the process by which a culture is transformed due to the massive adoption of cultural traits from another society--it is what happens to a culture when alien traits diffuse in on a large scale and substantially replace traditional cultural patterns. See transculturation. Show
acephalous society a society in which political power is diffused to the degree that there are no institutionalized political leadership roles such as chiefs and kings. Bands and tribes are acephalous. Most foragers and simple horticulturalists have highly egalitarian, acephalous societies. The word "acephalous" is Greek for "without a head." achieved status actual behavior what people really do in their lives rather than what they think they are doing or what they believe they should be doing. In most societies there is a discrepancy between these three kinds of behavior. It is important for anthropologists to distinguish between actual, believed, and ideal behavior when they learn about another society and its culture.adaptive mechanism
affinity
affirmative action a program or policy intended to correct the effects of past discrimination in employment, education, housing, etc. Usually affirmative action in the United States includes out-reach programs, hiring goals, set-asides, and/or extra opportunities for members of underrepresented minorities. age grades
age sets
agnatic descent ambilineal descent ambilocal residence the residence pattern in which a newly married couple has the choice of living with or near the groom's or the bride's family. ancestor focused kindred
ancestral spirits souls or ghosts of ancestors. A belief in ancestral spirits is consistent with the widespread belief that humans have at least two parts--a physical body and some kind of non-physical spirit. The spirit portion is generally believed to be freed from the body by death and continues to exist. Ancestral spirits are often seen as retaining an active interest and even membership in their family and society.androgynous the characteristic of having a blend of both masculine and feminine personality characteristics but not strongly either one. animatism a belief in a supernatural power not part of supernatural beings. For those who hold this belief, the power is usually impersonal, unseen, and potentially everywhere. It is neither good nor evil, but it can be powerful and dangerous if misused. animism a belief that natural objects are animated by spirits. This belief can take diverse forms. Things in nature may all have within them different spirits--each rock, tree, and cloud may have its own unique spirit. In contrast, all things in nature may be thought of as having the same spirit. In both forms of animism, the spirits are thought of as having identifiable personalities and other characteristics such as gender. anomie a feeling of alienation and isolation from all other people, including family and friends.anthropology anticipatory sororate
anti-miscegenation laws laws prohibiting sexual intercourse and marriage between people of different "races". applied anthropology the branch of anthropology oriented towards using anthropological knowledge for practical purposes. The work of most applied anthropologists has the goal of helping small indigenous societies adjust to the massive acculturation pressures that they are now experiencing without their suffering culture death and genocide. aquatic foraging a specialized subsistence pattern that concentrates on fish and/or marine mammal hunting. Aquatic foraging is usually a far more reliable and productive strategy for obtaining food than the diversified hunting and gathering of most foragers who live away from the coasts and major rivers. The most well known aquatic foragers lived on the Northwest Coast of North America from the Klamath River of California to the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. These societies specialized in salmon fishing along the rivers and hunting seals and whales off the coast. The word "aquatic" is derived from the Latin word aqua, meaning water.archaeology
arranged marriage a marriage partner selection process in which the future bride and groom usually do not participate actively in the decision. Marriages are commonly arranged by parents or their agents when the marriages are seen as principally uniting two families rather than just husband and wife. There is also often the rationalization that teenagers and young adults are too inexperienced to make a wise mate selection. The tradition of arranged marriages has been dramatically undermined whenever romantic love becomes a popular notion in a society. ascribed status
assimilation the absorption of an individual or minority group of people into another society or group. This is achieved by learning and adopting the cultural traditions of the society to which assimilation occurs. It is also often hastened by intermarriage and de-emphasizing cultural and or biological differences. avunculocal residence other-directed personality otiose deity a supreme god who established the order of the universe in the distant past and is now remote from earthly activities and concerns ("otiose" is Greek for "at rest). As a result, otiose deities are usually almost ignored in favor of lesser gods who take an interest in the everyday affairs of humans. pandemic
pantribal association
