Department Chair: Vincent H. Stefan (Davis Hall, Room 411/421-A)
Department Faculty and Staff: Professors: Eric Delson, Anthony L. LaRuffa; Associate Professors: Louis Flam, Christa Salamandra, Victoria Sanford, Vincent H. Stefan; Assistant Professors: William E.H. Harcourt-Smith, Ryan Raaum, Stephanie Rupp; Senior College Laboratory Technician: Salah Noueihed
The discipline of Anthropology utilizes a four-field approach to the study of humans. Physical anthropology studies humans and their primate relatives in terms of evolution, biology, and behavior. Archaeology studies cultural evolution, elucidating past human societies from their beginnings to the development of complex societies. Anthropological linguistics studies languages crossculturally, including topics such as language structure and sociocultural dimensions of language use. Cultural anthropology focuses on human behavior in diverse societies around the world. Subsumed under cultural anthropology are such fields as economic anthropology, political anthropology, medical anthropology, and anthropology and education. The Department offers a major in anthropology; an interdisciplinary major in anthropology (physical), biology, and chemistry; and a 12-credit minor.
Programs
34-35 CREDIT MAJOR IN ANTHROPOLOGY, B.A.
The required courses and credits are distributed as follows:
Credits (34-35)
17 Required of all majors:
ANT 171: Introduction to Human Evolution (4)
ANT 211: Cultural Anthropology (3)
ANT 212: Ancient Peoples and Cultures (3)
ANT 269: Introduction to Human Variation (4)
ANT 228: Language and Culture (3) or ANT 326: Anthropological Linguistics (3)
3 One additional course in Cultural Anthropology, Ethnology, or Ethnography
3 One additional course in Archaeology
9 In other courses in Anthropology selected by the student, in at least one of which the student must elect to complete a significant writing component (approximately 15 pages minimum)in consultation with the instructor, and then confirm the details with the Department Adviser or Chair.
2-3 One advanced seminar/research course numbered above 449.
*Courses preceded by an asterisk are not expected to be offered in 2009-2011.
*ANT 142: Images of Culture. 3 hours, 3 credits. An introduction through films, lectures, and readings to anthropological perspectives on human culture. Survey focusing on the universal pattern of human culture: modes of adaptation and livelihood, sex roles, religious rituals, and government systems, including peacekeeping and war-making.
ANT 171: Introduction to Human Evolution. 5 hours (3, lecture; 2, lab), 4 credits. The integrated study of human evolutionary history, including a consideration of evolutionary theory, genetics, modern human variation, adaptation and anatomy, the behavior and paleontology of our close primate relatives, and the fossil record of human biological and cultural change.
ANT(WST)206: Anthropological Perspectives on Women and Men. 3 hours, 3 credits. The roles of females and males in both simple and complex societies. Exploration of some of the factors involved in differential allocation of work, roles, prestige, and power among females and males. Factors to be examined include economic structure, the distribution of power, the process of socialization, and ecological adaptation.
ANT (WST) (LAC) 210: Women in Latin America. 3 hours, 3 credits. The impact of social and cultural differences among women on gender relations, women's sexualities and identities in Latin America.
ANT 211: Cultural Anthropology. 3 hours, 3 credits. An examination of cultural variations in contemporary and historical societies worldwide. Discussion of specific cultural components, such as technology and material products, language, economy, values, ideology, religion, and aesthetics. Consideration of the role of cultural anthropology in addressing contemporary global issues.
ANT 212: Ancient Peoples and Cultures. 3 hours, 3 credits. The use of archaeological and early documentary data to study the origins and development of culture, agriculture, and complex societies.
ANT 228 (LNG 228): Language and Culture. 3 hours, 3 credits. Cultural meanings of language in use and the interrelations between linguistic behaviors and cultural practices.
ANT 230, 231, 232, 233, 234, 235, 236, 237, and (LAC) 238: Selected Studies in Societies and Cultures. 3 hours, 3 credits. Description and analysis of these areas' distinctive ecological, economic, socio-political, and ideological systems.
*230: Africa
231: Middle East
*232: Europe
233: India
*234: Oceania
235: Native North America
236: Southeast Asia
237: East Asia
ANT 239: Peoples and Cultures of Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India. 3 credits, 3 hours. The diverse cultures of Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India in their many aspects: geographical, historical, archaeological, ethnic, religious, linguistic, artistic, culinary, and musical.
