asdfadsfadsf
Big Men Alternate term for headmen common in Melanesian societies. See headmen.
bilateral descent Descent that is traced equally through both mother and father.
bilocal residence The condition in which a newly married couple reside either with or near the groom’s parents or the bride’s parents.
biological anthropology A subfield of anthro- pology that studies humans as a biological spe- cies. Also called physical anthropology.
Biped An animal that walks on two legs.
Bridewealth A form of marriage finance in which valuable gifts are given by the groom’s kin to the bride’s kin.
carrying capacity The maximum population that a habitat can sustain.
Caste A ranked group with membership deter- mined at birth.
Chiefdom A type of society with an office of chief, most commonly hereditary; social rank- ing; and a redistributive economy.
Clan A descent group consisting of two or more lineages that trace their origin to a mythical ancestor.
class A group of people who have a similar rela- tionship to wealth, power, and prestige.
Cline The variation of a biological trait along a geographic continuum. Human skin pigments show distribution along a cline from the equa- tor north and south.
Colonialism Influence and dominance of one nation over another for the purpose of exploit- ing raw resources. The dominant nation-state establishes a physical presence and a colonial government. See imperialism; hegemony.
commodity money Currency in the form of valued objects such as shells or gold.
Community An association of people who share a common identity, including geographic boun - daries, common language, and culture.
comparative method The methodological ap- proach of comparing data. Anthropologists use
the comparative method.
consanguineal relatives Kin related by blood.
contagious magic A type of magic based on the idea that something that has contact with a person or animal contains some essence of that being and that magic performed on the item will have the same effect as if performed on the being.
contemporary human variation studies The study of the biological variation in living humans.
cross-cousin Ego’s mother’s brother’s child and father’s sister’s child.
cultural anthropology A subfield of anthro- pology that focuses on human sociocultural adaptations.
cultural ecology The study of the processes by which a society adapts to its environment. cultural evolution A model for the develop- ment of society that delineates a sequence of cultural change over time.
cultural relativism The perspective that any aspect of a culture must be viewed and evalu- ated within the context of that culture.
cultural resource management (CRM) The conservation and management of archaeologi- cal sites to protect them.
Culture The sum total of the knowledge, ideas, behaviors, and material creations that are learned, shared, and transmitted primarily through the symbolic system of language. These components create a pattern (that changes over time) and serve as guides and standards of behavior for members of the society. The term culture is used in the abstract as well as to refer to a specific culture.
culture shock A label for the resultant feelings of homesickness, disorientation, helplessness, and frustration that occur after exposure to an unfamiliar culture.descent group A group of people who share identity and come from a common ancestor. descriptive linguistics The part of anthropo- logical linguistics that focuses on the mechan- ics of language.
Deviance The violation of an ideal pattern of behavior within a society.
Diffusion The voluntary borrowing and exchange of items or ideas between cultures.
Diffusionism Early theoretical school that ex- plained the origin and spread of artifacts and ideas through borrowing between cultures.
displacement The ability of humans to com- municate symbolically about distant time and
place.
division of labor The manner of dividing work based on criteria such as age or gender.
double descent A descent system with two sep- arate lines of descent that are both recognized at the same time.
Dowry A form of marriage finance in which valuable gifts are given by the bride’s kin to the
groom’s kin.
ecofacts The remains of plants, animals, or nat- urally occurring nonorganic substances.
ecological model A model that views a culture as part of a larger global ecological system with each aspect of the system interacting with all of the other parts.
Egalitarian Refers to members of a society hav- ing equal access to status, power, and wealth within the same category such as age or gender.
egalitarian society A society in which individ- uals within the same category of age and gen- der have equal access to wealth, prestige, and power.
Emic An insider’s view of a culture. This per- spective in ethnography uses the categories and ideas that are relevant and meaningful to the culture under study.
Enculturation The process of learning one’s culture while growing up in it.
