Study Material:

Meaning and Scope of Social and Cultural Anthropology:

What is Anthropology? Let us begin with the etymology of the concept. It is a compound of two Greek words, "anthropos" and "logos", which can be translated as 'human' and 'reason' respectively. So anthropology means " Knowledge about humans" or "reason about humans" (Erikson, 2010). some definitions; 1. Anthropology is the study of Man and His works(Herskovits). 2. Anthropology is the scientific study of the physical, social, and cultural development and behaviour of human beings since their appearance on the earth(Jacob & Stern). 3. Anthropology has been defined as the study of other cultures, empolying the technique of participant observation and collecting qualitative data(Barrett, Stanley, 2002 Anthropology Student's Guide to Theory and Method). Anthropology is the study of humanity in all places and at all times. Anthropology is the study of people - their origins, their development, and contemporary variations, wherever and whenever they have been found on the face of the earth. Anthropology has been referred to as; 1. A natural or Biological science, in that it studies the physical evolution and biological nature of human beings. 2. A Social science, in that it studies the behaviour of human beings as members of Social groups. 3. A Historical discipline, in that it seeks to reconstruct sequences in cultural development, and 4. one of the humanities, in that it studies art, folklore, Oral tradition and so on.

Different Tradions of Anthropology: Anthropology is a large and diversified subject, which is practised somewhat different in different countries. In the American tradion of Scholarship, it has long been customary to distinguish four such sub fields of Anthropology, namely physical, archaeological,cultural, and Linguistic anthropology( Companian Encyclopedia of Anthropology 1996). This tradition is followed in North America In the British tradition, by contrast, there are only three sub fields of physical, Archaeological and social anthropology rather than cultural anthropology. The Exclusion of linguistics from British anthropology is a curious. This tradition also enjoys a strong position in India and Scandinavia. French Anthropology has been strongly associated with Structuralism, notably with the names of Levi Strauss, Louis Dumont and Godelier. In South America, Italy, and partly in Belgium and Netherlands, the French orientation is strong.

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Four fields of Anthropology 1. Physical or Biological anthropology, physical anthropology is the older term. Biological anthropology includes not only comparative anatomy ( physical aspects of human being) but also genetics, growthm, ecology, demography etc.. 2. Prehistoric Archaeology, It deals with the extint cultures and material remains of the past people. 3. Linguistic anthroplogy, It concentrates on differences between languages and often relates aspects of language to aspects of culture. 4. Cultural anthropology. The Global scope of anthropological studies has actually increased in recent years. In the early 1900s, anthropologists concentrated on the non western, pre - literate and technologically simple societies of the world. After second world war, anthropologists have been studying rural, urban and Industrial socities while continuing their studies of the more exotic peoples of the world. Anthropologists also study the social institutions like marriage, family, kinship, economy, politics and religion, etc.. Now Social and Cultural anthroplogists are studying on gender, war, peace, ethnicity etc.. Anthropologists are often now employed to advise on development projects. Cultural Anthropology examines similarities and differences between contemporary cultures of the world. It is the largest sub discipline. The words "ethnography" and " ethnology" appear to have been introduced in the late 18th centuary. An ethnography is a first hand account of culture of a particular human community or society obtained through the field work. Ethnology examines, Interprets and compares the result of ethnography. Areas of specialization Economic Anthropology, dealing with how goods and services are produced, distributed and consumed cross culturally, this area of specialization focuses on such topics such as division of labour, patterns of work, systems of exchange and control of property. Educational Anthropology, it explores the relationship between anthropological theories, methods and insights on the one hand and educational practices and institutions on the other hand. It also deals with the bilingual education, comparative forms of education and the ethnography of the class room. Political anthropology, It devotes itself to the study of law, order, conflict and power. Psychological anthropology, it examines such topics as emotions, motivation, comparative human development and the acquisition of culture. Industrial anthropology, it deals with the impact of industries on traditional societies. Urban anthropology, it examines the social organization of the city. It also studies social problems characteristic of large cities such as crime, social disorder, slums, prostitution, poverty, street children and homelessness. Ecological anthropology, it focuses upon the complex relations between people and their environments. Medical anthropology, it is generally understood to refer to the study of social and cultural dimentions of health and disease. For contact: Email: drgvranthro@gmail.com

Nutritional anthropology, it is the study of the inter relationship between diet and culture and their mutual influence upon each other. Cognitive anthropology, it is the study of the relationship between mind and society. Traditionally it examines cultural knowledge in terms of its organizations and application in every day life, in activities such as classification. Applied Social and Cultural anthropology, it is the application of anthropological data, concepts, methods to solve the problems like education, health, agriculture etc.. Action anthropology, it is the branch of applied anthropology or branch of anthropology, which seeks to combact immediate threats to population groups. At present, this field is especially prominent in Germany. Development anthropology, it refers to the application of anthropological perspectives to the multidisciplinary branch of development studies. It deals with the assessing the important qualitative aspects of development some times ignored by an economist. The Uniqueness of Social and Cultural Anthropology: 1. The holistic approach, this approach combines the Ideas of several disciplines such as sociology, psychology, economics, political science etc... 2. The Comarative approach, it compares society with society, tradition with tradion over time and space. 3. The Field Work approach, it is the first hand study of a community. Anthropologists do there research in natural settings, among a group of people carrying out their dailly activities. 4. The Emic approach, unlike other social scientists, field anthropologists collect the data from the natives point of view or insider's view. 5. Cultural relativism, a society should be judged interms of the society's own cultural values. In other words, understanding of the behaviour of any culture should be based on people's standard, not researcher's standard. The Contributions of Social and Cultural Anthropology:

1. It examines cultural similarities and differances among the peoples of the world. 2. Another contribution is that it helps us better understanding ourselves. 3. The understanding of different cultures can contribute to the solution of pressing societal problems. 4. It is valuable for testing theories about human behaviour within the widest possible cross - cultural context.

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