Cultural Practices and Subsistence Strategies

Culture-Bound Theories

• Theories incorporating comparative research across cultures to explain behaviours.

Creole Languages

• Languages combining elements of two or more languages, becoming a population's mother tongue.

Transhumance

• Seasonal movement of livestock herds, often between altitudes, to optimize grazing.

Pastoralism and Swidden Agriculture

• Subsistence strategies requiring extensive land use for sustainability.

Pastoralism

• Subsistence relying primarily on domesticated herd animals and products.

Food Foraging Societies (Ju/'hoansi)

• Employ codes of reciprocity and social norms of generosity to ensure food security.

Ferreira's Research (Xingu Park, Brazil)

• Xingu people utilize different mathematical calculations compared to non-indigenous groups, influenced by reciprocal obligations.

Horticulture

• Cultivation of crops using simple hand tools and rainfall.

Proxemics

• Study of personal space.

Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis

• Language influences thought, perception, and behaviour.

Ju/'hoansi hxaro Exchange System

• Circulates goods, lubricates social relationships, and fosters goodwill across camps.

Participant Observation

• Long-term immersion in a culture observing daily activities and interactions with detailed recording.

Carrying Capacity

• Maximum population size an environment can sustain.

Mobility

• All types of movement between locations.

Leveling Mechanisms

• Societal obligations for redistributing goods to prevent wealth accumulation by individuals.

Conspicuous Consumption

• Displaying wealth for social prestige.

Holistic Perspective

• Considering something as a whole, not just its parts.

Enculturation

• Process of transmitting culture from one generation to the next.

Cultural Relativism

• Judging cultures by their own standards.

Globalization

• Opening up world markets with modern technology.

Swidden Agriculture

• Involves burning vegetation to enrich soil but is often environmentally damaging.

Sociolinguistics

• Study of language's relation to its social context.

Culture Shock

• Difficulty experienced adjusting to a new, different culture.

Intensive Agriculture

• Using irrigation, fertilizers, and plows for sustained large-scale food production.

Neolithic Revolution

• Shift from food foraging to food production between 9,000 and 11,000 years ago.

Ethnocentrism

• Judging other cultures based on one's own culture.

Polyandry

• One woman, multiple husbands.

Matrilocal Societies

• Women dominate subsistence activities, often working in fields.

Nuclear Family

• Couple and their children.

Kindred

• Group of relatives (both maternal and paternal) affiliated through a living individual.

Chiefdoms

• Societies led by rulers relying on generosity, charisma, and leadership.

Polygyny

• One man, multiple wives.

Clan

• Descent group claiming common ancestor but not tracing specific links.

Sororal Polygyny

• Co-wives are sisters.

Adjudication

• Conflict resolution using an impartial third party for decision-making.

Bilateral Descent

• Affiliates individuals through both parents (both sexes).

Patrilocal Societies

• Societies emphasizing male cooperation (animal husbandry often involved).

Groom Service

• Groom works for bride's family for a set period.

Ju/'hoansi wi Name System

• Authority of older people over younger ones.

Band/Tribe Political Organisation

• Hunter-gatherers generally have bands; horticulturalists/pastoralists, tribes.

Serial Monogamy

• Series of successive marital partners but not simultaneously.

Double Descent

• Inheritance of rights through both matrilineal and patrilineal groups.

Big Man

• Charismatic leader organizing gift-giving feasts.

Avunculocal Societies

• Married couples live with groom's mother's brother.

Moka

• Pig gift exchanges among men, used for social standing.

Ju n!un Relationship

• Special relationship between in-laws.

Age Grade/Set

• Age groupings with shared rights and obligations (e.g., Kenya village example, children constructing huts).

Common-Interest Voluntary Associations

• Groups based on shared activities for rapid social change.

Measures of Social Stratification

• Skills, birth, wealth, and power differentiate societal standings.

Egalitarian Societies

• Societies with equal rank and resource distribution.

Stratified Societies

• Societies with hierarchy and privileged access to wealth, power, prestige.

Rank-Ordered Societies

• Recognized social standing based on graded ranks.

Class

• Groups with nearly equal prestige, power, and resources.

Closed Class Societies

• Social classes determined by birth, fixed for life.

Open Class Societies

• Social mobility between ranks possible.

Manifestations of Class

• Symbolic indicators, associations, health disparities, and longevity.

Race

• Group of people distinguished by physical traits (phenotype) and genetic origins.

Race Issues

• Not all phenotypic differences are genetic; boundaries are complex.

Cross-Cultural Variations in Race

• Varying understandings of race (e.g., US vs Canada).

Ethnicity

• Identity based on shared cultural traits (beliefs, habits, customs, religion).

Increasing Gender Stratification

• Lowered female status, increased male dominance.

Secular Rituals

• Scripted practices (e.g., athletes and rituals) for specific occasions.

Sacred Rituals

• Formal, stylized practices rooted in sacred belief systems to organize lives.

Rites of Passage

• Rituals marking life transitions (separation, transition, incorporation).

Liminality

• In-between phase of a rite of passage.

Rites of Intensification

• Rituals for group crisis/potential crisis, like funerals.

Rites of Purification

• Rituals to restore individuals' place in cosmic order after taboos are broken.

Individual and Group Rites

• Group/external practitioner draws on power and symbolism from earth, sky, etc.

Magic

• Use of supernatural forces for specific aims (e.g., improving outcomes).

Sorcery/Witchcraft

• Belief that some have supernatural power to harm/benefit others (often perceived as malicious or against one's will).

Culture Change: Internal Pressures

• Intergroup conflict (political, religious factions).

Culture Change: External Sources

• Trade, warfare, colonialism, globalization.

Culture Change: Process of Innovation and Invention

• Factors influencing acceptance (compatibility with existing systems).

Culture Change: Process of Diffusion

• Two-way process based on contact (direct or indirect) impacting local knowledge/practice.

Syncretism

• Blending elements from different cultures.

Missionism

• Spreading beliefs and values.

State Policies (Examples)

• Shrinking territories, conservation, border fences, land policies.

Change in Ju/'hoansi Subsistence Strategies

• Tensions from introducing farming/herding; wage work and migration impacting traditional practices.

Nyae Nyae Ju/'hoansi (1970s-1990s)

• Subsistence reduction, impacting social-economic factors and environmental impact; return to bush farming/coping with development efforts.

Explore various cultural theories and subsistence strategies in this quiz. From transhumance and pastoralism to the fascinating dynamics of food foraging societies, learn how different cultures utilize and adapt their environments. Engage with diverse concepts such as creole languages and proxemics to deepen your understanding.