Cultural Patterns and Processes (Unit 3) Vocab

Lingua franca

A language that combines simple words from multiple languages so that people who need to understand one another. Ex: English is regarded as "The World's Lingua Franca" because it's a common language people use in global business and trade.

Sikhism

A monotheistic religion founded in Punjab in the 15th century by Guru Nanak and combining elements of Hinduism and Islam. Ex: Sikhism is mostly in India and it falls in the category of Universalizing religions.

Christianity

A monotheistic system of beliefs and practices based on the Old Testament and the teachings of Jesus that emphasizes the role of Jesus as savior. Ex: Christians believe that God created the universe and He is its origin.

Cultural hearth

A place of origin of a culture and it is also where cultural traits develop and diffuse from. Ex: New York City, Los Angeles, and London are considered modern "cultural hearths", because these cities are the origins of a large amount of cultural exports that are influential throughout much of the world today.

Postmodern architecture

A reaction in architectural design in which combines traditional and contemporary influences on buildings or structures. Ex: Weirdly shaped buildings that are different from the norms like the Walt Disney Music Hall for example.

Language dialect

A regional variation of a language that can be distinguished by its distinctive pronunciation, vocabulary, and spelling. Ex: In the United States, there are many different dialects that can be distinguished from certain regions like how Southern dialects are very different from Northern dialects.

Hinduism

A religion and philosophy developed in ancient India that is unique among the world's religions in that it doesn't have a single founder, theology, or agreement on its own origins. Ex: "My friend's family believes in Hinduism!", said Sophia.

Islam

A religion based on the teachings of the prophet Mohammed which stresses belief in one god (Allah), Paradise and Hell, and a body of law written in the Quran. The followers are also called Muslims. Ex: "Me and my family are Muslims and we pray five times a day facing Mecca.", said Aadab.

Buddism

A religion originated in India which was based on the teachings of Buddha that life is permeated with suffering caused by desire, that suffering ceases when desire ceases, and that enlightenment is obtained through right conduct, wisdom, and meditation will realize one from desire, suffering, and rebirth. Ex: "My family believes in Buddhism and we pray to Buddha every New Years for a peaceful year.", said myself.

Universalizing religion

A religion that attempts to appeal to all people and not just to those living in a particular location. Ex: Christianity, Buddhism, and Islam are all Universalizing religions because they all seek to convert new believers and are global in their spread.

Ethnic religion

A religion that is particular to one culturally distinctive group of people and typically do not seek new converts and worships. Ex: Judaism and Hinduism are examples of ethnic religions.

Judaism

A religion with a belief in one god. It originated with Abraham and the Hebrew people. Yahweh was responsible for the world and everything within it. Ex: "My family's religion is Judaism and we only believe in only one God.", said Adam.

Time-space convergence

The idea that distance between some places is actually shrinking as technology enables more rapid communication and increased interaction among those places. Ex: Thanks to the telephone and computer, today's world now has instant communication with many parts of the globe despite long distances.

Ethnicity

The identity with a group of people that share distinct physical and mental traits as a product of common heredity and cultural traditions. Ex: Native Americans, African American, Chinese Americans, etc.

Cultural convergence

The interaction of two or more cultures as they come in contact with each other and influences similarities onto each other. Ex: McDonald's menu changes in certain counties to appeal to the tastes of each countries' cultures.

Cultural divergence

The likelihood or tendency for cultures to disassociate from others in order to protect/preserve their own culture form influence/change. Ex: The Amish people resist outside influences of modern technology, clothes, and pop culture.

Toponym

The name given to a geographical place on Earth's surface. Ex: United States, North America, Atlanta, etc.

Aculturation

When one group of people adopt the culture traits of another culture after they migrated to a new area. Ex: Immigrants in the US may adopt the language and several other customs of their host group or environment.

Multiculturalism

Culture found in a large, heterogeneous society that shares certain habits despite differences in other personal characteristics. Ex: Chinese-Canadians, Turkish-Germans, Arab-Americans, etc.

Syncretism

A blending of beliefs and practices from different religions into a new trait or faith. Ex: A prominent example of cultural syncretism comes from the spread of Buddhism, because Buddhism by its nature is compatible with other religions as well.

Language family

A collection of languages related to each other through a common ancestor long before recorded history. Ex: Afro-Asiatic, Indo-European, Altaic, etc.

Trade

A concept used in developing countries to help create sustainability. Ex: Producers, farmers, craftspeople, etc. are paid fair prices for their products.

Indo-Europen language family

A family of several hundred related languages and dialects. Ex: French, Spanish, Italian, etc. are all branches of languages that developed from Roman.

Centrifugal force

A force or attitude that tends to divide a state. Ex: Differing religion, an unstable government, or internal conflicts are all factors that divide people.