paralanguage parallel cousin parallel descent the cognatic pattern of descent in which males trace their descent through the male line of their father and females through the female line of their mother. Unlike bilineal descent, every individual is a member of only one unilineage.participant observation physically and emotionally participating in the social interaction of another society on a daily basis in order to learn about its culture. In practice this usually requires living within the community as a member, learning their language, establishing close friendship ties, eating what they eat, and taking part in normal family activities. By becoming an active participant rather than simply an observer, ethnographers reduce the cultural distance between themselves and the host society.pastoralists people who make their living by tending herds of large animals. The species of animals vary with the region of the world, but they are all domesticated herbivores that normally live in herds and eat grasses or other abundant plant foods (e.g., cattle, horses, sheep, reindeer). Traditional pastoralists are essentially subsistence herders who form small-scale societies. There are essentially two forms of pastoralism--nomadism and transhumance.pastoral nomadism traditional pastoralists who follow a seasonal migratory pattern that can vary from year to year. The timing and destinations of migrations are determined primarily by the needs of the herd animals for water and fodder. These nomadic societies do not create permanent settlements, but rather they live in tents or other relatively easily constructed dwellings the year round. Pastoralist nomads are usually self-sufficient in terms of food and most other necessities. See transhumance. patrilineage
patrilineal descent
patrilocal residence
pedestrian foragers people whose subsistence pattern involves diversified hunting and gathering on foot rather than horseback. The pedestrian hunting and gathering way of life was mobile. Most of these societies moved their camps several times a year and had temporary dwellings. The number of people living in a camp also often varied throughout the year depending on the local food supply. Material possessions were generally few and light in weight so that they could be transported easily. Subsistence tools included such things as simple digging sticks, baskets, spears, and bows and arrows that could be easily replaced when needed. This settlement flexibility is an efficient way of responding to changing environmental opportunities. (The word "pedestrian" is derived from the Latin word pedester meaning "on foot"). See foragers. personalistic medical system
personality all of an individual's complex of mental characteristics that makes him or her unique from other people. It includes all of the patterns of thought, emotions, and other mental traits that cause us to do and say things in particular ways. personality type
phoneme the smallest unit of sound that can be altered to change the meaning of a word. In English, for example, the words pan and can have different meaning due to the fact that the initial sound, or phoneme, is different. Phonemes do not have meaning by themselves. The sounds represented by the p and c in the words above are meaningless alone but they can change the meaning of words. phonology
phratry physical anthropology
pidgin a simplified, makeshift language that develops to fulfill the communication needs of people who have no language in common but who need to occasionally interact for commercial and other reasons. Pidgins combine a limited amount of the vocabulary and grammar of the different languages. People who use pidgin languages also speak their own native language. Over the last several centuries, dozens of pidgin languages developed as Europeans expanded out into the rest of the world for colonization and trade. There have been pidgins developed by non-European cultures as well.placebo a harmless medical treatment that should have no effect on a patient's disease but actually improves his or her condition as a result of the belief that it will help. For example, a doctor could give patients harmless sugar pills and tell them that they are a powerful medicine. This placebo may actually make some of them feel better and even help them recover from their disease. It is assumed that the belief in the efficacy of a treatment can reduce the production of stress hormones and improve the immune system in some cases. The kind of placebo that works is highly culture related. plantation agriculture large, labor-intensive farms that mostly produce fruit, sugar, fiber, or vegetable oil products for the international market. The laborers usually work for very low wages that keep them in poverty. Many of the plantations of Indonesia, the Philippines, Central America, the Caribbean, and West Africa are owned by multinational corporations such as Dole and the National Fruit Company. The net effect of this form of agriculture generally has been the flow of wealth from poor nations in the Southern Hemisphere to rich ones in the Northern Hemisphere. political symbol an idea or physical thing that is used by politicians as a tool for focusing the attention and emotions of people. It can be something as simple as the phrase "a chicken in every pot and a car in very garage" which was used by Herbert Hoover in his 1928 U.S. presidential election. It can be a call for change such as the replacement of a king with a legislature or conversion of "non-believers" to the "true-religion." National flags are often powerful political symbols. politics competition for power over people and things. polyandry polygamy
polygyny
Polynesia
