How many folks on here actually know what Anthropology is?

Question

Barely any of these questions has any bearing whatsoever with regards to anthropology.

Anthropology is the scientific study of the origin, the behavior, and the physical, social, and cultural development of humans.

Answer 1

Anthropology is the study of man, mostly ancient man or primitive man. But it is true that many questions are mis-categorized in Yahoo! Answers. It is a problem with no solution, apparently; some people do not even look at the categories when they write a question. Is Anthropology at the top of the alphabet in the Social Science column? That could be reason enough for mis-categorization.

Answer 2

Having studied anthropology extensively, I have a pretty good idea what it is. It's the study of humans in all times and places. In the U.S., it's traditionally been divided (by Boas) into biological/physical anthropology, social/cultural anthropology, linguistic anthropology, and anthropological archaeology.

My definition is a little broader than yours though, since I don't think anthropology is limited to human "development," though many of the linear evolutionist anthropologists a hundred years ago would have agreed with you.

In any case, I share your sentiment about the kinds of questions categorized as "anthropology" in Yahoo Answers. I think this is a reflection of what kinds of questions a lot of people associate anthropology with (unfortunately). And I think there are two solutions to this: 1) Those of us who do know something about anthropology need to do a better job (and anything is better than the miserable job being done now) in bringing anthropology to the public, and 2) We should ask more interesting anthropology questions ourselves on this site.

Answer 3

For the record, I do know the meaning, I have a BS in Anthropology with my primary focus being Archaeology. I also realize that these questions do not focus on Anthropology and often leave this sight in frustration. As such your question while explaining the true study of anthropology also is not an anthropology question.

Answer 4

Anthropology (from the Greek word ἄνθρωπος, "human" or "person") consists of the study of humanity (see genus Homo). It is holistic in two senses: it is concerned with all humans at all times and with all dimensions of humanity

In America, "anthropology" is traditionally divided into four sub-disciplines:

Physical anthropology, or biological anthropology, which studies primate behavior, human evolution, osteology, forensics, and population genetics;
Cultural anthropology (called social anthropology in the United Kingdom and now often known as socio-cultural anthropology), which studies social networks, diffusion, social behavior, kinship patterns, law, politics, ideology, religion, beliefs, patterns in production and consumption, exchange, socialization, gender, and other expressions of culture, with strong emphasis on the importance of fieldwork or participant observation (that is, living among the social group being studied for an extended period of time);
Linguistic anthropology, which studies variation in language across time and space, the social uses of language, and the relationship between language and culture, and
Archaeology, which studies the material remains of human societies. Archaeology itself is normally treated as a separate (but related) field in the rest of the world, although closely related to the anthropological field of material culture, which deals with physical objects created or used within a living or past group as a means of understanding its cultural values.

Answer 5

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Answer 6

You're dealing with a site where the vast majority of people cannot spell even simple monosyllabic words, never mind construct a coherent sentence. The anthropological significance of this entire site is to clearly demonstrate the unimaginable depth of human ignorance and stupidity. That's why we set it up.

Yours truly,
The Space Aliens

Answer 7

Yep. I do - but i passed high school and got into university. Check the average age of the answers user. I think might tell you why they dont know whan anthropology is. However that doesnt tell you why most of them have worse spelling than your average 6 year old!

Answer 8

As a student of archeology I studied anthropology as part of my course for two years. It is a fascinating subject.

Answer 9

The study of anything dealing with humans

Answer 10

Check the books by Edward T. Hall. Fascinating stuff!