Endogamy A cultural rule that dictates that one must marry within a designated group.
ethnic group A type of subculture character- ized by members sharing a culture of origin, often one originating in another country.
ethnoarchaeologyThe study of contemporary societies’ behaviors and uses of material objects in order to better understand how human behav- ior translates into the archaeological record.
Ethnocentrism Making value judgments based on one’s own culture when describing aspects of another culture.
Ethnography A written description of a culture based on data gathered from fieldwork.
ethnolinguistics A field of study in linguistics that analyzes the relationship between a lan- guage and culture.
Ethnology The comparative study of cultures with the aim of presenting analytical general- izations about human culture.
Ethnomusicology The study of the music of a contemporary society within the context of that society.
Etic An outsider’s view of a culture. This per- Spective in ethnography uses the categories of the anthropologist’s culture to describe the culture under study.
evolutionary-ecological model A paradigm of human culture that combines both the neoevolutionary and ecological perspectives.
Exogamy A cultural rule that dictates that one must marry outside of a designated group (e.g., outside of one’s lineage, clan, or village).
experimental archaeology An aspect of archae- ology in which experiments are performed to learn how prehistoric artifacts and features were made and used.
extended family Two or more nuclear families who are related by blood and who reside in the same household, village, or territoryfamily band A type of band organization con- sisting of nuclear family units that move inde- pendently within an area. Joins others when resources are plentiful; travels alone at other times.
family of orientation A person’s childhood fam- ily, where enculturation takes place.
family of procreation A kin group consisting of an individual and the individual’s spouse and children.
features Nonportable evidence of technology at archaeological sites, such as roadways and fire hearths.
fiat money Paper currency backed by a nation- state’s claim of its value.
fictive kin Unrelated family friends who are addressed by kin terms.
Folate A metabolite essential for sperm and em- bryonic neural tube development that is de - stroyed by UVB.
Foraging A food-procurement strategy that involves collecting wild plant and animal foods.
forensic anthropologist An applied biological anthropologist concerned with legal issues. Frequently focuses on the identification of skeletal
bilateral descent Descent that is traced equally through both mother and father.
bilocal residence The condition in which a newly married couple reside either with or near the groom’s parents or the bride’s parents.
biological anthropology A subfield of anthro- pology that studies humans as a biological spe- cies. Also called physical anthropology.
Biped An animal that walks on two legs.
Bridewealth A form of marriage finance in which valuable gifts are given by the groom’s kin to the bride’s kin.
carrying capacity The maximum population that a habitat can sustain.
Caste A ranked group with membership deter- mined at birth.
Chiefdom A type of society with an office of chief, most commonly hereditary; social rank- ing; and a redistributive economy.
Clan A descent group consisting of two or more lineages that trace their origin to a mythical ancestor.
class A group of people who have a similar rela- tionship to wealth, power, and prestige.
Cline The variation of a biological trait along a geographic continuum. Human skin pigments show distribution along a cline from the equa- tor north and south.
Colonialism Influence and dominance of one nation over another for the purpose of exploit- ing raw resources. The dominant nation-state establishes a physical presence and a colonial government. See imperialism; hegemony.
commodity money Currency in the form of valued objects such as shells or gold.
Community An association of people who share a common identity, including geographic boun - daries, common language, and culture.
comparative method The methodological ap- proach of comparing data. Anthropologists use
the comparative method.
consanguineal relatives Kin related by blood.
contagious magic A type of magic based on the idea that something that has contact with a person or animal contains some essence of that being and that magic performed on the item will have the same effect as if performed on the being.
contemporary human variation studies The study of the biological variation in living humans.
cross-cousin Ego’s mother’s brother’s child and father’s sister’s child.
cultural anthropology A subfield of anthro- pology that focuses on human sociocultural adaptations.
cultural ecology The study of the processes by which a society adapts to its environment. cultural evolution A model for the develop- ment of society that delineates a sequence of cultural change over time.
cultural relativism The perspective that any aspect of a culture must be viewed and evalu- ated within the context of that culture.
cultural resource management (CRM) The conservation and management of archaeologi- cal sites to protect them.