polytheism a belief in more than one god. Hinduism is usually considered a polytheistic religion. However, the distinction between polytheism and monotheism can be a matter of focus. In India and Bali, Hindus can be observed fervently worshipping hundreds of different gods. This fits the classic description of a polytheistic religion. However, since the many gods are only different manifestations of the supreme god, Shiva (or Vishnu or Krishna ), Hinduism can also be interpreted as a monotheism. positive correlation a strong association between two different phenomena such that when one is the present, the other is as well. For example, in the United States today, people who have college degrees usually earn more money during their lifetimes than do people who have only gone to high school. It is important to keep in mind that a positive correlation does not necessarily imply a cause and effect relationship between the co-occurring phenomena.positive sanction
post partum sex taboo a prohibition against a husband and wife having sexual intercourse for a specified period of time following the birth of a child.potlatch a complex redistributive system that existed among some of the Indian cultures of the Northwest Coast of North America. This was a complex system of competitive feasting, speechmaking, and gift giving intended in part to enhance the status of the giver. For the Kwakiutl society, potlatches were important social gatherings held to celebrate major life events such as a son's marriage, the birth of a child, a daughter's first menses, and the initiation of a sister's son into a secret society. They also were used to assert or transfer ownership of economic and ceremonial privileges. It sometimes took years to accumulate the things needed for a big potlatch. Loans (with interest) had to be called in from relatives for this purpose. When all was ready, high ranking, influential people from the local and other communities were invited for several days of feasting and entertaining. Guests were seated according to their relative status. The host made speeches and dramatically gave gifts of food, Hudson Bay Company blankets, canoes, slaves, rare copper artifacts, and other valuable items to the guests. Those of higher status received more. The host was likely to also destroy money, waste fish oil by throwing it on a fire, and do other things to show that he was willing to economically bankrupt himself in order to increase his social status. The acceptance of the gifts was an affirmation of the host's generosity and subsequently of his increased status. The feast and the gifts essentially placed the guests in debt to their host until they could at some future time invite him to their own potlatch and give him more than he gave them--in essence a return on an investment. The potlatch served as a tool for one-upmanship for important Kwakiutl men. prejudice
priest a religious leader who is part of an organized religion. Different religions have different terms for these individuals--they may be known as rabbis, ministers, mullahs, Imams, or other terms. They are the keepers of the sacred law and tradition. They are found mostly in large-scale societies. A female priests is often referred to as a priestess .prion probability sample production (systems of) progeny price prophet an individual who receives divine revelation concerning a restructuring of religious practices and usually of society as well. Prophets call for dramatic change while priesthoods usually act as conservative forces in preserving long-standing traditions. Not surprisingly, prophets are usually outside of the priesthood and are seen by priests as irritating, disruptive trouble-makers. See millenarian movement.proprietary deed the concept of ownership in which an owner of property has the right to keep it whether or not it is being used or actively possessed. For instance, an individual may own several houses or land and never use them. In addition, the owner has the right to pass the property on to descendents or to others chosen by the owner. In fact, ownership is not always absolute in large-scale societies today. In the United States, for instance, ownership may be forfeited to the government under certain circumstances (e.g., eminent domain, failure to pay taxes, or use in the commission of a felony). See usufruct. proxemics
race
racialism
racism
raiding random sample
"reasonable man" standard of law the idea that legal judgments should be made based on what would be acceptable to a reasonable man in the society. Jury systems in the Western World are based on this assumption. reciprocity (or reciprocal exchange)
redistribution (or redistributive exchange)
regional dialect religion a system of beliefs usually involving the worship of supernatural forces or beings.revitalization movement a millenarian movement in which the followers focus on recreating and revitalizing their indigenous culture in response to tremendous pressure to acculturate to the culture of another society that dominates them.rites of passage ritual ceremonies intended to mark the transition from one phase of life to another.rituals stylized and usually repetitive acts that take place at a set time and location. They almost always involve the use of symbolic objects, words, and actions. For example, going to church on Sunday is a common religious ritual for Christians around the world.role the part a society expects an individual to play in a given status (e.g., child, wife, mother, aunt, grandmother). Social group membership gives us a set of role tags to allow people to know what to expect from each other. Sapir-Whorf hypothesis the early 20th century idea of Edward Sapir and Benjamin Whorf that language predetermines what we see in the world around us. In other words, language acts like a polarizing lens on a camera in filtering reality--we see the real world only in the terms and categories of our language. This hypothesis was objectively tested by anthropologists in the 1960's. That research indicated that Sapir and Whorf went too far. It is now clear that the terminology used by a culture primarily reflects that culture's interests and concerns. All normal humans share similar sense perceptions due to the fact that their sense organs are essentially the same. Therefore, they can understand and perceive the categories of reality of another culture, if they are explained.scientific method
