The Subfields of Anthropology

The Subfields of Anthropology

Many anthropologists no longer subscribe to the "four fields of anthropology - archaeology, sociocultural anthropology, biological/physical anthropology and linguistics - mainly because these are so closely related and many of the areas of interest overlap. Thus Bill Haviland in his most recent introductory text to anthropology (with co-authors Prins, Walrath and McBride, 2008) explains:

Unlike traditional texts that present anthropology's four "fields" -archaeology, linguistics, cultural anthropology and physical anthropology - as if they were relatively separate and independent, our book takes an integrative approach. (Haviland et al 2008 :xxv)

For analytical and practical purposes, however, Haviland and his colleagues have no option, but to deal with each field separately, in separate chapters. However, the book constantly refers to linkages between the different fields.

William A Haviland ("Bill") is the most successful writer of anthropology introductory texts in the history of the discipline. Since his first book, simply called "Anthropology", was published some thirty five years ago, when he was a professor at the University of Vermont, USA, there have appeared eleven subsequent editions. This book became the best-selling anthropology book ever, and was translated into a number of languages (including Chinese). Bill's methodology in compiling such a comprehensive textbook was typically anthropological and included travelling the world with his wife Anita to gain first-hand experience of different human contexts and to collect relevant information himself.

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Just to get a feel of what these subfields of anthropology more or less entail, note the following:

Biological or physical anthropology

This field of study deals with the biological or physical aspects of humans and human populations and endeavours to answer particular kinds of questions. For example, about the emergence of humans and their eventual development, and as to why and how contemporary human populations vary biologically.

Biological anthropologists, therefore, focus on the fossil remains of prehistoric human-like beings which have been preserved in the earth's crust (and in the polar regions and swamps) in order to obtain information about the development of human beings from very early times. They also exchange information with human palaeontologists who make a study of the emergence of human beings and their later evolution. This enables biological anthropologists to obtain information about early human beings and their relation to modern humans.

Although we all belong to the same species Homo sapiens sapiens, there is a great deal of variation between human populations and this leads to another set of questions that biological anthropologists seek to answer:

• Why are some human populations taller than others?
• How have human populations adapted to their environment?
• Are some people better equipped to endure cold (eg the Inuits of Greenland), and others the tropical sun (eg the Pygmies of the Democratic of Congo)?

To answer these questions, biological anthropologist make use of human genetics (the study of inherited human traits), population biology (the study of the effects of the environment) and epidemiology (the study of the differing effects of diseases on populations). So, inherited and demographic factors are of interest to biological anthropologist but, importantly, they also pay attention to the influence of biological factors on behaviour in a human population. A biological anthropologist who studies the Yanomamo of Brazil, for instance, would ask questions such as:

• Is there a genetic explanation for their violent behaviour?
• What is the effect of their diet on the development of their bodies?
• What is their biological relationship to neighbouring peoples?

Note that "demographic" refers to statistical data concerning populations, that is the size, composition and development of populations. Such statistical data are acquired by census surveys concerning the registration of births, deaths, marriages and the migration of people.

Archaeology

Archaeology, which is derived from the Greek arkhaios (ancient) and logos (discipline or science), studies the past living conditions and changes that occurred in human populations during prehistoric times. Since archaeologists often do not have written records on which they can rely for information, they obtain data from the material remains of human settlements that are carefully collected during the excavation of sites where people once lived. Remains such as tools, ornaments, potsherds, weapons and human bones are all examples of "remains". Archaeologists often obtain vitally important information about the prehistory of human populations that have not been preserved in oral tradition or written records. Without the material objects exposed by the archaeologists during their excavations we would know very little about prehistoric humans. Remember that writing is a relatively recent development and that more than 90% of the early history of humans beings has become known through archaeological and, to a lesser degree through anthropological sources and research methods.

Linguistic Anthropology

This field of study focuses on the large variety of languages spoken by people and, especially, the relationship between language and other aspects of people's lives. Initially, linguistic anthroplogists studied the historical development of the unwritten languages of "non-Western societies". The emphasis has, however, shifted and language is now viewed not only as an indispensable means of communication within communities or societies being studied, but also as a means of obtaining an understanding how sociocultural phenomena are expressed verbally. Language is also used as a key to determine how people view the world, the environment in which they live, and how they view other people.

Specialist areas within linguistic anthropology include:

• historical linguistics, the study of how languages change over time and how languages are related to each other
• descriptive or structural linguistics, the study of the difference between contemporary languages, especially in terms of their construction
• sociolinguistics, the study of the way in which language is used in different social contexts

Note that research about other people and their sociocultural systems requires a basic knowledge of their language. From experience anthropologists know that knowledge of the language of the people being studied soon establishes a relationship of trust between people being researched and the researcher.

Sociocultural Anthropology

"Anthropology" actually refers to sociocultural anthropology, although we often simply refer to this field of study as anthropology, sociocultural anthropology is more accurate, and more descriptive of the kind of emphasis placed in this subdiscipline

• it is also indicative of the approach that we adopt in this field of study

Historically, a distinction was made between cultural anthropology and social anthropology, mainly because the term "cultural anthropology" was mainly used in America and also drew some of its principles from the German anthropological tradition - and was more broadly based. "Social anthropology" was essentially practised in Great Britain and developed from sociological theory. Whereas cultural anthropology emphasised patterned behaviour transmitted over generations within a group context, which is guided by particular common values, social anthropology focused on the dynamics of social relations, social structure and so on. Clearly, there is some value (and weakness) in both approaches - we will attempt to adopt a more balanced approach towards understanding the human experience.

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