Anthropology Major(B.A) | Anthropology Minor | Course Description

Anthropology Major (B.A)

A. University General Education Program (48 - 51 hours)
For more comprehensive Information, see the Undergraduate Bulletin.

B. College and Degree (B.A.) Requirements (18-19 hours)
The College and Bachelor of Arts requirements are in addition to the University General Education Program requirements.

C. The Major (30 hours)
Completion of 30 semester hours in anthropology courses including ANTH 1100, 1200, 3200, 4065; and 18 additional semester hours, at least 6 of which must be at the 4000 level.

D. Electives
Electives may be chosen to bring the total number of hours to 124.

E. Computer Literacy
This requirement may be satisfied by taking COMP 1200, by a course of study approved by the dean, or by passing the University-approved computer literacy examination.

F. Honors Program
The Department of Anthropology offers an honors program in anthropology to the superior anthropology student who desires a more intensive approach to and knowledge of the discipline, a deeper understanding of research skills, and an opportunity for original criticism and analysis. To be eligible a student must
  (a) have the approval of the Departmental Honors Committee,
  (b) be an anthropology major,
  (c) have attained at least junior standing,
  (d) have completed successfully ANTH 1100, 1200, and one upper-division anthropology course and,
  (e) a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.00 in overall studies,
  (f) a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.25 in anthropology,
  (g) complete of four honors courses in anthropology (at least one of which must be an independent study culminating in a research paper/thesis or research report) and a minimum of six hours in honors courses outside anthropology.
Those students who complete the program and the regular college requirements will be recognized at the commencement ceremony by having their degree conferred, "With Honors in Anthropology." Moreover the student’s diploma and the record at The University of Memphis will reflect this accomplishment. Details of the program are available at the Department of Anthropology office.

Anthropology Minor

Completion of 18 semester hours in anthropology courses, including ANTH 1100, 1200, 3200, and 4065.

Course Description

ANTH 1100. Human Origins and Variation. (3). Biocultural basis for understanding humans; emphasis on fossil record and origins and development of humans, human society and culture; primate models and human behavior; human variation. [G]
 

ANTH 1200. Cultural Anthropology. (3). Origin and development of human culture; social relations, language, government, religion and ritual, and problems of developing nations or minority groups in modern world. [G]
 

ANTH 3111. Human Paleontology. (3). Hominid fossil record starting with primate developments; human evolution; human osteology.
 

ANTH 3200. Peoples and Cultures of the World. (3). (Same as GEOG 3200). Major ethnographic areas and selected cultures of the world.
 

ANTH 3232. Cultural Heritage of Latin America. (3). Description and distribution of prehistoric and contemporary peoples and cultures of South America and Mesoamerica; comparisons and interrelationships during pre- and post-contact periods.
 

ANTH 3242. Peoples of Africa. (3). Description and distribution of peoples and cultures of Africa; comparisons and inter-relationships during pre- and post-contact periods.
 

ANTH 3282. Cultural History of American Communities. (3). Cultural historic interpretation of formation, development and transformation of diverse community life patterns in America; emphasis on analysis of community as it reflects change in settlement patterns, kinship networks, political, religious, economic and value systems in American society. [G] w
 

ANTH 3300. The Ascent to Civilization. (3). (Same as HIST 3300). Interdisciplinary integrative examination of nature of civilization through investigation of origins of civilization and comparative study of world’s earliest civilizations. PREREQUISITE: 9 hours of anthropology and/or history including either ANTH 1100 or HIST 1110. [I]
 

ANTH 3511. Culture, Kin and Family. (3). Changing structure of family in Western and non-Western societies; cross-cultural approaches to mate selection, courtship rituals, kinship organization, institution of marriage, division of labor and authority in household, and childbearing; variation and flexibility in family structures as adaptive strategies for environmental, social and cultural change.
 

ANTH 4010. Anthropological Methods of Field Research. (3-6). Various qualitative and quantitative methods of anthropological research; includes preparing for field research, collecting data, analyzing data and writing ethnographic descriptions of contemporary societies. [W,C]

ANTH 4051-6051. Anthropology and Education. (3). Advanced study of cultural transmission process with emphasis on identifying differing behavioral, cognitive and learning styles of various ethnic groups within American society and selected third world countries; encounters of U.S. subcultural groups with public education system. PREREQUISITE: permission of instructor.
 

