Why Study Anthropology?

Studying anthropology is a great way to develop very useful and marketable life skills. Anthropology students learn to be very culturally aware, which is critical to learning how to communicate effectively in a wide variety of cultural situations.

Anthropology looks at people and culture in the context in which they are found.

  • How does the environment impact the way people live?
  • What rituals and beliefs do cultures develop to address events like birth, death, or natural phenomena?
  • How do rules and sanctions help to enforce necessary social functions and responsibilities?
  • How do rules and sanctions help a culture to survive within its environment?

In order to really understand anything, it is important to examine it within the context it came from, and anthropology teaches students how to understand the interlocking pieces of a particular problem or situation.

Anthropology Subfields

Archaeological Anthropology

Archaeologists study material remains, or the things that a culture leaves behind after they have left or disappeared. Think of the items in your own home that may still be around in a few hundred or a few thousand years. Archaeologists find these kinds of items from past cultures, from weapons and tools, to bones from slaughtered animals and fossilized seeds and plants. They study each artifact in context, and use that information to determine things about the culture that left them behind. What kind of food did they eat? What kind of tools did they make, and how did they make them? What sort of structures did they build? What did their artwork and symbols mean? Archeologists study the remains of cultures from the earliest hominids, all the way into the recent past.

Cultural Anthropology

Cultural anthropology is the study of human cultures all over the world. Cultural anthropologists study exotic cultures, such as those of hunter gatherers, as well as the cultures that exist in our own back yard. Like language, human cultures are dynamic, constantly changing in response to the environment, the people, and other cultures. Whether studying the culture of indigenous people in Australia or online gaming enthusiasts, cultural anthropology examines everything from a group’s rituals, rules and traditions to their eating habits and modes of communications. More importantly, cultural anthropology seeks to promote an understanding of cultural differences and similarities. This understanding is applicable in a wide variety of fields, from business to international diplomacy.

Linguistic Anthropology

Did you know that words like “Doh!”, “bling-bling” and “baby daddy” are added to the Oxford English Dictionary every year? Have you ever wondered what effect online abbreviations or text-messaging will have on the English language over the next decade or so? If so, you might want to consider studying linguistics.

Linguistics is the dynamic study of language. Where did our modern languages come from? How and why do languages change over time? How does a person’s language or dialect relate to their culture? What happens when multiple languages meet? How can understanding language differences help one to operate more successfully in a very global society? These questions, and many others, all fall within the field of linguistics.

Physical Anthropology

Physical anthropologists study human biology, the evolution of humans and our closest relatives, and the huge amount of variation that is found in people all over the world. Physical anthropologists work in very diverse fields, including:

  • Forensic anthropology – the examination of skeletal remains, to determine who the person was, and their cause and manner of death. Forensic anthropologists work on murder cases, but they also work internationally in human rights cases, helping the give justice to the victims and closure to their families.
  • Paleoanthropology – finding and studying much older human remains, including those of our closest relatives, the extinct hominids. Paleoanthropologists look to bones to examine how humans evolved, and to learn more about other hominid species like Australopithecus afarensis (such as “Lucy”) and Neanderthals.
  • Evolutionary Medicine – a relatively new field within physical anthropology. It seeks to answer questions about why we get the diseases we get, what health issues are more common in certain areas, and what health strategies are used in different cultures. Evolutionary medicine covers topics as diverse as nutrition, pregnancy and childbirth, and how culture dictates medical practice and tradition (such as acupuncture and western medicine.)
  • Primatology – the study of nonhuman primates. The primate world is huge, diverse, and fascinating. Primatology includes the study of prosimians, monkeys, and apes, and includes field studies, captive studies, and conservation.

Applied Anthroplogy

Incorporating skills from anthropological disciplines to solve practical problems in fields such as development, healthcare, medical anthropology, education, business and advertising.