Cultural Patterns and Processes Observing the cultural landscape

Cultural Patterns and Processes Observing the cultural landscape

Concepts of Culture Non-material Culture – Values – Beliefs – Behaviors – Norms Material Culture - Artifacts – tangible objects

Culture Region • Culture Trait – A single attribute – clothing • Culture complex – value, belief, behavior that make a group distinct. Cattle • Cultural hearth – where civilizations first began – Indus River – Nile River – Fertile Crescent

Cultural Diffusion Expansion Diffusion – Contagious diffusion – Hierarchical diffusion – Stimulus diffusion – veggie burger instead of hamburger in India Relocation Diffusion – individuals migrating carry innovation or idea with them.

Acculturation • Less dominant culture adopts traits of the more influential one. • Assimilation – Dominant culture absorbs less dominate one

Language • Language family – Indo-European – Afro-Asiatic – American Indian Sub-Family of Indo- European Germanic, Romance are 2 examples

Languages • Standard language – Those recognized by gov’t • Official language – Gov’t sponsored language (tie people together) • Dialect – Regional variation in a language • Pidgen – hybrid language that serves as a second language often for trade and commerce.

Languages (cont. ) • Creole language – When a pidgin language becomes a main language • Lingua Franca – Establish language that is spoken over a large area, often used for trade and commerce – English • Toponym – Place names

Religion • Universalizing religions attempt to be global, to appeal to all people – Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism • Ethnic religions – Appeal primarily to one group of people – Judaism • Branch – division within a religion • Denomination – divisions of branches • Sect – relatively small groups that do not affiliate with mainstream.

Followers Christianity – 2 billion – 3 branches Roman Catholic 50% of Christianity Protestants 25% of Christianity Eastern Orthodox 10 % of Christianity

Islam • Sunni – 83% - largest branch in the Middle East and Asia • Shiites – 16% - 40% live in Iran • 1. 3 billion adherents • Fastest growing of the major religions

Buddhism May follow more than one religion. • 365 million adherents • Hearth in India, spread through the Silk Road – today mostly in S. & SE Asia as well as Tibet and Mongolia. • 3 branches – Mahayana – East Asia – Theraveda – SE Asia – Tantrayana – Tibet and Mongolia

Hinduism Ethnic Religion • • • 800 million adherents 3 rd largest Make-up 80% of the population of India World’s oldest religion Belief in universal spirit (Brahman)

Other Religions • • • Chinese Confucianism Daoism Japan Shintoism • Judaism – First major monotheistic religion

Popular and Local (Folk) culture • Local culture – Group of people who share experiences, customs, and traits which allows them to be distinct from other groups. • Popular culture – Large heterogeneous population with a common culture.

House types • New England • Mid Atlantic • Southern Tidewater • See page 121 in text