secular relating to worldly rather than religious things. shaman a person who is not part of an organized religion and is in direct contact with the spirit world, usually through a trance state. A shaman has spirit helpers at his or her command to carry out curing, divining, and bewitching. Shamanistic power is acquired individually, usually in physical and/or mental solitude and isolation from other humans. Spirits or some other supernatural entities are revealed to the shaman and he or she learns how to control them. Training by older shamans usually occurs to help the apprentice shaman understand and use his or her powers. sexism discrimination based on gender. An example of sexism is excluding people from promotion to executive positions in a corporation due to their gender.shifting agriculture the horticultural practice of shifting from one field to another when crop production drops due to the inevitable depletion of soil nutrients. Shifting agriculture is also referred to as "swidden cultivation" . See slash and burn.siblings slash and burn the method used by horticulturalists to clear fields of heavy vegetation in preparation for planting new crops. Brush and small trees are cut down and allowed to dry out in place. They are then burned. This simultaneously clears the field of all but large trees and adds ash to the soil surface. The ash acts as a fertilizer. No other fertilizer is applied to the field. As a result, soil productivity lasts only for a few years. Subsequently, horticulturalists practice shifting agriculture.small-scale farming farming using horticultural techniques.small-scale society generally a society of a few dozen to several thousand people who live by foraging wild foods, herding domesticated animals, or non-intensive horticulture on the band or village level. Such societies lack cities as well as complex economies and governments. Kinship relationships are usually highly important in comparison to large-scale societies.social anthropologysocial dialect a dialect spoken by a speech community that is socially isolated from others. Social dialects are mostly based on class, ethnicity, gender, age, or particular social situations. The upper class English "public school" way of talking is an example of a social dialect. socialization
social norms social velocitysociety a group of interacting organisms. In the case of humans, societies are groups of people who directly or indirectly interact with each other. People in human societies also generally perceive that their society is distinct from other societies in terms of shared traditions and expectations.sodality sororate specialized foraging a foraging subsistence pattern in which a limited number of species are hunted or gathered. Aquatic and equestrian foragers usually are specialized in their food quest. Specialized foraging can be highly productive but is risky in environments that experience periodic droughts or other significant environmental changes that affect the food supply. See diversified foraging. special purpose money speech spirit a supernatural being who has less power than a god or goddess. It may be an ancestral spirit or simply a spirit that inhabits a natural object or even all of nature. A belief in spirits is the central tenet of animism.state
status
stereotype a fixed notion or conception of people based on their group identity. For instance, assuming that a particular Chinese businessman is going to be greedy and dishonest because you believe that all Chinese businessmen are. Stereotyping is often at the base of prejudice and discrimination resulting from it. stimulus diffusion a genuine invention sparked by an idea that diffused in from another culture. The invention of a unique Cherokee writing system by Sequoyah around 1821 after seeing English is an example. stratified sample
subarctic the area surrounding the arctic circle. In the Western Hemisphere, this includes the northern regions of Alaska and Canada. Subarctic also refers to the cold climates of these regions. Most subarctic regions are tundra. subculture a regional, social, or ethnic group that is distinguishable from other groups in a society. Members of a subculture often share a common identity, food tradition, dialect or language, and other cultural traits that come from their common ancestral background and experience. Subcultures are most likely to exist in complex, diverse societies, such as the U.S. and Canada, in which people have come from many different parts of the world. subincision
sub-Saharan Africa the region of Africa south of the Sahara desert. subsistence base the main sources of food used by a society. The term "subsistence base" is often used interchangeably with subsistence pattern. subsistence pattern the methods a society uses to obtain its food and other necessities (e.g., foraging, pastoralism, horticulture, and intensive agriculture). The term "subsistence pattern" is often used interchangeably with subsistence base.Sudanese naming system a kin naming system in which kinsmen are not lumped together under the same terms of reference. Each category of relative is given a distinct term based on genealogical distance from ego and the side of the family. Also referred to as the "descriptive kin naming system." susto
