DIGITAL BOOKLET ANTRHOPOLOGY (SSF1173)

INTRODUCTION TO ANTHROPOLOGY

NAME: NURSAFRINA BINTI SEBLI
NO. MATRIC: 76392
FACULTY: SCIENCE SOCIAL AND HUMANITIES
PROGRAM: ANTHROPOLOGY AND SOSIOLOGY (UW6312001)
SUBJECT: INTRODUCTION TO ANTHROPOLOGY (SSF 1173)
LECTURER’S NAME: DR. JUNA LIAU

LU 1: What is Anthropology? Ethnology

Anthropology

Archeology Linguistic

- ANTROPOLOGY -

Anthropology, “the Anthropology stands
science of humanity,” apart because it
which studies human combines four
beings in aspects subfields that bridge
ranging from the the natural sciences,
biology and the social sciences,
evolutionary history and the humanities.
of Homo sapiens to These four
the features of subfields—biological
society and culture anthropology,
that decisively archaeology, linguistic
distinguish humans anthropology, and
from other animal cultural
species. anthropology—

- ARCHEOLOGY -

q It is the scientific q Since anthropology q Although
study of historic became a self- archaeology makes
or prehistoric conscious field in substantial use of
peoples and their the second half of the physical and
cultures by the 19th century, biological sciences'
analysis of their archaeology has methodologies,
artifacts, been an intrinsic procedures, and
inscriptions, aspect of it as a results, it is not a
monuments, and technique of natural science;
other such investigating some consider it a
remains, especially prehistoric cultures. field that is half
those that have science and half
been excavated. humanity.

- ETHNOLOGY -

• Ethnology (from the Ø Deals with races and Ethnology takes the findings
Greek: ἔθνος, ethnos peoples, their of ethnographic study and
meaning 'nation') relations to one applies them to a specific
another, their origins, cross-cultural issue. Cross-
A branch of anthropology and their distinctive cultural variance in cultural
that analyzes cultures, characteristics. components such as marriage,
especially in regard to religion, subsistence practises,
their historical Ø Ethnology is the political organisation, and
development and the comparative study of parenting, to name a few,
similarities and ethnographic data, can be identified and
dissimilarities between society and culture. explained using an
them. anthropological method.
Ethnology frequently
contrasts and compares
different cultures. 

- LINGUISTIC -

Linguistic anthropology Types of lingusitic
studies the nature of in anthropology:
human languages in the
context of those • Historical
cultures that developed linguistic
them.
• Descriptive or
Linguistic anthropologists structural
study the ways in which linguistic
people negotiate, contest,
and reproduce cultural • Sosiolonguistic
forms and social relations
through language.

LU 2: Perspectives and Theoretical
Foundations

Binary Monotheism
Opposition

Evolution Polytheism

- BINARY OPPOSITION -

Binary opposition is a key concept in structuralism, a theory of
sociology, anthropology and linguistics that states that all
elements of human culture can only be understood in relation to
one another and how they function within a larger system or
the overall environment.

- Binary opposition originated in Saussurean structuralist theory.

The structuralist paradigm in anthropology suggests that the structure of
human thought processes is the same in all cultures, and that these
mental processes exist in the form of binary oppositions. Some of these
oppositions include hot-cold, male-female, culture-nature, and raw-cooked.

v The problem with a system of binary opposites is that it creates
boundaries between groups of people and leads to prejudice and
discrimination.

- EVOLUTION -

Evolution, theory in biology postulating that the various types

of plants, animals, and other living things on Earth have their

origin in other preexisting types and that the distinguishable

differences are due to modifications in successive generations.

The evolution of the

Evolutionary anthropology, the interdisciplinary study of the human form is generally
evolution of human physiology and human behaviour and of the focus of studies of
the relation between hominids and non-hominid primates, human biological
builds on natural science and on social science. evolution. Cultural
evolution is the study

of cultural change over

Evolutionary anthropology is the study of the biological and time and space, and it

cultural evolution of humans in the past and present. It frequently incorporates
brings together fields such as archaeology, behavioural ecology, models of cultural
psychology, primatology, and genetics using a scientific transmission.

approach. It draws on many lines of evidence to understand

the human experience, both past and present, as a dynamic

and interdisciplinary field.

