Intro to
Culture
Unit 3:
Part 1
Outline
Folk
Culture
Popular
Culture
Part 1: Introduction to Culture
What is
Culture
How do we
adapt to
culture?
Introduction
to Culture
Where does
culture
come
from?
What is
culture
made of?
Section A: What is Culture?
Create your own definition:
Culture comes from the Latin word Cultura
which means “to cultivate”.
Culture is the mix of values,
beliefs, behaviors, and
material objects that form(i.e.
cultivate) a people’s way of
life.
Describe the culture of your classroom,
school, town, and state.
How do we study culture?
Cultural
Geography
Culture
Cultural
Ecology
Cultural
Landscapes
What is cultural geography?
Cultural geography is the
study of how and why
cultures vary over space.
What is the cultural landscape?
Cultural landscapes are places
that reveal a society’s cultural
identity through nature as well
as through architecture and
artifacts.
Four Types of Cultural Landscapes
Designed Landscape: Consciously designed to embody
the cultural ideals of the designer(s).
The Vatican in Rome, Italy
Vernacular Landscape: A landscape that comes about
through the use of people over time.
Acoma Pueblo in New Mexico
Historic Site: A landscape that is important because of
a historical event, activity, or person.
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Ethnographic Landscape: A landscape that contains both
natural and cultural resources important to a certain
group of people.
The Ganges River, India
Locate and describe a cultural landscape
that is important to you. What kind is it?
What is cultural ecology?
Cultural ecology studies the
relationship between the
natural environment and
culture.
Cultural Ecology: Schools of Thought
Environmental
Determinism
Possibilism
Environmental
Perception
Cultural
Determinism
Social Culture is
developed
completely by the
environment.
People develop
culture as much
as environment.
Perception of the
environment
affects culture.
Human culture is
more important
than the physical
environment.
Similar
environments
produce similar
cultures.
The environment
provides
possibilities for a
culture.
Perception is
developed by the
teachings of
culture.
Humans
determine the
environment.
Technology
increases the
possibilities.
Explain the school(s) of thought that best
explains the following scenario:
A small, undiscovered community is located
on the coast of South America. The food
they consume is fish and they spend much
of their time sacrificing to the gods who
visit wrath upon them in the form of large,
windy storms that periodically destroy
their village when they are angered.
Section B: What is culture made of?
Habit
• A repetitive act that an
individual performs
Custom
• A habit of a group that
becomes an identifying
characteristic.
Culture
• A collection
of group
customs.
Material
Culture
(Artifacts)
Houses
Furniture
Instruments
Books
Nonmaterial
Culture
Values
Beliefs
Behaviors
Norms
?
Culture
Trait
A single
attribute of a
culture.
Often not
confined to a
single area.
Culture
Complex
The
combination of
different
cultural traits in
distinctive
ways.
Common
values, beliefs,
behaviors, and
artifacts that
make one place
distinct.
Culture
System
A group of
interconnected
culture
complexes.
Any area with
strong cultural
ties that bind
its people
together.
Culture
Region
An area marked
by culture that
distinguishes it
from other
regions.
Cultural
Realm
A large area
marked by a
number of
cultural
regions. It is set
apart from
other world
areas because
of these
regions.
What are the traits, complexes, and
systems that make up your community?
Section C: Where does culture
come from?
What is a cultural hearth?
A cultural hearth is the area
where a cultural trait first
began.
Early cultural hearths were almost
completely determined by their physical
environment – IE. Environmental
Determinism.
What are independent inventions?
Independent Inventions are
cultural traits that develop in
many hearths apart from
interaction with one another.
Marriage is an example of an independent
invention.
Why do you think independent invention
occurs?
What is cultural diffusion?
Cultural Diffusion is the spread
of culture to areas
surrounding the cultural
hearth.
Review: What are the four types of
diffusion?