ANTH 4065-6065. Contemporary Anthropological Theory. (3). Contemporary growth of theories and methods in anthropology.
 

ANTH 4111-6111. Human Adaptations. (3). Physical and cultural adaptations of humans in an evolutionary and ecological context; information from primate studies, the archaeological record and studies of contemporary societies; environmental context of physical adaptations, cultural adaptations, language, social organization. PREREQUISITE: ANTH 1100, 1200, or permission of instructor.
 

ANTH 4120-6120. Africa’s New World Communities. (3). Survey of African American cultures in the New World emanating from 17th and 18th centuries slave trade; focus on African Diaspora; Caribbean, Central America, South America and North America.
 

ANTH 4220-6220. Human Dimensions of Natural Resource Management. (3). Role of culture in the use  and management of natural resources; discusses how societies construct knowledge about nature and attribute value to it; examines how indigenous knowledge, alternative value systems and traditional management strategies influence policy decisions at the local, national, and international levels. PREREQUISITE: ANTH 4200 or permission of instructor.
 

ANTH 4251-6251. Psychological Anthropology. (3). Examines the relationship between culture and personality; cross-cultural comparison of perspectives on cognition, mental illness, ethnopsychiatry and ethnotherapies.

ANTH 4253-6253. Anthropology of Religion. (3). Comparative analysis of religious systems and their functional relationships to other cultural institutions; interrelations of myth, magic, and ritual; types of religious institutions and religious practitioners.
 

ANTH 4301-6301. Archaeology of North America. (3). Intensive study of various prehistoric cultures from earliest times until historic contact. PREREQUISITE: ANTH 1100, 1200, 1300, or permission of instructor.
 

ANTH 4302-6302. Native Peoples of North America. (3). (3231). Ethnology of North America; intensive study of various prehistoric cultures from earliest times until historic contact. PREREQUISITE: ANTH 1100, 1200, 1300, or permission of instructor.

ANTH 4325-6325. Archaeological Field & Laboratory Techniques. (3). Instruction in field excavation, specimen preparation, use of survey instruments and photography, map making, archaeological record keeping. May be repeated for a maximum of 6 hours credit. PREREQUISITE: permission of instructor.
 

ANTH 4326-6326. Archaeological Laboratory Techniques. (3). Methods and techniques in archaeological laboratory analysis; emphasis on organization and supervision of laboratory procedures. PREREQUISITE: permission of instructor.
 

ANTH 4336-6336. Native Peoples of the Southeastern United States. (3). (3035). Ethnology of Southeast; intensive study of various Native American cultures in the Southeast during the post-contact period. PREREQUISITE: ANTH 1100, 1200 and 1300, or permission of instructor.
 

ANTH 4352-6352. Old World Archaeology. (3). (3351) (Same as ESCI 4352). Old World cultures from first humans to early civilizations.

ANTH 4411-6411. Urban Anthropology. (3). Anthropological studies of pre-industrial and industrial cities; urbanization, movements of social transformation and other processes of adjustment to urban milieu; urban slums, ethnic enclaves and housing developments in cross-cultural perspective; urban kinship and social organization; urban community development; urban research techniques.

ANTH 4412-6412. Neighborhood Development and Poverty. (3). Role of various institutions and their relationship to developmental needs of inner city neighborhoods; evolution of American cities as context for understanding urban neighborhoods and poverty; role of government and foundations in shaping policy at local level; rise of neighborhood associations and non-profits as extensions of family values; contributing to better understanding of neighborhoods and various intervention strategies.

ANTH 4413-6413. Anthropology of Tourism. (3). Advanced study of developing field of tourism in anthropology; explores cultural dynamics and dilemmas of tourism and tourist development; different forms of tourism (mass, elite, eco, ethnic and heritage) assessed both in terms of impacts on host culture and its environment as well as tourists themselves; tourism assessed as a development alternative, a driver of cultural change, and a form of local, regional national, international and intercultural relations. PREREQUISITE: ANTH 1200.
 

