Culture (from the Latin cultura stemming from colere, meaning "to cultivate,")^[1] generally refers to patterns of human activity and the symbolic structures that give such activities significance and importance. Latin ( lingua Latīna, laˈtiːna is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Cultures can be "understood as systems of symbols and meanings that even their creators contest, that lack fixed boundaries, that are constantly in flux, and that interact and compete with one another"^[2] Different definitions of "culture" reflect different theoretical bases for understanding, or criteria for evaluating, human activity.

Culture is manifested in music, literature, lifestyle, painting and sculpture, theater and film and similar things. ^[3] Although some people identify culture in terms of consumption and consumer goods (as in high culture, low culture, folk culture, or popular culture),^[4] anthropologists understand "culture" to refer not only to consumption goods, but to the general processes which produce such goods and give them meaning, and to the social relationships and practices in which such objects and processes become embedded. High culture is a term now used in a number of different ways in Academic discourse whose most common meaning is the set of cultural products mainly in the Low culture is a Derogatory term for some forms of Popular culture. Folk culture refers to the localized Lifestyle of a Culture. It is usually handed down through Oral tradition, relates to a sense of Community Popular culture (or pop culture) is the Culture — patterns of human activity and the symbolic structures that give such activities significance and importance — For them, culture thus includes art, science, as well as moral systems.

Cultural Anthropologists most commonly use the term "culture" to refer to the universal human capacity and activities to classify, codify and communicate their experiences symbolically. Cultural anthropology is one of four fields of Anthropology (the holistic study of humanity) as it developed in the United States. The musical instrument is spelled Cymbal. A symbol is something --- such as an object, Picture, written word a sound a piece This capacity has long been taken as a defining feature of humans. (although some primatologists have identified aspects of culture among humankind's closest relatives in the animal kingdom). Primatology is the study of Primates It is a diverse Discipline and primatologists can be found in departments of Biology, Anthropology ^[5]

Farhang culture has always been the focal point of Iranian civilization. A Civilization is a society in which large numbers of people share a variety of common elements Painting of Persian women musicians from Hasht-Behesht Palace ("Palace of the 8 heavens. Hasht Behesht ("Eight Paradises" is a Safavid era palace in Isfahan, Iran. ")

Ancient Egyptian art. Ancient Egypt was an Ancient Civilization in eastern North Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now Art refers to a diverse range of Human activities creations and expressions that are appealing to the Senses or Emotions of a human individual

Culture can be defined as all the ways of life including arts, beliefs and institutions of a population that are passed down from generation to generation. The arts is a broad subdivision of Culture, composed of many expressive disciplines. Culture has been called "the way of life for an entire society. "^[6] As such, it includes codes of manners, dress, language, religion, rituals, norms of behavior such as law and morality, and systems of belief as well as the art. In Sociology, manners are the unenforced standards of conduct which show the actor to be Cultured Polite, and refined A dress (also frock, gown) is a garment consisting of a Skirt with an attached Bodice or with a matching bodice giving the effect of a one-piece A language is a dynamic set of visual auditory or tactile Symbols of Communication and the elements used to manipulate them A religion is a set of Tenets and practices often centered upon specific Supernatural and moral claims about Reality, the Cosmos A ritual is a set of actions often thought to have Symbolic value the performance of which is usually prescribed by a Religion or by the Traditions

Various definitions of culture reflect differing theories for understanding, or criteria for evaluating, human activity. Writing from the perspective of social anthropology in the UK, Tylor in 1874 described culture in the following way: "Culture or civilization, taken in its wide ethnographic sense, is that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society. Social anthropology is the branch of Anthropology that studies how currently living human beings behave in social groups The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located A Civilization is a society in which large numbers of people share a variety of common elements Ethnography ( Greek ethnos = people and graphein = writing is a genre of writing that uses Fieldwork to provide a descriptive "^[7]

More recently, the United Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) (2002) described culture as follows: ". United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization ( UNESCO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations established on November 16 . . culture should be regarded as the set of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features of society or a social group, and that it encompasses, in addition to art and literature, lifestyles, ways of living together, value systems, traditions and beliefs". Art refers to a diverse range of Human activities creations and expressions that are appealing to the Senses or Emotions of a human individual Literature is the Art of written works Literally translated the word means "acquaintance with letters" (from Latin littera letter The term lifestyle was originally coined by Austrian psychologist Alfred Adler in 1929 ^[8]

While these two definitions cover a range of meaning, they do not exhaust the many uses of the term "culture. " In 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions. Alfred Louis Kroeber (June 11 1876&ndashOctober 5 1960 was one of the most influential figures in American Anthropology in the first half of the twentieth Clyde Kluckhohn (IPA klŭck'hōn ( January 11 1905, Le Mars Iowa - July 28 1960, near Santa Fe New Mexico) was an American ^[9]

These definitions, and many others, provide a catalog of the elements of culture. The items cataloged (e. g. , a law, a stone tool, a marriage) each have an existence and life-line of their own. They come into space-time at one set of coordinates and go out of it another. While here, they change, so that one may speak of the evolution of the law or the tool.