- MONOTHEISM -

Monotheism, belief in the existence of one god, or in the
oneness of God.

Monotheism is found in Judaism, Christianity, and I
slam, and parts of the doctrine can be found in a
variety of other religions.

Monotheism, according to many scholars, is a higher kind of
religion and hence must be a later development, assuming that
what is higher occurred later. Furthermore, monotheism
emphasises Deity's distinctiveness rather than his oneness; one
god is acknowledged as a demonstration of divine force and
power rather than as the logical opposite of many gods.

- POLYTHEISM -

Polytheism, the belief in many gods. The roots of this
word are poly- ('many') and -theism ('gods').

- Ancient polytheistic faiths are frequently referred to as
mythology, a word that denigrates them as religions. For
example, Zeus, Hera, Athena, Ares, and other Greek gods
and goddesses were once a religion with priests and
priestesses, prophets, and followers.

- Polytheism is now found in Hinduism, Mahayana Buddhism,
Confucianism, Taoism, Shintoism, and current tribal faiths
throughout Africa and the Americas.

LU 3: Ethnography and Field Genealogy
Methods

Cultural
Anthropology

Ethnography Society

CULTURAL
- ANTHROPOLOGY -

• The study of human society and Cultural anthropologists try to
culture is known as cultural understand culture as a universal
anthropology. human phenomena as well as a group
of people's characteristic.
Society is a group of people
persisting through time and the social Cultural antropology is a complex
relationships among these people- field with many different subfields
thier statuses and roles. including identity, religion, kinship,
art, race, gender, class, immigration,
Culture as the major way in which diaspora, sexuality, globalization,
human beings adapt to their social movements, and many more.
environments and give meaning to
thier lives.

- ETHNOGRAPHY -

The word Ethnography comes from Ethnography, also known as "culture writing,"
these two Greek words:”Ethnos”, refers to a type of documentation used by
meaning people & “Graphein”, Anthropologists in their field work. This type
meaning writing. of writing employs detailed first-person
written descriptions of a culture based on
• Ethnography is the main field of field research.
social anthropology. It studies the
human race. Its scope also includes Ethnographers who write about what they've
the study of cultures of different learned from the people they've worked with
races. frequently employ a research technique known
as participant-observation. Participant
Observation is a field research technique used
in anthropology in which an anthropologist
studies the life of a group by participating in
its activities.

- GENEALOGY -

Genealogy, the study of family origins Genealogists draw on oral traditions,
and history. historical records, genetic analysis, and
other records to obtain information about
• The word genealogy comes from a family and to demonstrate kinship and
two Greek words—one meaning pedigrees lineage or breed) of its
“race” or “family” and the other members.
“theory” or “science.”
The history of genealogy can be divided
• The genealogical method is useful in into three distinct periods. The first is
ethnic and ethnological studies. oral tradition, and the second is that
certain pedigrees were committed to
writing. The third stage comprises the
period beginning around 1500 in Western
Europe and later in the English-speaking
world.

- SOCIETY -

Society is a group of people ü Societies are increasingly becoming
persisting through time and the social global phenomena rather than local
relationships among these people- ones.
thier statuses and roles.
Social anthropology as is clear by the
ü Historically, societies have been nomenclature, studies social
thought to occupy a specific organization and social institutions.
geographic location, but modern According to Firth, “One of the
transportation and electronic broadest ways of defining
communication have rendered social anthropology is to say that it
specific locales less important. studies human social processes
comparatively.”

LU 4: Culture Globalization
Norms
Culture
Ethnogenesis

- CULTURE -

Culture as the major way in which human beings adapt to their environments and give
meaning to thier lives.

Including learned rather than genetically given human behaviour and ideas, as well as the
tangible products produced by a group of people.

• Culture is not something we inherit; it is a non-biological trait. We learn it over the
course of our lives.

• Culture is shared.
• Culture is symbolic. It gives meaning to things.
• Culture is holistic.
• Culture is integrated.

- ETHNOGENESIS -

The term ethnogenesis is derived from the Greek ethnos, which refers to a
group of people who share a common language and culture.
o The term ethnos is interchangeable with the Latin gens (gentes in plural)

and the less common natio.
o The term ethnogenesis refers to the process of forming an ethnic group or

nation (in the older sense of "people" rather than "state").
§ New cultures are usually created in the aftermath of violent events such as

depopulation, enslavement, genocide and relocation.

