anthropology

Table of Contents

Introduction
Overview
History of anthropology
- Fieldwork
- Social and cultural anthropology
- American anthropology since the 1950s
- European anthropology since the 1950s
The major branches of anthropology
- Cultural anthropology
  - American cultural anthropology
  - French theoretical contributions
  - The configurational approach
  - Cultural change and adaptation
  - Culture and the humanities
- Social anthropology
- Linguistic anthropology
- Psychological anthropology
- Archaeology
- Physical anthropology
  - Paleoanthropology
  - Primatology
  - Genetics
  - Human ecology
  - Bioarchaeology
  - Growth and development
  - Anthropometry
  - Forensics
World anthropology
- Anthropology in Africa
- Anthropology in Asia
- Anthropology in Europe
- Anthropology in Latin America
Special fields of anthropology
- The anthropological study of religion
- Museum-based study
- The anthropological study of education
- The study of ethnicity, minority groups, and identity
- Urban anthropology
- National and transnational studies
- The study of gender
- Political and legal anthropology
- Medical anthropology
- The anthropology of food, nutrition, and agriculture
- Environmental and ecological studies in anthropology
- Development anthropology
- Applied anthropology
- Visual anthropology
- Ethnomusicology

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anthropology summary

anthropology

Written by Ralph W. Nicholas, Gillian Feeley-Harnik•All

Fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: Oct 30, 2024 • Article History

Key People:: Franz Boas; Francis Galton; Lee Berger; Daniel Lieberman; Richard Leakey

Related Topics:: linguistics; archaeology; cultural anthropology; physical anthropology; forensic anthropology

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anthropology, “the science of humanity,” which studies human beings in aspects ranging from the biology and evolutionary history of Homo sapiens to the features of society and culture that decisively distinguish humans from other animal species. Because of the diverse subject matter it encompasses, anthropology has become, especially since the middle of the 20th century, a collection of more specialized fields. Physical anthropology is the branch that concentrates on the biology and evolution of humanity. It is discussed in greater detail in the article human evolution. The branches that study the social and cultural constructions of human groups are variously ...(100 of 23980 words)

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