ANTH 4414-6414. Culture and Transnational Processes. (3). Advanced study of changes in culture and economic systems beginning with early industrial capitalism, evolving through stages of integrated mass production, and finally the current restructuring of a global system; focus on flexible mass production, regional connections, workplace innovation, international labor migration, human resources. PREREQUISITE: ANTH 1200 or 3200, or permission of instructor.
 

ANTH 4420-6420. American Folklore. (3). Selected genres of American folklore, including folk religion and belief, folk medicine, folk song and music, narrative and humor (jokes and riddles); comparisons to other cultures; emphasis on role of folklore in maintenance of tradition, in social change, and in concept of culture.
 

ANTH 4511-6511. Medical Anthropology. (3). Cross-cultural analysis of bio-behavioral components of infectious, nutritional, genetic, chronic and psychiatric diseases; individual and cultural reactions to medical care, professionals and health care delivery systems.
 

ANTH 4512-6512. Complementary and Alternative Medicine. (3). Focus on complementary and alternative medicine practiced in the United States and the world.

ANTH 4531-6531. Alcohol, Drugs and Culture. (3). Cross-cultural comparison of beliefs, rituals, meaning of substance use and abuse; examination of biological and cultural evidence on origin and  development problems; implications for prevention, early intervention, and treatment.
 

ANTH 4541-6541. Nutritional Anthropology. (3). Cross-cultural comparison of human diet; assessment; cultural and health value of foods; hunger and malnutrition; acculturation and dietary change.
 

ANTH 4551-6551. Culture, Sex  and Childbirth. (3). Review of biological, environmental, social and cultural factors influencing human reproduction; comparison of cultural and clinical perspectives on sexual orientation and behavior, sexually transmitted diseases, fertility, birth control, pregnancy, birth and post-partum care; evaluation of alternative delivery systems in Western and non-Western societies.

ANTH 4660-6660. Museum Collections. (3). (Same as ARTH 4660). Theory, methods, collection policy, development, preservation, documentation, interpretation of museum collections. PREREQUISITE: permission of instructor.
 

ANTH 4661-6661. Collections Research. (3). (Same as ARTH 4661). Introduces students in object based disciplines to museum collections research methods and application to exhibitions, catalogs, scholarly publications. PREREQUISITE: permission of instructor.

ANTH 4662-6662. Museum Exhibitions (3). (Same as ARTH 4662). Methods and theory of research, design, layout, object selection and handling, installation, public programming and evaluation. PREREQUISITE: permission of instructor.
 

ANTH 4840-6840. Israel: Antiquity in Modernity. (3). (Same as JDST 4840). Interdisciplinary examination of relationship between ancient traditions and modern issues in Israel; emphasis on relationship between historical conditions, conflicts, and interconnections, and new choices facing Israel.
 

ANTH 4841-6841. Biblical Archaeology. (3). (Same as JDST 4841). Relationship between historical texts in Hebrew Bible and historical evidence from archaeological research in Israel and surrounding area; emphasis on how archaeological evidence and biblical narratives illuminate each other.

ANTH 4880-6880. Social Life of Things. (3). Advanced study of material culture that examines ways in which things people make, acquire, use and discard can inform understandings of society and culture. PREREQUISITE: permission of instructor.
 

ANTH 4970. Directed Anthropological Internship. (1-3). Supervised practical experience in application of anthropological principles in agency or facility appropriate to discipline of anthropology. Student selects topic and partner organization in consultation with faculty supervisor and department chair. PREREQUISITE: permission of instructor.

ANTH 4975. Directed Individual Readings. (1-3). Intensive guided survey of anthropological and related literature; student selects a topic in consultation with a faculty member and department chair. (A-F, IP)

ANTH 4985. Directed Individual Research. (1-3). Intensive guided research, data analysis and presentation; student selects a topic in consultation with a faculty supervisor and department chair. (A-F, IP)

ANTH 4990-99. Special Topics in Anthropology. (3). May be repeated for a maximum of 6 hours credit when topic varies.