Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Anthropology takes a broad approach to understanding the many different aspects of the human experience. It is divided into three subfields: sociocultural, biological, and archaeology.
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Sociocultural anthropology: Sociocultural anthropologists interpret the content of particular cultures, explain variation among cultures, and study processes of cultural change and social transformation. They conduct research on most areas of the world, focusing on topics that include human ecology, gender relations, culture and ideology, demography and family systems, race, class and gender inequality, resistance movements, colonialism, neocolonialism, and development, and cultural politics in the West.
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Biological anthropology: Biological anthropologists study a variety of aspects of human evolutionary biology. Some examine fossils and apply their observations to understanding human evolution; others compare morphological, biochemical genetic, and physiological adaptations of living humans to their environments; still others observe.
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Archaeology: Archaeology is the study of past people through the things they left behind. It is the method of investigation of prehistoric cultures and has been an integral part of anthropology since it became a self-conscious discipline in the latter half of the 19th century.
Anthropologists study people from every angle. Some look at different peoples customs, like how they eat, celebrate, or worship. Some study their history and the languages they speak. And others study the genetic differences within the human species. Anthropology is concerned with determining what humans are, how they evolved, and how they differ from one another.