- GLOBALIZATION -

Globalization is a reorganization of time and space in which many movements of peoples, things,
and ideas throughout much of the world have become increasingly faster and effortless.

• The study of globalization and the use of long-term ethnographic studies to understand
globalisation dynamics

• One of the reasons anthropological research on globalization is important is that it focuses on
the impact of these global processes on individuals and cultures.

• Anthropologists do not consider globalization to be “natural and unavoidable. It is an experiential
process, meaning that it is different for each person.

• Globalization, according to anthropology, is “...an intensification of global interconnectedness,
implying a world full of movement and mixture, contact and linkages, and persistent cultural
interaction and exchange.”

- NORMS -

A standard of behaviour is referred to as a norm. People in society eventually agree
that these are standards. Some people learn by being taught, but most of us learn
simply by being exposed to them.

Two types of norms:
• Folkways - norms related to everyday life
• Mores - behaviors that are right or wrong

Ø Some norms are explicitly taught, while others are implicit—we learn them
through observation. We learn how to greet people, what roles to play, which
side of the street to walk on and many more.

Ø Mores are sometimes codified into laws or binding rules, particularly in state-level
societies. As a result, stealing as a bad habit becomes a crime.

LU 5: Marriage, Family and Family
Kinship

Endogamy

Exogamy Marriage

- ENDOGAMY -

Endogamy is when one marries someone within one's own group.

• Historically, endogamy has been associated with aristocracy, religious groups, ethnic groups, and social
classes.

• Endogamy has the organizational advantage of bringing few outsiders into the group, so inheritance and
property are not dissipated among too many people.

• Endogamous caste marriages are supported, reinforced, and rationalised by ritual explanations, which
manifest in daily behavioural patterns.

• The concept of physical pollution is linked to caste endogamy. When a person of a higher caste comes
into physical contact with a person of a lower caste, the severity of the pollution is determined by
the relative rank of the two castes.

• Endogamy, with its reinforcing concepts such as pollution, aids in distinguishing one group from others.

- EXOGAMY -

Exogamy is when one marries someone outside one's own group.

o Exogamy also means that representatives of other, potentially enemy groups will be
present in your own group, exerting pressure to avoid conflicts. The exchange of
spouses across groups, is therefore a classical mechanism of alliance formation.

o Exogamy is the universal nuclear family. It is even claimed that exogamy is caused by
the effects of incest prohibitions. The social group beyond which marriage is required
may be a lineage, a clan, a phatry, or a moiety. As a result, the exogamous unit is
always a subset of a larger society.

o Exogamous practises are used to increase and improve sociability among people.
Exogamous practises serve to increase and improve sociability among people by
bringing together groups of people.

- FAMILY -

Family defines obligations that group members have to one another, both economically and socially.
Generally, family members live together.

Types of family:
• Nuclear family - This is also known as the conjugal family or procreational family. Nuclear families

are made up of married couples and their children.

• Extended family - The most common type of family in the world is the extended family.
Grandparents, married offspring, and grandchildren make up at least three generations in extended
families.

• Joint family - A joint family is made up of siblings, their spouses, and their dependent children.

• Blended family - Blended families are becoming increasingly common, particularly in industrial societies
such as the United States. When divorced or widowed parents with children marry, they form a
blended family.

- MARRIAGE-

Marriage is a socially approved union that united two or more individuals as spouses. Implicit in this union
is that there will be sexual relations, reproduction, and permanence in the relationship.

Ø Marriage controls sexual behaviour.
Marriage allows cultural groups to exert some control over population growth by establishing guidelines for
when it is appropriate to have children.

Ø Marriage fulfills the economic needs of marriage partners.
Through the institution of marriage, people know for whom they are economically and socially responsible.

Ø Marriage sustains kinship groups.
This is similar to the previous function, but instead of simply knowing who is with whom economically and
socially, marriage legitimately informs people about inheritance.

