holistic approach: study many different aspects of human experience

Four-Field Approach• Cultural Anthropology• Linguistic Anthropology

• Biological Anthropology• Archaeology

BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGYAlso called Physical Anthropology

Biological Anthropology

• Human Paleontology and Paleoanthropology– Evolution of humans

Biological Anthropology

• Human Paleontology and Paleoanthropology– Evolution of humans

• Primatology– Study of primates

Biological Anthropology

• Human Paleontology and Paleoanthropology– Evolution of humans

• Primatology– Study of primates

• Modern Human Biological Variation– How and why populations of humans vary

biologically

CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGYAlso called Social Anthropology and Socio-

cultural Anthropology

Cultural Anthropology

• Ethnology (Ethnologist)– Study of existing and recent cultures

Cultural Anthropology

• Ethnology (Ethnologist)– Study of existing and recent cultures

• Ethnography (Ethnographer)– Detailed description of customary thought & behaviour of

a particular culture

Cultural Anthropology• Ethnology (Ethnologist)

– Study of existing and recent cultures

• Ethnography (Ethnographer)– Detailed description of customary thought & behaviour of a

particular culture

• Ethnohistory (Ethnohistorian)– Study of how the ways of life of a

group of people have changed over time

ARCHAEOLOGY

Archaeology• Prehistoric Archaeology– Reconstruct past cultures based on material remains

• Historic Archaeology– Same as prehistoric, but

study societies with written records

LINGUISTIC ANTHROPOLOGY

Linguistic Anthropology

• Historical Linguistics – How languages change over time and are related

Linguistic Anthropology

• Historical Linguistics – How languages change over time and are related

• Structural (or descriptive) linguistics– How modern languages differ in construction

Linguistic Anthropology

• Historical Linguistics – How languages change over time and are related

• Structural (or descriptive) linguistics– How modern languages differ in construction

• Sociolinguistics– How language is used in social

contexts

Applied AnthropologyUseful application of anthropological knowledge (of ANY subfield) to real-

world issues and concerns

Next time…

• Concept of Culture