ANT 240: Emergence of Ancient Civilizations. 3 hours, 3 credits. Anthropological perspectives on the rise of early civilizations, states, and urbanism in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Pakistan, China, Mesoamerica, and Peru.
ANT 250 (IAS 250): The Italian-American Community. 3 hours, 3 credits. The immigration to America from the 1880s to the present, and the emergence of the Italian-American community, with particular emphasis on the social structure of the community and its changing cultural values. PREREQ: None, if student wishes to count the course toward the Anthropology major. For credit toward a major in Sociology, the prerequisite is SOC 166.
ANT 251: Peoples and Cultures of [geographic area to be determined]. 3 credits, 3 hours. (May be repeated for credit as the topic changes up to a maximum of six credits.)Description and comparative analysis of the culture, including economic, socio-political, ecological, and ideological aspects of a selected geographic region or ethnic group.
ANT 269: Introduction to Human Variation. 5 hours (3 lecture, 2 lab), 4 credits. Considers how and why people differ physically within and between groups, the genetic and functional basis for these differences, and their significance for adaptation and survival. Topics range from skin, hair, and eye color differences to variations in body size and proportions, serological and biochemical differences, and growth pattern differences. Theoretical issues discussed include the concepts of race/clines, microevolution, and the continuing evolution of the human species.
ANT 300: Human Variation. 3 hours, 3 credits. The causes and effects of biological variation on human adaptation and evolution. Emphasis is on the explanation and significance of population differences in modern human beings. PREREQ: ANT 269.
ANT 301: Human Origins. 3 hours, 3 credits. The origin and evolutionary history of the human lineage, from primate roots through paleontology of apes and early humans to the biological and cultural evolution of modern humans.
ANT 302: Primate Behavior and Ecology. 3 hours, 3 credits. Adaptations and interactions of free-ranging primates.
ANT 303: Human Osteology. 6 hours (3, lecture; 3, lab), 4.5 credits. Detailed study of the human skeleton, with techniques to determine age, sex, and "race," identify individuals, and recognize markers of trauma and disease. Applications of human osteology in forensic science, skeletal biology, bioarchaeology, and paleoanthropology.
ANT 305: Forensic Anthropology. 3 hours, 3 credits. Survey of the techniques and methods of biological anthropology as applied in the identification of human remains in a medico-legal context: field recovery of human remains, biological profile of deceased, antemortem trauma, cause/manner of death, time since death, and methods of individualization.
ANT 306: Survey of Forensic Science. 3 hours, 3 credits. Survey of the study and practice of the application of science to the resolution of social and legal issues, including current research and procedures in criminalistics, jurisprudence, odontology, pathology, physical anthropology, psychiatry, questioned documents, toxicology, and computers. NOTE: Lectures will be given by Lehman faculty and by guest lecturers who hold posts in local crime labs, medical offices, and mass-disaster squads.
ANT 307: The Anthropology of Growth. 3 hours, 3 credits. Human growth and development, with emphasis on those aspects of the growth process that concern the physical anthropologist: anthropometric techniques, skeletal and dental maturation, secular trends in growth, changing growth rates as a factor in human evolution, and human growth in varying physical and cultural environments.
ANT 309: Human Genetics. 3 hours, 3 credits. Biological inheritance in human beings. Emphasis on the genetic basis of human variation and its significance for evolution, medicine, education, and the law. Topics include twin studies, family pedigrees, mutation, selection, migration, race mixture, and behavioral genetics.
ANT 310: Evolution of the Primates. 3 hours, 3 credits. Anatomy of nonhuman primates, especially skulls and teeth; study of fossil remains and analysis of their phylogeny and historical relationships. Evolutionary methods and philosophies.
*ANT 311: The Archaeology of Europe. 3 hours, 3 credits.
*ANT 312: African Archaeology. 3 hours, 3 credits.
ANT 313: Archaeology of Asia. 3 hours, 3 credits. Introduction to the earliest cultures of South Asia (Pakistan and India), Southeast Asia (Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia), and East Asia (China, Japan) from the origins of food production through the rise of civilization.
ANT 314: Archaeology of the Near East. 3 hours, 3 credits. From Ice Age hunters to Hammurabi of Babylon: the major economic, social, and political changes that transformed societies of hunters and farmers into the world's first complex civilization.
*ANT 316: Early Societies and Cultures of North America. 3 hours, 3 credits. Native American cultures from all parts of the continent north of Mexico from the earliest peopling of the New World to the coming of Europeans. Ecology; the economics of subsistence and the politics of interaction; hunting and gathering and agriculture; warfare and cooperation.
