physical anthropology
fossil remains of human ancestors
linguistic anthropology
patterns of speech in different social situations
archaeology
material remains left behind by humans (e.g. arrowheads)
cultural anthropology
interactions between different residents of the same neighborhood
paleoanthropology
comparing fossilized 200,000-year-old primate remains to modern human anatomy
historic archaeology
cataloguing artifacts discovered in an 1800s shipwreck off the coast of Istanbul
prehistoric archaeology
describing the importance of objects found in ancient Native American burial mounds
primatology
observing chimpanzee tool use
sociolinguistics
studying the differences between words students use in the classroom and with friends
descriptive linguistics
working to convert a spoken language into a written one for the sake of preservation
historic linguistics
analyzing how acronyms used in text messaging have changed common patterns of speech in the United States
climate change
Changes to Earth's climate, including global warming produced primarily by increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases created by human activity such as burning fossil fuels and deforestation
historic linguists
Those who study how language changes over time within a culture and how languages travel across cultures.
four-field approach
The use of four interrelated disciplines to study humanity: physical anthropology, archaeology, linguistic anthropology, and cultural anthropology
ethnographic fieldwork
A primary research strategy in cultural anthropology involving living with a community of people over an extended period to better understand their lives
globalization
The worldwide intensification of interactions and increased movement of money, people, goods, and ideas within and across national borders
time-space compression
The rapid innovation of communication and transportation technologies associated with globalization that transforms the way people think about space and time
descriptive linguists
Those who analyze languages and their component parts
participant observation
A key anthropological research strategy involving both participation in and observation of the daily life of the people being studied
ethnology
The analysis and comparison of ethnographic data across cultures
rapid change
The dramatic transformations of economics, politics, and culture characteristic of contemporary globalization
anthropology
The study of the full scope of human diversity, past and present, and the application of that knowledge to help people of different backgrounds better understand one another
historic archaeology
The exploration of the more recent past through an examination of physical remains and artifacts as well as written or oral records
prehistoric archaeology
The reconstruction of human behavior in the distant past (before written records) through the examination of artifacts
sociolinguists
Those who study language in its social and cultural contexts
cultural anthropology
The study of people's communities, behaviors, beliefs, and institutions, including how people make meaning as they live, work, and play together
flexible accumulation
The increasingly flexible strategies that corporations use to accumulate profits in an era of globalization, enabled by innovative communication and transportation technologies
uneven development
The unequal distribution of the benefits of globalization
ethnocentrism
The belief that one's own culture or way of life is normal and natural; using one's own culture to evaluate and judge the practices and ideals of others
physical anthropology
The study of humans from a biological perspective, particularly focused on human evolution.
holism
The anthropological commitment to consider the full scope of human life, including culture, biology, history, and language, across space and time