ANTH Cultural and Linguistic Anthropology 3

Question 1

Study of the relationship between language and social factors such as class, region, and gender is called:

Accepted Answer

Sociolinguistics

Answer

Sociolinguistics examines how language varies and changes across social groups and contexts.

Question 2

A kinship system that traces descent through the mother's line is called:

Accepted Answer

Matrilineal

Answer

In a matrilineal system, group membership and inheritance pass through the female line.

Question 3

Clifford Geertz argued that ethnography should provide a 'thick description,' meaning it should:

Accepted Answer

Interpret the meanings behind behavior

Answer

Thick description interprets the layered cultural meanings that give social actions significance, not just the surface behavior.

Question 4

The variety of language a speaker uses that signals a specific social context, such as formal versus casual speech, is a:

Accepted Answer

Register

Answer

Register refers to the way speakers adjust vocabulary and style to fit a social situation.

Question 5

A simplified language that emerges so groups without a common tongue can communicate, with no native speakers, is a:

Accepted Answer

Pidgin

Answer

A pidgin is a simplified contact language with no native speakers; when children grow up speaking it natively, it becomes a creole.

ANTH (Anthropology) Practice Test