ANT (LAC) 317: Early Civilization of South America and the Caribbean. 3 hours, 3 credits. The Incas and their ancestors; the Arawaks and the Caribs. A region-by-region treatment of the prehistory of South America and the Caribbean, the course examines the diversity of ancient life in this area. Special emphasis on the native civilizations of the Andes. Additional material from all other parts of Central America, the Caribbean, and South America.
ANT (LAC) 318: Early Civilizations of Mexico and Central America. 3 hours, 3 credits. The Aztec and Mayan civilizations of Mexico and northern Central America from the earliest peopling of the new world to the civilizations encountered by Cortes and the Spanish. Topics include the origins of agriculture and settled life, the earliest civilizations, Olmec art, Mayan astronomy, and Aztec sacrifice.
*ANT 319: The Archaeology of Southwestern North America. 3 hours, 3 credits.
*ANT 320: Anthropological Theory and Method I. 3 hours, 3 credits.
*ANT 321: Anthropological Theory and Method II. 3 hours, 3 credits.
*ANT 322: Analyzing Anthropological Data Quantitatively. 3 hours, 3 credits. PREREQ: Two 3-credit ANT courses and completion of the College Requirement in Mathematics.
ANT 323: Methods and Philosophies in Paleoanthropology. 3 hours, 3 credits. Theoretical framework of human evolution, the integrative nature of evolutionary theory, and the relevance and interpretation of fossils. Systematic and taxonomic principles in the context of fossil human and nonhuman primates. Conflicting strategies of interpreting fossil remains and evolutionary hypotheses. PREREQ: ANT 301 or 310 or the instructor's permission.
ANT 324: Museum Methodology. 4 hours (2 lecture, 2 lab), 3 credits. Study of museums and their roles in modern societies, including the representation of our cultures and the cultures of others to the public; the preservation and restoration of objects; the organization of museum-based research; and the planning, assembly, installation, and labeling of exhibits. PREREQ: One ANT course or permission of the instructor. Note: Frequent visits to area museums will be arranged.
*ANT 325: Method and Theory in Archaeology. 3 hours, 3 credits. PREREQ: ANT 212.
ANT (LNG)326: Anthropological Linguistics. 3 hours, 3 credits. Speech and language within the context of anthropology. Language as a cultural resource.
*ANT 327: Field Techniques in Anthropological Linguistics. 3 hours, 3 credits. PREREQ: ANT 326.
ANT 330: Dynamics of Culture Change in a Global Context. 3 hours, 3 credits. Major theoretical explanations of cultural change and continuity in selected historical and contemporary societies.
ANT 331: Prehistoric and Contemporary Subsistence Systems. 3 hours, 3 credits. Theories concerning the origin and spread of animal and plant domestication are surveyed. Emphasis on the role of agricultural ecology and economics in the evolution of social systems, from small-scale village societies practicing long-fallow cultivation to states and empires depending on complex irrigation agriculture. Both ethnographic and archaeological examples are drawn upon.
ANT 332: Kinship, Marriage, and the Family. 3 hours, 3 credits. Examination of varieties of marriage practices, forms of family organization, and kin relationships in cultures around the world.
ANT 334: Mind and Culture. 3 hours, 3 credits. Personality differences and similarities within and between several cultures as they are produced by psychological and sociocultural forces.
ANT 335: Folklore and Oral Traditions. 3 hours, 3 credits. Content analysis of folktales, riddles, proverbs, and origin myths, with special reference to their cross-cultural function and meaning in selected societies, rural and urban.
ANT 336: Music and Culture. 3 hours, 3 credits. Introduction to the place of music in human life. Anthropological perspectives on the creation, performance, and role of musical forms in non-Western and Western societies.
*ANT 337: Inequality in Cross-Cultural Perspective. 3 hours, 3 credits. Comparative analysis of class, race, and/or gender inequality in a wide variety of social and cultural contexts. PREREQ: ANT 211 or permission of the instructor.
ANT 338: Religion: An Anthropological Perspective. 3 hours, 3 credits. Patterns of religious belief and behavior, including concepts of the supernatural, divination, visions, and sacrifice, and the relationship of these to other aspects of culture.
ANT 339: Anthropology of Complex Societies. 3 hours, 3 credits. Sociocultural analysis of rural and urban peoples in selected areas of the world. Emphasis on rural-urban relationships and the interaction of the local with the national and global context.