symbol a sound or thing which has meaning given to it by the user. Human languages are systems of symbols.sympathetic magic magic based on the principle that "like produces like." For instance, whatever happens to an image of someone will also happen to them. Sympathetic magic is also referred to as "imitative" magic.syncretism an amalgamation or incorporation of traditional and introduced alien culture traits. In Southern Mexico and Guatemala, the Maya Indian combination of mutually exclusive indigenous religious and European Christian beliefs to create a new composite religion is an example. Syncretism is often a psychologically more satisfying alternative to rapid acculturation that totally replaces indigenous cultural beliefs and customs since one's own cultural identity is maintained.syntax
temperate referring to the regions of the world mostly in the middle latitudes where winter temperatures regularly fall below freezing and summers are warm. In the Northern Hemisphere, the temperate regions are south of the colder subarctic and north of the subtropics. Temperate regions often have deciduous and evergreen forests, but they are too cold to grow such tree crops as oranges and avocados outside of a greenhouse. theory a set of facts or principles that explain phenomena in the natural world. For instance the heliocentric theory in astronomy proposes that the sun is at the center of our solar system and that the earth and other planets revolve around it.third world Societies that are underdeveloped. tort
totem tradition-oriented personality
trancing activity that results in an altered state of consciousness in which an individual is in a hypnotic-like mental state or at least profoundly absorbed. This is a common tool used by shamans and others all over the world to enter the spirit world. Common techniques used to achieve a trance state include fasting, self-torture, sensory deprivation, breathing exercises and meditation, prolonged repetitive ritual dancing and/or drumming, and hallucinogenic drugs. transculturation what happens to an individual when he or she moves to a new society and adopts their culture. See acculturation. transhumance a cyclical pattern of migrations made by some pastoralists that usually take them to cool highland valleys in the summer and warmer lowland valleys in the winter. This is seasonal migration between the same two locations in which they have regular encampments or stable villages often with permanent houses. See pastoral nomadism. transnational corporation
transvestite tribalism
tribe
tribute payments made by a defeated people to their conqueror. tundra treeless regions with permanently frozen soil. Tundra environments are found in the subarctic regions of the world and in some high mountains. two-spirited
underdeveloped nation a nation or society in which most of the people are persistently poor due to the way they are integrated into the world economic system. They usually provide cheap raw materials and labor for the rich, developed nations and purchase their manufactured goods at high prices. The economies of underdeveloped societies are largely dependent on the richer nations. Bangladesh and Guatemala are examples of underdeveloped nations. They are also referred to as "third world" or "developing" nations. See undeveloped nation.underrepresented minority a minority group that has a significantly smaller ratio of its members in education, government, business, etc. than other groups. Underrepresentation usually results from poverty and/or discrimination. African Americans, Native Americans, Hispanics, Pacific Islanders, and some Asian Americans are considered by the national government to be underrepresented minorities in America today. undeveloped nation a largely isolated nation or society that has a low technological level but is economically self-reliant. They are not participants in the world economic system. Such societies mainly consist of indigenous peoples who have subsistence economies. By definition, undeveloped nations are not underdeveloped. Tibet and Afghanistan up until the 1950's are examples of undeveloped nations. unilineage
unilineal descent
usufruct the concept of ownership in which an owner normally can "own" land and other substantial property only as long as it is being used or actively possessed. The society as a whole is the real owner. The individual "owner" is responsible for looking after the property for the society--he or she essentially only has stewardship over it. If the "owner" no longer needs the property or dies, it is reallocated by the society to others. Usufruct is most commonly found in small-scale societies with non-market economies. See proprietary deed.uxorilocal residence
virilocal residence
warfare weregeld (also weregild and wergeld; literally "blood money")
western cultures European cultures and cultures derived from Europe, such as the United States and Canada. Western societies predominantly speak a European language and maintain European-like economic, political, legal, and educational systems. These societies have been the principle sources of pressure towards globalization in the late 20th century. The western cultures are also referred to as the "western world." Windigo psychosis
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