Ø Marriage establishes who is in charge of the children.
It legitimises children by establishing their birthrights socially. Children start to learn about their gender
roles and other cultural norms.

o Types of marriage: monogamy, polygamy, polygyny, polyandry

LU 6: Belief Systems and Religions

Magic Ritual

Religion Rites of passage

- MAGIC -

Magic in the anthropological sense refers to the use of means (as charms or spells)
believed to have supernatural power over natural forces.

v In religious ceremonies, notions of magic as a serious practise have been invoked to
achieve ends that would otherwise be considered impossible or difficult to achieve,
common examples being the restoration of health or protection from danger. Where it
was thought that known natural laws and techniques could not go far enough to
achieve these goals, the hope or belief was that adding a magical element altered the
outcome.

v The concept has been used in association with
divergent practices such as folk medicine,
divination, palmistry, necromancy
(communication with the dead), astrology,
alchemy, spiritualism, occultism (the study of
hidden or paranormal things), illusionism, neo-
paganism (the worship of natural forces, often
modelled after ancient religions), and New Age
spirituality.

- RELIGION -

Religion is a set of beliefs that are practiced by an individual. In other words,
religion is a group of ideas and values that a person lives by. Actions such as
worship are involved in religion.

§ For Karl Marx, religion constitutes a system of beliefs that orients individual
to otherworldly concerns and masks the harsh realities of uneven economic
development under capitalism. According to Marx, religion provides the basis
for individual and group subordination and capitulation to power and
authority. In his schema, religion provides the ideological justification for
unjust economic distribution and the privileges of the wealthy.

§ Following Durkheim and Weber, social anthropologists conceive of religion as
culture. Religion is a pattern of beliefs, values, and actions that are acquired
by members of a group.Religion constitutes an ordered system of meanings,
beliefs, and values that define the place of human beings in the world.

- RITUAL -

Ritual is a set of fixed actions and sometimes words performed regularly,
especially as part of a ceremony.

A ritual is a predetermined sequence of activities that include gestures, words,
actions, or objects. Rituals may be prescribed by a community's traditions,
including those of a religious community. Formalism, traditionalism, invariance,
rule-governance, sacral symbolism, and performance characterise but do not
define rituals.

Ritual has long been a cornerstone of anthropological thought: from the works
of Émile Durkheim through Gregory Bateson, Claude Levi-Strauss, Mary Douglas,
and Victor Turner, countless classics have been built upon this infinitely
perplexing and thus fascinating aspect of human life. In recent decades,
however, ritual has undergone a rapid retreat from the forefront of
anthropological consideration. Although ritual’s role in the initial formation of
anthropology does not grant it permanent immunity to transitions in scholarly
interest, its recent departure also should not be casually interpreted as proof
of irrelevance (Ritual | Cultural Anthropology, 2011).

- RITES OF PASSAGE -

Variously known as “life crisis” ceremonies, rites of passage, or by the French
term rites de passage, this complex of practices includes birthing, coming of age,
commencement exercises, marriage, ordination, recruitment into secret societies
or military formations, accession to high office, and mortuary processes.

Ø Rites of passage have three phases: separation, liminal, and incorporation

q People withdraw from their current status in the first phase and prepare
to move from one place or status to another.

q The transition (liminal) phase is the period between states in which one has
left one location or state but has not yet entered or joined another.

q The ritual subject completes the passage in the third phase (reaggregation
or incorporation). After completing the rite and assuming their "new"
identity, the person re-enters society with their new status.

LU 7 & LU 8: Economic Activity and
Livelihood

Market exchange Reciprocity

Market principle Redistribution

MARKET
- EXCHANGE -

An economic system in which goods and services are produced, distributed, and exchanged
by the forces of price, supply, and demand (Bell, 2014).

o Market exchange, according to anthropologists, is a type of trade that today most
commonly involves general purpose money, bargaining, and supply and demand price
mechanisms.

o Reciprocity, on the other hand, involves the exchange of goods and services and is based
on a mutual sense of obligation and identity.

o A marketing exchange occurs when two or more people trade goods or services.

o Every exchange is supposed to produce "utility" in marketing theory, which means that
the value of what you trade is less than the value of what you receive from the trade.

MARKET
- PRINCIPLE -

The market principle is based on the v The marketing mix is the foundation
practice of goods bought and sold using for developing any product promotion
money. Profit is a key motivating principle. strategy.
Value is theoretically based on demand and
supply, but supply can be artificially v There are two types of marketing
manipulated to value and, therefore, mix: product and service.
increase profit margin.
4P’s of product marketing mix are:
v Marketing principles are widely used § Product
product promotion strategies that all § Price
stakeholders agree on. § Place
§ Promotion
v Companies use various marketing
principles to improve the performance of
an existing product or to introduce a
new product to the market.