ANT 340: Anthropology and Education. 3 hours, 3 credits. Introduction to anthropological concepts that have special relevance to education. Application of these concepts through analysis of case studies.
ANT 341: Medical Anthropology. 3 hours, 3 credits. Relationship of culture to disease: cross-cultural attitudes toward illness and the ailing, curative practices, and problems in the introduction of Western medical practices into peasant communities. The effects of culture on the state of health of the population.
ANT 342: Anthropology of Cities. 3 hours, 3 credits. Daily life in selected cities of the world from an anthropological perspective. Social and cultural aspects of relevant urban issues: urban growth and decline, migration, relations of cooperation and conflict, class and ethnicity, and city pleasures.
ANT 343: Economic Anthropology. 3 hours, 3 credits. Comparative study of economic systems in tribal and peasant societies. The role of social and cultural factors in production, distribution, consumption, and exchange among hunters and gatherers, herders, and agriculturalists.
ANT 344: The Anthropology of Politics and Law. 3 hours, 3 credits. Analysis of the development of formal and informal political structures, government, and law in tribal and peasant societies. The nature of power, authority, and social control in selected societies.
ANT 345: Seminar in Field Methods. 3 hours, 3 credits. (May be repeated for a maximum of 6 credits.) Methods of data collection and analysis in cultural anthropology. Includes field experience. PREREQ: Instructor's permission.
ANT (ARH) 346: North American Indian Art. 3 hours, 3 credits. Ancient and modern Indian art styles of North America, with special emphases on the tribal art of select regions of the United States and Canada, and relationships with adjacent traditions of pre-Columbian Mexico.
ANT (LAC) 347: Race and Ethnicity in Latin America and the Caribbean. 3 hours, 3 credits. Comparative study of racial and ethnic relations in Latin America.
ANT 348: The Ecology and Politics of Hunger. 7 hours (3 lecture, 4 fieldwork in the community), 4 credits. An ecological, politico-economic, sociocultural, and nutritional analysis of world hunger, drawing on anthropological and historical evidence to investigate the diverse causes of hunger, the contexts in which hunger arises, and the efforts that have been made over the centuries to end hunger. PREREQ: ANT 211 or permission of the instructor.
ANT (COM)351: The Anthropology of Media. 3 hours, 3 credits. Anthropological approaches to media production and consumption. The uses of media in the construction of local, national, and transnational identities.
ANT 356: Advanced Ethnology. 3 hours, 3 credits (maximum 9 credits). (May be re-elected with a change in culture area.)Intensive examination of cultures belonging to a specific culture area or culture type. Detailed consideration of both ethnographic data and ethnological problems pertaining to the area or type. (For specific area to be discussed, consult the Department.)
ANT 360: Humans and the Environment. 3 hours, 3 credits. (May be repeated for a maximum of six credits.) Physical and cultural responses of human groups, both past and present, to varying environmental conditions. The topic will vary from semester to semester, concentrating either on physical or cultural approaches to modern human adaptation or on paleoanthropology.
ANT 370: Excavation of the Lehman College Site. 5 hours(3 lecture, 2 lab), 4 credits. Introduction to archaeological field methods through the creation and excavation of a site on the campus of the College. Excavation and recording techniques as well as data processing and analysis will be discussed in the classroom, followed by the scientific excavation of a created site. NOTE: This site will be created by the purposeful burial of artifacts, ecofacts, and features in the form of a small, low mound.
*ANT 371: Field and Laboratory Research in Archaeology. 6 hours (3, lecture; 3, lab), 4 credits. Field and laboratory techniques of excavation and data processing in the practice of archeology. Note: Archaeological excavation at actual sites in the vicinity of New York City will be undertaken, including instruction in excavation technique, mapping, and record keeping. Lab work will be conducted at the Lehman College Archaeology Laboratory, including materials analysis, conservation, and interpretation.
ANT 450: Seminar in Selected Problems of Cultural Anthropology. 3 hours, 3 credits (maximum 6 credits). Research-oriented course on selected problems in the field of cultural anthropology. PREREQ: Permission of the instructor.
ANT 451: Seminar in Selected Problems of Archaeology. 3 hours, 3 credits (maximum 6 credits). Research-oriented course on selected problems in the field of archaeology. PREREQ: Permission of the instructor.
