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Toaz.info Anthropology Introduction Pr a7c1a1adb56ecaae43702b2b2fb18a94
Toaz.info Anthropology Introduction Pr a7c1a1adb56ecaae43702b2b2fb18a94
Toaz.info Anthropology Introduction Pr a7c1a1adb56ecaae43702b2b2fb18a94
(Socio-Anthropology)
Summer 2016
Lesson 1
INTRODUCTION
Mexica sun stone or Stone of
the Sun (Spanish: Piedradel
Topics: Sol), is a large monolithic
Definition of Anthropology sculpture that was excavated in
the Zócalo, Mexico City's is
Scope and Disciplines of Anthropology
part of the archaeological and
Methods Used in the Study of Anthropology
anthropological artifacts from
Values of Anthropological Research the pre-Columbian heritage of
Mexico.
I. Introduction:
Anthropology- the systematic study of man which comes from the Greek words:
anthroposmeans “man/humankind”.
logos/logiameans knowledge or study of
the integrated biological and socio-cultural investigation of humankind, from the time
of our
hominid ancestors to the present, and encompassing small to large societies
the study of the human condition, in all of its forms and splendors
aims to, among all others:
1. understand the uniqueness and diversity of human behavior and human societies
around the world;
2. discover the fundamental similarities that link human beings the world over, both
in the past and in the present.
primarily interested in answering the following questions:
when, where, and why humans appeared here on earth;
how and why they have changed since then;
how and why modern populations vary in certain physical features; and
how and why societies in the past and present have varied in their customary
ideas and practices.
1
Anthropology, for example, would not simply be interested in physical or biological
characteristics of a group of people but also in the influence of environment to such
characteristics.
Like all the other social sciences, anthropology is interested in man, but it stands
apart from the rest because it combines four sub-disciplines that bridge the natural
sciences, the social sciences and the humanities.
Anthropology is holistic so it is interested in the whole of the human condition:
– Past, present, and future, Biology, Society, Language, Culture
Fields of Anthropology
There are four (4) major fields in Anthropology:
1. Physical Anthropology or Biological Anthropology
2. Cultural Anthropology
a. Archaeology
b. Linguistics Anthropology
c. Ethnology
2
studies humanity through the remains left
behind by people
provides a unique view across time of
culture, language, and physical forms
explores the lost civilizations & cultures of
the past
Archaeologists work with tools such as
spade or shovel, tape measure, and
possibly other modern equipment as
they attempt to reconstruct the cultural forms of the past and to trace their
growth and development in time.
As such, they share the same objectives as historians, the difference lies in the
fact that history depends so much on written documents which cover on the last
5000 years of human existence, and only those cultures that possessed writing.
Hence, archaeology would be more helpful in obtaining data regarding periods
that existed even before writing was invented.
Cultural Anthropology
Describes, analyzes, interprets, and explains social and cultural similarities and
differences
1. Ethnography– fieldwork in a particular culture; provides account of that
community, society, or
Culture; often descriptive
2. Ethnology– cross cultural comparison; the comparative study of ethnographic
data, of society
and of culture
CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY
Ethnography Ethnology
Requires fieldwork to collect Uses data collected by a series of
data researchers
Often descriptive Usually synthetic
Group/community specific Comparative/cross-cultural
2. Archaeological Method
Major goal of Archaeology – to reconstruct lifeways or cultures of the past as fully
possible
Although archaeologists cannot deal directly with human behavior, it is assumed
that all evidences of former human presence are the product of human behavior and
that the actual behavior can be inferred from a general knowledge of the nature of
humanity.
Makes use of collecting materials from sites of human occupation to try to
understand how and why ways of life have changed through time in different parts
of the world.
4
Values of Anthropological Research (Why Study Anthropology)
The study of Anthropology, especially to students like, is significant for various reasons:
References:
Ember, Melvin & Ember, Carol.(2004). Anthropology 11th edition. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Kottak, Conrad Philip. (2000). Anthropology 8th edition. Boston: McGraw Hill.
Zulueta, Francisco M. (2011). Anthropological and sociological: Concepts and
Perspectives. Mandaluyong
City, Philippines: National Book Store.
http://www.canstockphoto.com/mexico-national-museum-of-anthropology-8221255.html
http://www.kwsnet.com/science-anthropology.html
http://sumananthromaterials.blogspot.com/2010/06/social-and-cultural-anthropology.html
http://www.oceanmedia.in/ebooks/for-universities/social-science-arts-humanities-and-
law/linguistic-
anthropology-sociolinguistics-historical-linguistics/