Chapter 1: Linguistic Anthropology
Key Terms
Anthropology: The study of all people, at all times, and in all places
Archaeology: The study of prehistory and the analysis of ancient culture
Autonomous Linguistics: The study of language from a structural point of view,
without much attention (if any) to cultural contexts of language use
Biological Anthropology: the study of human origins, variation, and evolution
Comparative: Characterized by gathering and comparing information from many
cultures, times, and places, often in an effort to discover possible underlying
similarities and differences
Cultural Anthropology: the study of cultural traditions and the analysis of human
behaviour and belief systems
Cultural relativity: Differences exist among cultural systems, that different cultural
systems make as much sense as your own, and that it is possible to learn to
understand different cultural systems
Ethnocentrism: not understanding different systems on their own terms, using your
cultural system to interpret other cultural systems, and believing that your own
cultural system makes more sense than any other
Fieldwork: gathering information by living in another culture and learning the
language from its speakers, adapting and adjusting your frames of reference so that
you can understand another culture and language as an “insider”
Formal Linguistics: The study of language from a structural point of view, without
much attention (if any) to cultural contexts of language use
Frames: similar to the idea of worldview; created by words, frames can invoke
metaphors, grouping ideas into commonly used phrases, and influencing the way we
experience things
Frames of Reference: The ways that we see, interpret, and understand the world
around us
Holistic: characterized by seeing the whole picture; getting the broadest view
possible
Key Terms
Anthropology: The study of all people, at all times, and in all places
Archaeology: The study of prehistory and the analysis of ancient culture
Autonomous Linguistics: The study of language from a structural point of view,
without much attention (if any) to cultural contexts of language use
Biological Anthropology: the study of human origins, variation, and evolution
Comparative: Characterized by gathering and comparing information from many
cultures, times, and places, often in an effort to discover possible underlying
similarities and differences
Cultural Anthropology: the study of cultural traditions and the analysis of human
behaviour and belief systems
Cultural relativity: Differences exist among cultural systems, that different cultural
systems make as much sense as your own, and that it is possible to learn to
understand different cultural systems
Ethnocentrism: not understanding different systems on their own terms, using your
cultural system to interpret other cultural systems, and believing that your own
cultural system makes more sense than any other
Fieldwork: gathering information by living in another culture and learning the
language from its speakers, adapting and adjusting your frames of reference so that
you can understand another culture and language as an “insider”
Formal Linguistics: The study of language from a structural point of view, without
much attention (if any) to cultural contexts of language use
Frames: similar to the idea of worldview; created by words, frames can invoke
metaphors, grouping ideas into commonly used phrases, and influencing the way we
experience things
Frames of Reference: The ways that we see, interpret, and understand the world
around us
Holistic: characterized by seeing the whole picture; getting the broadest view
possible