ANT 452: Advanced Seminar in Anthropology. 3 hours, 3 credits. Selected topics examined from the perspectives of the four subfields: cultural anthropology, physical anthropology, archaeology, and anthropological linguistics. PREREQ: Permission of the instructor.
ANT 454: Seminar in Selected Problems of Physical Anthropology. 3 hours, 3 credits (maximum 6 credits). Research-oriented course on selected problems in the field of physical anthropology. PREREQ: Permission of the instructor.
ANT 489: Independent Research in Anthropology. 2-3 credits per semester (maximum 6 credits). Research or fieldwork in any field of anthropology, under faculty supervision. PREREQ: Permission of the instructor.
*Courses preceded by an asterisk are not expected to be offered in 2009-2011.
Introductory Courses
Foundation Courses for the Major:
ANT 171: Introduction to Human Evolution
ANT 211: Cultural Anthropology
ANT 212: Ancient Peoples and Cultures
ANT 269: Introduction to Human Variation
Other Introductory Courses
ANT 142: Images of Culture
ANT (WST) 206: Women and Men: Anthropological Perspectives
ANT (WST)(LAC) 210: Women in Latin America
ANT/(LNG) 228: Language & Culture
Ethnography of Selected Areas
ANT 230, 231, 232, 233, 234, 235, 236, 237, and (LAC) 238:
Selected Studies in Societies and Cultures
*230: Africa
231: Middle East
*232: Europe
233: India
*234: Oceania
235: Native North America
236: Southeast Asia
237: East Asia
(LAC) 238: Latin America
Field I: Physical Anthropology
ANT 300: Human Variation
ANT 301: Human Origins
ANT 302: Primate Behavior & Ecology
ANT 303: Human Osteology
ANT 305: Forensic Anthropology
ANT 306: Survey of Forensic Science
ANT 307: The Anthropology of Growth
ANT 309: Human Genetics
ANT 310: Evolution of the Primates
Field II: Archaeology
ANT 240: Emergence of Ancient Civilizations
ANT 370: Excavation of the Lehman College Site
*ANT 311: The Archaeology of Europe
*ANT 312: African Archaeology
ANT 313: Archaeology of Asia
ANT 314: Archaeology of the Near East
*ANT 316: Early Societies and Cultures of North America
ANT (LAC)317: Early Civilization of South America and the Caribbean
ANT (LAC)318: Early Civilizations of Mexico and Central America
*ANT 319: The Archaeology of Southwestern North America
ANT 331: Prehistoric and Contemporary Subsistence Systems
ANT 371: Field and Laboratory Research in Archaeology
Field III: Anthropological Linguistics
ANT 326 (LNG 326): Anthropological Linguistics
*ANT 327: Field Techniques in Anthropological Linguistics
Field IV: Cultural Anthropology and Ethnology
ANT 250 (IAS 250): The Italian-American Community
ANT 330: Dynamics of Culture Change in a Global Context
ANT 331: Prehistoric and Contemporary Subsistence Systems
ANT 332: Kinship, Marriage, and the Family
ANT 334: Mind and Culture
ANT 335: Folklore and Oral Traditions
ANT 336: Music and Culture
*ANT 337: Inequality in Cross-Cultural Perspective
ANT 338: Religion: An Anthropological Perspective
ANT 339: Anthropology of Complex Societies
ANT 340: Anthropology and Education
ANT 341: Medical Anthropology
ANT 342: Anthropology of Cities
ANT 343: Economic Anthropology
ANT 344: The Anthropology of Politics and Law
ANT 345: Seminar in Field Methods
ANT (ARH)346: North American Indian Art
ANT (LAC)347: Race and Ethnicity in Latin America
ANT 348: The Ecology and Politics of Hunger
ANT 356: Advanced Ethnology
Anthropological Methods and Theory
*ANT 320: Anthropological Theory and Method I
*ANT 321: Anthropological Theory and Method II
*ANT 322: Analyzing Anthropological Data Quantitatively
ANT 323: Methods and Philosophies in Paleoanthropology
ANT 324: Museum Methodology
*ANT 325: Method and Theory in Archaeology
Anthropology Courses & Seminars with Variable Topics
ANT 360: Humans and the Environment
ANT 450: Seminar in Selected Problems of Cultural Anthropology
ANT 451: Seminar in Selected Problems of Archaeology
ANT 452: Advanced Seminar in Anthropology
ANT 454: Seminar in Selected Problems of Physical Anthropology
Supervised Independent Study
ANT 489: Independent Research in Anthropology