| anthropology | The science or study of Homo sapiens, using a holistic approach.
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| cultural anthropology | A subfield of anthropology that focuses on human sociocultural adaptations.
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| ethnography | A written description of a culture based on data gathered from fieldwork.
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| ethnology | The comparative study of cultures with the aim of presenting analytical generalizations about human culture.
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| archaeology | The systematic study of the artifacts and ecofacts from past cultures as a means of reconstructing past lifeways.
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| prehistoric archaeology | The analysis of the material remains of cultures that existed before the time of written records.
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| artifacts | Objects made by humans.
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| features | Non-portable evidence of technology at archaeological sites, such as roadways and fire hearths.
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| ecofacts | The remains of plants, animals, or naturally occurring non-organic substances.
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| site | The location of archaeological remains such as artifacts and features.
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| historical archaeology | A subfield of archaeology that studies the remains of cultures that existed during the time of written records but about which little was recorded.
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| cultural resource management (CRM) | The conservation and management of archaeological sites to protect them.
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| experimental archaeology | An aspect of archaeology in which experiments are performed to learn how prehistoric artifacts and features were made and used.
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| applied archaeology | The use of archaeological methods to study the material culture of contemporary societies. Data can be used to develop social programs.
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| behavioral archaeology | An area of applied archaeology that focuses on the relationships between material culture and people's behavior.
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| midden | Archaeological term to designate an area of discard; a trash heap.
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| linguistics | A subfield of anthropology that includes the study of the structure, history, and social aspects of human language.
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| descriptive linguistics | The part of anthropological linguistics that focuses on the mechanics of language.
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| historical linguistics | The study of the history of languages including their development and relationship to other languages.
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| ethnolinguistics | A field of study in linguistics that analyzes the relationship between language and culture with a focus on how people speak in social contexts.
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| biological anthropology | A subfield of anthropology that studies humans as biological species. Also called physical anthropology.
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| physical anthropology | See biological anthropology.
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| paleoanthropology | The study of human biological evolution.
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| quadruped | An animal that walks on four limbs.
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| biped | An animal that walks on two legs.
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| primatology | The study of nonhuman primates.
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| primates | Animals in the Order primates; includes humans, apes, monkeys, and prosimians.
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| Homo sapiens | The taxonomic designation for humans.
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| contemporary human variation studies | The study of the biological variation in living humans.
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| forensic anthropologist | An applied biological anthropologist concerned with legal issues. Frequently focuses on the identification of skeletal material and the cause of death.
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| holistic | An integrated perspective that assumes interrelationships among the parts of a subject. Anthropology studies humans from a holistic perspective, including both biological and cultural aspects.
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| comparative method | The methodological approach of comparing data. Anthropologist use the comparative method.
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| humanistic anthropology | A label for research that focuses on individuals and their creative responses to cultural and historical forces.
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| cultural relativism | The perspective that any aspect of a culture must be viewed and evaluated within the context of that culture.
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| ethnocentrism | Making value judgments based on one's own culture when describing aspects of another culture.
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| postmodernism | A complex theoretical perspective that applies a humanistic approach to ethnography with focus on individuals and their voices.
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