Chapter 4 Flashcards
alyha
Among the Mojave people, a boy who underwent a transformation to the social role of a female
berdache
The term used by anthropologists to describe third-gender individuals of male sex. The term “female berdache” is also sometimes used.
It is regarded as offensive by First Nation and other Aboriginal people. (see “two-spirited”)
alliance theorists
Those who study the constitution of society from the perspective of family formation, in particular emphasizing how women “circulate” as marriage partners in a given society, and how acceptable marriage partners are defined as “not-kin” in varying ways.
circumcision
The excision of the foreskin of the penis to permanently expose the glands.
couvade
The term used by anthropologists to describe a variety of rituals observed by men whose wives are pregnant in order to mimic pregnancy.
Men perform the same acts and adhere to the same restrictions as their pregnant wives, and may even feign morning sickness or childbirth itself.
cultural determinism
The belief that the cultures in which we are raised determine our character, personalities, emotional lives, and behaviours (opposed to biological determinism)
cultural relativism
The belief, developed and named by anthropologists, that any individual’s beliefs and behaviours should be understood in the context of his or her own culture rather than as the product of innate or universal tendencies and values.
descent theorists
In anthropology, those who study kinship; in particular, they examine the ways in which cultures think about and structure consanquineal “blood relationships”
female genital mutilation/ female genital cutting
A number of practices that involve the alteration of the female genitalia in forms ranging from the removal of the hood of the clitoris, to infibulation.
functionalism
A school of thought that maintains that the sex-based division of labour arose because it was necessary for the survival of early human societies.
Some functionalists also argue that the preservation of the division of labour might be an evolutionary imperative.
hijras
In India, biological males or intersexed people who adopt female social identities.
Hijras once formed a distinct caste and now constitute a socially marginalized community that nonetheless has sacred and religious significance.
hwame
Among the Mojave people, a girl who underwent transformation to a male social role.
hypermasculinity
The exaggerated display of or adherence to behaviours, traits and beliefs seen as masculine
infibulation
Generally performed on girls, this is a practice that involves the removal of the clitoris and much of the tissue of the external genital, after which the vaginal opening I either stitched or held together with thorns until it heals into a closed structure with only a small opening to allow for urination and menstruation.
matriarchy
A woman-centered form of social organization in which women, particularly mothers, are at the center of prestige and power.
matrilineality
The practice of reckoning kinship, naming, inheritance, and descent through the mother rather than the father.
muxes
In Zapotec communities in Mexico, males who take on feminine modes of dress and social roles.
nadle
Among the Navajo, a third gender assigned to either individuals of ambiguous sex or biological males. Individuals might also choose this role.
patrilineality
The practice of reckoning kinship, naming, inheritance and descent through the father.
polygamy
Marriage to more than one partner at the same time.
polygyny
A man`s marriage to more than one woman at a time.
purdah
the (primary Islamic) practice of the social seclusion of women; a system of segregation aimed at keeping women (particularly married and marriageable ones) completely separated from the world of men.
ritual segregation
The segregation of the sexes through rituals that provide a sense of identity and group membership.
sex segregation
the concentration of men and women in gender-specific roles and locations within a society. It has been argued that sex segregation is associated with lower status for women.
Within employment, the term refers to the concentration of men and women within different occupations, industries, jobs and fields. (may be vertical or horizontal)
sworn virign
In Albanian society, a daughter who swore perpetual chastity and took on the social role of a man in order to serve as her family`s head of household.
two-spirited
A term, in use since the 90`s, to describe transgendered or gender-variant people in North-American Indigenous cultures.
xanith
Omani biological male whose social and sexual role is female. They can retain this role throughout life or adept masculine identities.
