What is anthropology? Anthropology is defined as the study of humans and the relationships between humans and other organisms. Due to the different types of anthropologies, many studies focus on particular aspects of humans, which will simply be discussed in this article. In the United States, anthropology is made up of four major subfields which are: cultural/social anthropology, archaeology, linguistic anthropology, and physical/biological anthropology. Cultural/social anthropology is the study of culture and society and describes social and cultural similarities and differences. Archeology studies human behavior and cultural patterns of the past through material remains. Linguistic anthropology studies languages and how people use them. Physical/biological anthropology is introduced as the study of the biological and behavioral characteristics of humans, apes, and their ancestors. The first chapter of Essentials of Physical Anthropology opens by introducing the famous fossil footprints left in East Africa about 4 million years ago by the animal we now call Australopithecus afarensis....
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