This is one of several study guides on contemporary problems produced by the American Association for the Advancement of Science with support of the National Science Foundation. This guide focuses on the ethnology of traditional and complex societies. Part I, Simple and Complex Societies, includes three sections: (1) Introduction: Anthropologists…

This paper argues that ritual and other cultural forms can be validly compared to one another only at the level of their meaning and that in order to do this one must begin by setting them in the sociocultural context which gives them meaning. A ritual at a hospital for the rehabilitation of drug addicts and alcoholics is described, analyzed, and…

General information on format, included, materials, broad concerns, objectives, and availability of the newsletter are described in Volume I, ED 048 049. This issue focuses on ethnology, offering two papers presented at the American Anthropological Association symposiums. The lead paper presents a psycho-cultural developmental approach to the…

The present festschrift honoring Harry Hoijer is prefaced by the editor, Dell Hymes, and introduced by Stanley Newman. Papers are grouped according to the following content areas and authors: (1) "Meaning in Cultural Forms": D.F. Aberle, F. Eggan, R.A. Black, and D.L. Olmsted; (2) "Meaning in Lexical Systems": S. Ervin-Tripp, H. Landar, O. Werner,…

This paper presents the conceptual basis for a research study of thirty-seven societies to investigate the educational function of initiation ceremonies and secret societies. "Hidden curriculum" is the term chosen for the precepts passed on within certain cultural institutions of a society. The author hypothesizes that in a tribal society, the…

This volume contains twenty-five of the papers presented at the Seventh Algonquian conference. Topics covered in the papers include recently discovered linguistic fragments of Ocanahowan, the Wittiko people, ethno-history and archeology of the Mushuan, color terms in Narragansett, the Christian holidays of the Wabanaki, dialects of the Eastern…

This book addresses the need for anthropologists to produce in-depth ethnographies of children's play. In examining the subject from a cross-cultural perspective, the book argues that understanding the way children transform their environment to create make-believe is enhanced by viewing their creations as oral poetry. The result is a richly…

In this article, historical aspects of the pre-Lenten celebration of Carnival are discussed and the Carnival is examined in terms of its meaning as a "rite of passage." One of the most important functions of Carnival is its original one of being a ritual with profound secular and religious implications. (Author/MC)

Presents a look at some of the research being done on the origins of language. (BB)

On March 21, 2006 Christine Fair spoke about her recent trip to Pakistan. Fair's fieldwork was conducted with her Pakistan-based colleague Syed Rashad Bukhari and in collaboration with the National Bureau of Asian Research. Fair and Bukhari spent nearly three weeks visiting administrators at ten of the most prominent post-secondary madaris…

This packet provides sample lessons from the program "Stones and Bones: A Laboratory Approach to Physical Anthropology." The samples are from the unit of 20 lessons that are investigative-oriented for students to explore anthropological topics. Unit 1, "In Search of Human Ancestors. How We Study Our Past: Stories Told by…

This document comprises three booklets that serve as a foundation for understanding the cultural diversity and values of Cambodian, Laotian, and Vietnamese students. Each booklet reviews the country's history and geography. "Introduction to Cambodian Culture" (S. Chhim) discusses the following topics: (1) the Khmer concept of individual…

This booklet about the cultural background of Vietnam is one of three booklets that serve as a foundation for understanding the cultural diversity and values of Cambodian, Laotian, and Vietnamese students. Vietnam is located on the eastern coast of the Indochinese peninsula and has a population of 56 million. Its history is divided into the…

Using a descriptive personal narrative that marks ethnographic research, this book looks at literacy education in the Amish culture and considers the implications that this perspective reveals for mainstream education. Divided into 12 chapters, the book chronicles the life of an Amish family, the Fishers, focusing specifically on the attitudes…

Our culture draws lines between "races" in a variety of ways. Professional scholars and society in general each have their own set of aims and methods for dividing by race. The professional classifiers have been at times inconsistent and fallacious in their methods. The scientific classifiers (physical anthropologists, for example) assume an…