- RECIPROCITY-

Reciprocity is the direct exchange of goods q A generalised reciprocity exchange is one in
or services, whereas redistribution is the which there is no calculation of value or
movement of goods or services from a immediate repayment of goods or services.
central authority to society's members.
q Balanced reciprocity entails calculating the
Ø Reciprocity can be classified into three value of the goods or services and repaying
types: generalized, balanced, and them within a specified time frame.
negative.
q Negative reciprocity occurs when one
party seeks to gain more from the
exchange than the other. This can occur
as a result of hard bargaining, deception,
stealing, or even selling food at an
inflated price because there are no other
options.

- REDISTRIBUTION -

In cultural anthropology and sociology, redistribution refers to a system of economic
exchange involving the centralized collection of goods from members of a group followed
by the redivision of those goods among those members.

§ Redistribution differs from simple reciprocity, which is a two-way back-and-forth
exchange. Redistribution, on the other hand, is a system of reciprocities based on
pooling. It is a relationship within a group, whereas reciprocity is a relationship
between two people.

§ The central form of redistribution in modern mixed market economies is facilitated by
the state through taxation.

§ Property redistribution occurs when properties are returned to individuals or groups
within society, either through the provision of public services or directly through
welfare benefits.

LU 9: Political Systems and Socio- State
political

Band

Chiefdom Tribe

A band is a “…small, • Because subsistence is - BAND -
loosely organized [group] of based on foraging,
people held together by bands require a fair • Bands have been relegated
informal means” (Gezen amount of land from to marginal environments
and Kottak, 2014). which to gather, hunt, such as the arctic,
and fish, which deserts, and dense forests
• Bands consist of a small contributes to the in the modern world. In
number of people who small size of bands Africa, examples include
are related to or loyal because the group does the Mbuti and Ju'/hoansi,
to the leader. not want to exceed the in Canada, the Netsilik
carrying capacity of and Inuit, in Scandinavia,
their territory. the Lapp, in Australia,
and in Japan, the Ainu.

Ø Chiefdom, in - CHIEFDOM-
anthropology, a
notional form of Chiefs were frequently spiritual With one notable exception, all
sociopolitical leaders, which aided in anthropologically identified
organization in which establishing their authority. chiefdoms were based on
political and economic They were in charge of horticulture or intensive
power is exercised by a resolving disputes among their agriculture.
single person (or group constituents, but they were
of persons) over many not always able to enforce Examples of chiefdoms include
communities. their decisions. Successive the Trobriand and Tongan
leadership was typically passed Islanders in the Pacific, the
down through families, which Maori of New Zealand, the
contributed to the ancient Olmec of Mexico (only
development of a hierarchical known archaeologically), the
society; however, leadership Natchez of the Mississippi Valley,
was not guaranteed. Chiefs had the Kwakwaka’wakw of British
to constantly delegate Columbia, and the Zulu and
authority. Ashanti in Africa.

o State, Ø Many aspects of its - STATE -
political citizens' lives are
organization of controlled or influenced by Ø States wield authority over their
society, or the state. From the territories. They define citizenship, as well
the body regulation of social as the rights and responsibilities that come
politic, or, relations such as marriage with it.
more narrowly, to the outlining of
the citizens' rights and Ø States exercise population control in a
institutions of obligations, there is little variety of ways. Marriage and adoption are
government. in daily life that is governed by them.
unaffected.
Ø Religious beliefs and symbols are frequently
Ø State populations are used by states to maintain power. State
large, and they share the leaders may claim to be gods and use
following characteristics: popular ideology for political ends.

Ø Most states are hierarchical and patriarchal.
There have been female leaders, e.g., Indira
Gandhi (India), Golda Meir (Israel),
Margaret Thatcher (Great Britain), and
Benazir Bhutto (Pakistan),

Tribe, in anthropology, a notional form of - TRIBE -
human social organization based on a set of
smaller groups (known as bands), having During the era of colonial
temporary or permanent political integration, expansion, the concept of the
and defined by traditions of common descent, tribe took on a very specific
language, culture, and ideology. role. It became the social unit
– and distinctive life-organizing
social form – of peoples
regarded as more primitive.