Culture The sum total of the knowledge, ideas, behaviors, and material creations that are learned, shared, and transmitted primarily through the symbolic system of language. These components create a pattern (that changes over time) and serve as guides and standards of behavior for members of the society. The term culture is used in the abstract as well as to refer to a specific culture.
culture shock A label for the resultant feelings of homesickness, disorientation, helplessness, and frustration that occur after exposure to an unfamiliar culture.descent group A group of people who share identity and come from a common ancestor. descriptive linguistics The part of anthropo- logical linguistics that focuses on the mechan- ics of language.
Deviance The violation of an ideal pattern of behavior within a society.
Diffusion The voluntary borrowing and exchange of items or ideas between cultures.
Diffusionism Early theoretical school that ex- plained the origin and spread of artifacts and ideas through borrowing between cultures.
displacement The ability of humans to com- municate symbolically about distant time and
place.
division of labor The manner of dividing work based on criteria such as age or gender.
double descent A descent system with two sep- arate lines of descent that are both recognized at the same time.
Dowry A form of marriage finance in which valuable gifts are given by the bride’s kin to the
groom’s kin.
ecofacts The remains of plants, animals, or nat- urally occurring nonorganic substances.
ecological model A model that views a culture as part of a larger global ecological system with each aspect of the system interacting with all of the other parts.
Egalitarian Refers to members of a society hav- ing equal access to status, power, and wealth within the same category such as age or gender.
egalitarian society A society in which individ- uals within the same category of age and gen- der have equal access to wealth, prestige, and power.
Emic An insider’s view of a culture. This per- spective in ethnography uses the categories and ideas that are relevant and meaningful to the culture under study.
Enculturation The process of learning one’s culture while growing up in it.
Endogamy A cultural rule that dictates that one must marry within a designated group.
ethnic group A type of subculture character- ized by members sharing a culture of origin, often one originating in another country.
ethnoarchaeologyThe study of contemporary societies’ behaviors and uses of material objects in order to better understand how human behav- ior translates into the archaeological record.
Ethnocentrism Making value judgments based on one’s own culture when describing aspects of another culture.
Ethnography A written description of a culture based on data gathered from fieldwork.
ethnolinguistics A field of study in linguistics that analyzes the relationship between a lan- guage and culture.
Ethnology The comparative study of cultures with the aim of presenting analytical general- izations about human culture.
Ethnomusicology The study of the music of a contemporary society within the context of that society.
Etic An outsider’s view of a culture. This per- Spective in ethnography uses the categories of the anthropologist’s culture to describe the culture under study.
evolutionary-ecological model A paradigm of human culture that combines both the neoevolutionary and ecological perspectives.
Exogamy A cultural rule that dictates that one must marry outside of a designated group (e.g., outside of one’s lineage, clan, or village).
experimental archaeology An aspect of archae- ology in which experiments are performed to learn how prehistoric artifacts and features were made and used.
extended family Two or more nuclear families who are related by blood and who reside in the same household, village, or territoryfamily band A type of band organization con- sisting of nuclear family units that move inde- pendently within an area. Joins others when resources are plentiful; travels alone at other times.
family of orientation A person’s childhood fam- ily, where enculturation takes place.
family of procreation A kin group consisting of an individual and the individual’s spouse and children.
features Nonportable evidence of technology at archaeological sites, such as roadways and fire hearths.
fiat money Paper currency backed by a nation- state’s claim of its value.
fictive kin Unrelated family friends who are addressed by kin terms.
Folate A metabolite essential for sperm and em- bryonic neural tube development that is de - stroyed by UVB.
Foraging A food-procurement strategy that involves collecting wild plant and animal foods.
forensic anthropologist An applied biological anthropologist concerned with legal issues. Frequently focuses on the identification of skeletal