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Welcome to the Department of Anthropology |
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The Department of Anthropology at UNC Charlotte was inaugurated in July 2007, after more than thirty years as part of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology. Anthropology is located on the second floor of the Barnard building. The faculty include specialists in cultural anthropology, biological anthropology, archaeology, and linguistic anthropology. The Department offers a B.A. in Anthropology and a B.A. in Anthropology with a concentration in Applied Anthropology. We are currently planning an M.A. program in Anthropology. |
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We could start with what anthropology is not. Anthropology is not the study of dinosaurs (that would be paleontology). Anthropology is not just the study of bones (although that is included in biological anthropology). Anthropology is not just the study of ancient arrowheads (although that is included in archaeology). Anthropology is not the study of naked primitive people (although anthropologists are interested in cultures around the world).
Anthropology is the scientific and humanistic study of the human species. Anthropologists take a holistic and cross-cultural view of the species, integrating biological, historical, and cultural perspectives. In the broadest sense, anthropologists study what it means to be human. One American anthropologist, Prof. Conrad Kottak, says that anthropology “is the exploration of human diversity in time and space. Anthropology confronts basic questions of human existence: how we originated, how we have changed, and how we are still changing.”
The broad variety of anthropologists are often described as members of four major subfields: Biological Anthropology, Cultural Anthropology, Linguistic Anthropology, and Archaeology.
Until World War II, almost all anthropologists worked in universities or museums. Since the 1950s, however, the field of applied anthropology has grown dramatically. Applied anthropologists – who may be cultural, biological, linguistic or archaeological anthropologists – use anthropological knowledge and methods to solve modern social problems. Applied anthropologists may work in schools, health care organizations, international development agencies, corporations, government agencies, non-profit foundations, and elsewhere. |
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