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thepowerofdeathHaving talked a little about my love for all things Ancient Egyptian, and about archaeology, I thought I'd take a little time to talk about my other part of my degree - and still one of my main nerdy interests - which is anthropology
What is anthropology? At the most basic level, the study of human societies and cultures and their development. It's how we interact with each other, within our own societies & cultures and with those from different ones, and with the world around us. It's when you look at the contents of someone else's shopping trolley in the supermarket and wonder what they're doing with that particular collection of items!
It's one of the reasons I've started blogging online - to get little glimpses into peoples worlds through the things they (you!) choose to share online. And for me to participate in the same. I'm already surprising myself with the things I'm choosing to share, and that actually feels wonderful and utterly fascinating!
So, breaking it down a little
Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behaviour, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species.
Social anthropology (the dominant branch here in the UK) studies patterns of behaviour.
Cultural anthropology studies cultural meaning, including norms and values.
The portmanteau term sociocultural anthropology is commonly used today for the mix of these two - and this is where my interest lies. I've always loved seeing how people adapt to their environments - ones that are often in constant flux - in non-genetic ways, how this leads to people in different environments creates different cultures, and how each culture develops its own values.
The other two areas are linguistic anthropology, which studies how language influences social life, and biological or physical anthropology which studies the biological development of humans.
Archaeology sometimes gets referred to/classed as 'archaeological anthropology', as it studies human activity through the investigation of physical evidence
What is anthropology? At the most basic level, the study of human societies and cultures and their development. It's how we interact with each other, within our own societies & cultures and with those from different ones, and with the world around us. It's when you look at the contents of someone else's shopping trolley in the supermarket and wonder what they're doing with that particular collection of items!
It's one of the reasons I've started blogging online - to get little glimpses into peoples worlds through the things they (you!) choose to share online. And for me to participate in the same. I'm already surprising myself with the things I'm choosing to share, and that actually feels wonderful and utterly fascinating!
So, breaking it down a little
Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behaviour, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species.
Social anthropology (the dominant branch here in the UK) studies patterns of behaviour.
Cultural anthropology studies cultural meaning, including norms and values.
The portmanteau term sociocultural anthropology is commonly used today for the mix of these two - and this is where my interest lies. I've always loved seeing how people adapt to their environments - ones that are often in constant flux - in non-genetic ways, how this leads to people in different environments creates different cultures, and how each culture develops its own values.
The other two areas are linguistic anthropology, which studies how language influences social life, and biological or physical anthropology which studies the biological development of humans.
Archaeology sometimes gets referred to/classed as 'archaeological anthropology', as it studies human activity through the investigation of physical evidence
