CULTURE

Sit Dolor Amet

Culture is like an iceberg. The tip of the iceberg is easy to see. This
includes the visible aspects and do’s and taboos of working in other
cultures.

The remaining huge chunk of the ice berg hidden below the surface
includes the invisible aspects of a culture such as the values,
traditions, experiences and behavior that define each culture.

Venturing into different cultures without adequate preparation can

be just as dangerous as a ship maneuvering icy waters without charts,
hoping to be lucky enough and avoid hitting an iceberg. The
difference is that the ship will know immediately when hits an
iceberg.
◦ Culture comes from Latin cultura, means cultivation. British anthropologist Edward Tylor first gave the definition
of culture which is widely quoted: :
―Culture is that complex whole which includes knowledge, beliefs, 2 | Cross Cultural Understanding
arts, morals, law, custom and any other capacities and habits acquired by man as a member of society.
◦ Newmark describes culture as a way of life of a certain society which is expressed by certain language.
◦ Clifford Geertz stated that culture is a symbolic meaning system. It is semiotic system in which symbols function
to communicate meaning from one mind to another. Cultural symbols encode a connection between a
signifying form and a signaled meaning. Culture might also be defined as ideas, customs, skills, arts, and tools
which characterize a given group of people in a period of time.
◦ Culture as described by Larson and Smalley is ―blue print‖. It guides the behavior of people in a community
and is developed in family life and helps us to know what we can do as individuals and what our responsibilities
as a member of a group.
Learning theories

Culture is everyday lifestyle of ordinary citizens and the value belief and prejudices they share with their fellow
within their linguistic and social group because of the intra group differences (of social class)
1. Edward Sapir : Culture is patterned behavior.
2. Good enough : Knowing acceptable manner to its member.
3. John Done : The collective identity of each of us is a part.
4. Larson and Smalley : Blue prints that guide behavior of people in a
community and is developed
5. Condon : A system of integrated pattern, most of which unconsciously govern human behavior likes ….of
puppet
6. George Peter Murdock : The seven culture patterns of behavior.
a. Originate in human brain
b. Facility human and environmental interaction
c. Satisfy basic human brain
d. Cumulative and adjust to change in external and internal condition.
Features of Cultures
Cultural Universal Cultural universals are
elements common to all human cultures,
regardless of historical moment,
geography, or cultural origin.

There is a tension in cultural

anthropology and cultural sociology
between the claim that culture is a
universal (the fact that all human
societies have culture), and that it is also
particular (culture takes a tremendous
variety of forms around the world).
Koentjoroningrat (1990) categorizes cultural universal into
seven, namely:

1. Language
2. Knowledge system
3. Social organizations
4. Life tool system
5. Livelihood system
6. Religion system
7. Art
The Relationship Between Language and Culture
◦ It is obvious that language plays a paramount role in developing, elaborating and transmitting
culture and language, enabling us to store meanings and experience to facilitate
communication.
◦ The function of language is so important in communication that it is even exaggerated by some
scholars.
◦ The most famous one is the hypothesis concerning the relationship between language and
culture, which Nida and Taber (1982) regards as misconceptions constituting serious difficulties
for cross-cultural understanding.
◦ Each culture has its own peculiarities and throws special influence on the language system. For
example, referring to the same common domestic animal ―dog.
◦ A great deal of cross-cultural misunderstanding occurs when the ―meanings‖ of words in two
languages are assumed to be the same, but actually reflect different cultural patterns.
◦ Some are humorous as when a Turkish visitor to the U.S. refused to eat a ―hot dog‖ because it
was against his beliefs to eat dog meat.
We can summarize the relationship between
culture and language as the following:
 language is a key component of culture. It is the primary medium for transmitting
much of culture. Without language, culture would not be possible.
 Children learning their native language are learning their own culture; learning a
second language also involves learning a second culture to varying degrees.
 Language is influenced and shaped by culture. It reflects culture.
 Cultural differences are the most serious areas causing misunderstanding,
unpleasantness and even conflict in cross-cultural communication.
●Learner can help to build the spirit on international understanding and friendliness
● Practicable with the culture of the country where it is spoken