LU 10: Race and Ethnicity Race

Ethnicity

Inequality Social stratification

- ETHNICITY -

Ethnicity refers to the identification of a group based on a perceived cultural
distinctiveness that makes the group into a “people.
Ø An ethnic group shares similar values and norms defined by such things as

language, geography, religion and race.
Ø Children of different ethnicities may perceive themselves in one way while

others perceive them in another. In mixed-ethnic families, this can happen
even among siblings or between generations.
Ø Because ethnic identity is linked to social status, a person's ethnic identity
may change depending on the context, with one ethnic identity being used in
certain contexts and a different identity being used in others. This is known
as situational identity negotiation.

- INEQUALITY -

o The unfair situation in society when some people have more opportunities, money,
etc. than other people (Cambridge Dictionary, 2021).

Anthropological research demonstrates that the greater the inequality, the more
unstable the society becomes.

Three kind of economics inequality:
§ Income inequality - refers to how unevenly income is distributed in society.
§ Pay inequality - refers just to payment from employment, and includes bonuses and

overtime. It can be based per hour, per month or per year.
§ Wealth inequality - all our assets, everything we possess, is our wealth. A person’s

or household’s wealth includes all their financial assets, such as stocks or bonds,
private pension rights, property, etc.

- RACE -

Race is a cultural construct that groups people together based on perceived
biological similarities. In the biological sciences, a race is a “geographically related
subdivision of a species” (Gezen and Kottak 2014).

q This definition is inapplicable to Homo sapiens. Because we are genetically
similar, it is clear that human groups have been interbreeding for millennia.
This is not to say that there is no diversity in humans; one only needs to
look around to see some variation, but the diversity we see at the genetic
level is, well, superficial.

- SOCIAL STRATAFICATION -

Social stratification is a society’s categorization of people into socioeconomic strata, based
upon their occupation and income, wealth and social status, or derived power (social and
political).

Social stratification typically is distinguished as three social classes:
(i) the upper class , (ii) the middle class, (iii) the lower class

Ø An open class system is a social stratification that promotes social mobility by
determining social rank based on individual achievement and personal merit. A person's
hierarchical social status is earned through hard work.

Ø Endogamy, hereditary transmission of a lifestyle that often includes an occupation,
status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultural
notions of superiority, characterise caste.

LU 11: Gender and Sexuality Sex
Sexuality
Gender

Gender role

- GENDER -

The attitudes, behaviors, norms, and roles that
a society or culture associates with an individual’s
sex, thus the social differences between female
and male; the meanings attached to being
feminine or masculine.

• These characteristics may include biological sex, sex-based social
structures (gender roles), or gender identity, depending on the context.
Most scholars agree that gender is an important aspect of social
organisation.

Most cultures have two genders (boys/men and girls/women); those who
exist outside of these groups are referred to as non-binary or genderqueer.

Some societies, such as the hijras of South Asia, have specific genders in
addition to "man" and "woman"; these are often referred to as third
genders and fourth genders.

- GENDER ROLE -

A gender role is a set of societal norms dictating what types of
behaviors are generally considered acceptable, appropriate, or desirable
for a person based on their actual or perceived sex.

• Girls and women are generally expected to dress femininely and to
be polite, accommodating, and nurturing.

• Men are stereotyped as being strong, aggressive, and daring

o Although there are numerous exceptions and variations, these are
typically centred on opposing conceptions of femininity and
masculinity. The specifics of these gendered expectations may vary
significantly across cultures, while other characteristics may be shared
by a variety of cultures.

o Various groups, most notably the feminist movement, have led
efforts to change aspects of prevalent gender roles that they believe
are oppressive or inaccurate.

- SEX -

Sex is a characteristic that determines a person's reproductive function,
whether male or female, through sexual reproduction.

§ Anatomy, the makeup of the sex chromosomes, and the type and
amount of hormones produced are all factors that influence sex.
When an organism's sex is determined by its sex chromosomes, males
and females are produced in roughly equal numbers.

§ In some cases, an individual's assigned sex and gender do not match,
and the individual may be transgender, non-binary, or gender-
nonconforming.