Ethnic neighborhood

An area that is typically situated in a larger metropolitan city and constructed by or comprised of a group of people with the same ethnic background or culture. Ex: An example of this would be Chinatown and Little Italy.

Centripetal force

An attitude that tends to unify people and enhance support for a state. Ex: Shared religion, a stable government, or a common language are all factors that bring people together/enforce the cohesion of a group.

Colonialism

Attempt by one country to establish settlements and to impose its political, economic, and cultural principles in another territory. Ex: The European colonization of Africa and Asia is a great example of what colonialism is.

Indigenous community

Communities that live within, or are attached to, geographically distinct traditional habitats or ancestral territories, and who identify themselves as being part of a distinct cultural group. Ex: The Lakota in the US, the Mayas in Guatemala, or the Aymaras in Bolivia are all examples of Indigenous communities.

Neocolonialism

Economic dominance of a weaker country by a more powerful one, while maintaining the legal independence of the weaker state. Ex: In the late 19th century, this new form of economic imperialism characterized the relations between the Latin American republics.

Imperialism

Forced control or domination of a country or region that is already occupied. Ex: When the British established colonies in North America despite the land already being occupied.

Contagious diffusion

Occurs when a cultural trait, trends, or ideas spread continuously outward from its hearth through contact among people near the point of origin. Ex: The spread of viral internet memes, the oral spread of religion, and more.

Sense of place

State of mind derived through the infusion of a place with meaning and emotion by remembering important events that occurred in that place or by labeling a place with a certain character. Ex: When you are in your hometown, you will feel at home or reminiscent because that place holds meaning to you.

Appropriation

The action of taking something for one's own use, typically without the owner's permission. Ex: When a person takes a sacred object from a culture and produces it as part of a Halloween costume.

Architecture

The art or practice of designing and constructing buildings that are different in each particular cultures, religions, and places. Ex: The style of The Guggenheim in New York City, US is very different and contrasts the Château de Chenonceau in Chenonceaux, France due to the location and their own cultural preferences.

Hierarchical diffusion

The beginning of a cultural trait that starts with a minority and spreads to the majority. Ex: Hierarchical diffusion would typically happen in the business setting or in different levels of government because it follows a chain of command.

Enthocentrism

The belief that one's own group or culture is superior to other groups or cultures because they are judging other groups through the lens of their own culture. Ex: People in the US would think that India is an undeveloped place compared to the US because they eat with their hands, and they would think that that is unsanitary because their culture is different from India's.

Assimilation

The dying out of old culture and its replacement by new cultural traits. Ex: Natives Americans being forced to give up their culture and speak English, attend American schools, and adult US customs.

Sequent occupancy

The notion that successive societies leave their cultural imprints on a place; each contributing to the cumulative cultural landscape. Ex: The present cultural landscape of Bolivia includes parts from the early Incan Indians, and more. Parts of all these influences of successive cultures mark up the cultural landscape of Bolivia today.

Cultural relativism

The principle that an individual human's beliefs and activities should be undestood by others in terms of that individual's own culture. Ex: In India, same-sex friends holding hands while walking in public would be a common practice; however, in England that would only be largely limited to romantically involved couples.

Creolization

The process in which two or more languages converge and form a new language. Ex: Creole (a language spoken in the Caribbean) is a mix of French language and African dialects, resulting from the immersion of African slaves in a French environment.

Linguistic

The scientific study of nature, structure, and variation of languages. Ex: The study of Northern, Southern, and Midland dialects in the US, in which particular different features occur due to a geographic boundary.

Gender

The socially constructed roles and characteristics by which a culture defines male and female. Ex: Males in the society are expected to be masculine, while females are expected to be feminine.

Cultural trait

The specific customs that are part of the everyday life of a particular culture deprive from specific conditions and practices in the group's homeland. Ex: Cultural traits include language, religion, ethnicity, social institutions, and aspects of popular culture.

Relocation diffusion

The spread of an idea or trend through physical movement of people from one place to another. Ex: The spread of soccer is an example of a popular custom which started as a folk culture (which diffuses through relocation diffusion) but was popularized and then globalized.

Expansion diffusion

The spread of an innovation or an idea to new places while staying strong in their original locations. Ex: Islam has spread throughout the world, but it has still stayed strong in the Middle East, where it was founded.

Stimulus diffusion

The spread of an underlying principle, even though a specific characteristic is rejected. Ex: McDonald spreads to India but Indian Hindus do not eat beef.

Cultural landscape

The visible imprint of human activity and culture on the landscape. They are usually sites that are associated with a significant event, activity? it groups of people. Ex: Protestant churches in the US South, Cathedrals in the Southern/Western Europe, Mosques in Southwest Asia.