Introducing Anthropology. Laura Pountney
early attempts to understand the differences between humans resulted in taxonomies or classification systems that were often crude and based judgementally on superficial physical differences. For example, in 1757 Carl Linnaeus divided Homo sapiens into five categories, among which were ‘wild man’, who was apparently mute and hairy, and ‘European’, who was ‘gentle’. Significantly, Linnaeus conflates physical characteristics such as hair type with cultural differences such as dress and political organization. This is a highly problematic assumption and one that is reflected in many ways by the widespread racism that has occurred in almost every single society in the world.
racism Discrimination against an individual or group based on their perceived ethnicity and the idea that ‘race’ is a fixed and bounded reality
Culturally constructed concepts of race
It is now widely accepted that there are minor biological variations between humans. However, it is the social and political interpretations of the real or imagined differences between people on which cultural anthropologists now focus: the culturally constructed concepts of race.
culturally constructed Something which is created by society
Varying skin colour provides a useful example for considering the differences between biological and sociopolitical approaches to the concept of race. Skin colour in humans correlates quite closely with the ancestral location of the people concerned because it has largely been determined by the ultraviolet radiation level in that particular ancestral homeland. As such, it is a reasonable indication of genetic origins, although it does not take into account population movement. Cultural anthropologists are interested in the ways that skin colour has been assigned particular political and social status, both historically and in contemporary society, as the basis of forms of discrimination. They study the reasons why and how the socially constructed concept of race becomes assigned with greater significance at certain times and in certain places.
A useful example is in the naming of groups. It is very unusual for people to use outsiders’ terms of discrimination to describe themselves. One of the few examples in which they do is the term ‘Welsh’, which is a corruption of the Anglo-Saxon word for ‘slave’ (wealish), as opposed to the word Cymraeg, which is the correct Welsh word. The word ‘Welsh’ has stuck and has even eventually been adopted by the Welsh themselves.
American Association of Physical Anthropologists’ (AAPA) Statement on Race and Racism (2019)
In an attempt to ensure that anthropology was not associated with any discriminatory or colonial attitudes concerning race, and to provide a unified approach to the issue, a statement was issued in 1988 by the American Anthropological Association (AAA) condemning the misuse of culturally constructed notions of racial differences. What recent work in evolutionary anthropology has shown is that, although some genetic differences in skin colour, a predisposition to certain diseases and varying levels of ability to digest lactose (the protein in milk) or alcohol do exist among human populations, there is no evidence that cognitive or behavioural traits (such as IQ) show any variation. For this reason, human evolutionary studies have actively contributed to the demise of pseudo-scientific racial classifications of intelligence.
In 2019, the AAPA issued another statement that aimed to clarify and update the AAA’s statement. Here is an extract from this statement:
Race does not provide an accurate representation of human biological variation. … Humans are not divided biologically into distinct continental types or racial genetic clusters. Instead, the Western concept of race must be understood as a classification system that emerged from, and in support of, European colonialism, oppression, and discrimination. … Because of that, over the last five centuries, race has become a social reality that structures societies and how we experience the world. In this regard, race is real, as is racism, and both have real biological consequences.
STOP & THINK
How are the 1988 AAA Statement on Race and the 2019 AAPA Statement on Race and Racism trying to ‘decolonize’ anthropology?
Conclusion
It is possible to see that what makes us human are evolved biological characteristics that in many complex ways link to culturally evolved behaviours. Anthropologists have different views on the extent of the relationship between human biology and culture. One major key to the survival of human beings is their ability to adapt to their environment. This has been crucially important, given the major changes that have occurred in the environment at critical stages over the course of human evolution.
There are minor biological differences between human groups. Biological anthropologists are interested in these differences in terms of genetic ancestry, particularly in relation to how other groups of early humans overlapped. Cultural anthropologists, however, are interested in the ways that perceived differences between groups of people are misused by some for economic and political reasons.
The relationship between human biology and human culture is only one of the many problems addressed by evolutionary anthropology. Understanding the processes behind the origin of humankind and the evolution of our unique adaptations are among the most fundamental questions that we have asked ourselves. The search for answers places the study of human evolution at the heart of anthropology.
End-of-chapter questions
Do primates have language/culture? If so, how is this the same or different from human language/culture?
What are main differences between chimpanzees and bonobos? How can we apply those findings to the study of human beings and their behaviours?
How has DNA analysis changed the way anthropologists understand human evolution?
Race is no longer a useful category. Discuss.
Key terms
altruism The ability to put the needs of others before your own
Anthropocene A new planetary era in which humans have become the dominant force in shaping the earth’s physical make-up and processes
bipedalism Walking upright on two feet for the majority of time
catastrophism The theory that the Earth has been affected in the past by sudden, short-lived, violent events, possibly worldwide in scope, which have led to the contemporary world with its current variety of animals and plants
creationism The belief that all life was created by the actions of God
cultural evolution The ways in which humans have evolved beyond their biology
culturally constructed Something which is created by society
endemic dwarfism A process whereby some creatures confined to isolated habitats such as islands are known to have become smaller
Enlightenment A period in Europe during the eighteenth century when there were many scientific discoveries that contradicted the accepted teachings of those in authority, notably the Church
evolution Any change across successive generations in the inherited characteristics of biological populations
fossil The preserved remains or traces of animals, plants and other organisms from the remote past
hominins Primates, species who are closely related to human beings or who are regarded as human
hunter-gatherers Members of a nomadic people who live chiefly by hunting and fishing