A culture, then, is by definition at least, a set of cultural objects. Anthropologist Leslie White asked: "What sort of objects are they? Are they physical objects? Mental objects? Both? Metaphors? Symbols? Reifications?" In Science of Culture (1949), he concluded that they are objects "sui generis"; that is, of their own kind. Leslie Alvin White ( 19 January 1900, Salida Colorado &ndash 31 March 1975, Lone Pine California) was an American Sui generis (English pronunciation ( IPA) /ˌsuːiˈdʒɛnərɪs/ roughly "SOO-ee JEN-a-ris" Latin pronunciation /ˌsuːiˈgeneris/ is a Neo-Latin In trying to define that kind, he hit upon a previously unrealized aspect of symbolization, which he called "the symbolate"—an object created by the act of symbolization. He thus defined culture as "symbolates understood in an extra-somatic context. "^[10] The key to this definition is the discovery of the symbolate.

Seeking to provide a practical definition, social theorist, Peter Walters, describes culture simply as "shared schematic experience", including, but not limited to, any of the various qualifiers (linguistic, artistic, religious, etc. Sociology (from Latin: socius "companion" and the suffix -ology "the study of" from Greek λόγος lógos "knowledge" A schema (pl schemata) in Psychology and Cognitive science, is a mental structure that represents some aspect of the world ) included in previous definitions.

Culture as civilization

Many people have an idea of "culture" that developed in Europe during the 18th and early 19th centuries. This notion of culture reflected inequalities within European societies, and between European powers and their colonies around the world. It identifies "culture" with "civilization" and contrasts it with "nature. A Civilization is a society in which large numbers of people share a variety of common elements Nature, in the broadest sense is equivalent to the natural world, physical universe, material world or material universe. " According to this way of thinking, one can classify some countries and nations as more civilized than others, and some people as more cultured than others. Some cultural theorists have thus tried to eliminate popular or mass culture from the definition of culture. Theorists such as Matthew Arnold (1822-1888) or the Leavisites regard culture as simply the result of "the best that has been thought and said in the world”^[11] Arnold contrasted mass/popular culture with social chaos or anarchy. Matthew Arnold (24 December 1822 &ndash 15 April 1888 was an English Poet, and Cultural critic who worked as an inspector of schools Frank Raymond Leavis CH ( 14 July 1895 - 14 April 1978) was an influential British Literary critic of the early-to-mid-twentieth On this account, culture links closely with social cultivation: the progressive refinement of human behavior. Arnold consistently uses the word this way: ". . . culture being a pursuit of our total perfection by means of getting to know, on all the matters which most concern us, the best which has been thought and said in the world". Perfection is broadly a state of completeness and flawlessness ^[11]

In practice, culture referred to élite activities such as museum-caliber art and classical music, and the word cultured described people who knew about, and took part in, these activities. Elite (also spelled Élite) is taken originally from the Latin, eligere, "to elect" A museum is a "permanent institution in the service of society and of its development open to the public which acquires conserves researches communicates and exhibits the Art refers to a diverse range of Human activities creations and expressions that are appealing to the Senses or Emotions of a human individual Classical music is a broad term that usually refers to mainstream music produced in or rooted in the traditions of Western liturgical and Secular music These are often called "high culture", namely the culture of the ruling social group,^[12] to distinguish them from mass culture or popular culture. High culture is a term now used in a number of different ways in Academic discourse whose most common meaning is the set of cultural products mainly in the The term ruling class refers to the Social class of a given society that decides upon and sets that society's political policy In Sociology, a group can be defined as two or more Humans that interact with one another accept expectations and obligations as members of the group and share a Popular culture (or pop culture) is the Culture — patterns of human activity and the symbolic structures that give such activities significance and importance — Popular culture (or pop culture) is the Culture — patterns of human activity and the symbolic structures that give such activities significance and importance —

From the 19th century onwards, some social critics have accepted this contrast between the highest and lowest culture, but have stressed the refinement and sophistication of high culture as corrupting and unnatural developments that obscure and distort people's essential nature. The word critic comes from the Greek el κριτικός ( el-Latn kritikós) "able to discern" which in turn derives from the word On this account, folk music (as produced by working-class people) honestly expresses a natural way of life, and classical music seems superficial and decadent. Folk music can have a number of different meanings including Traditional music: The original meaning of the term "folk music" was synonymous Equally, this view often portrays Indigenous peoples as 'noble savages' living authentic unblemished lives, uncomplicated and uncorrupted by the highly-stratified capitalist systems of the West. The term Indigenous Peoples or autochthonous peoples can be used to describe any Ethnic group who inhabit a geographic region with which they have the earliest historical In the eighteenth-century cult of " Primitivism " the noble savage, uncorrupted by the influences of civilization was considered more worthy more authentically noble Authenticity is a technical term in existentialist philosophy, and is also used in the Philosophy of art and Psychology. Capitalism is the Economic system in which the Means of production are owned by private Persons and operated for Profit and where Western culture (sometimes equated with Western Civilization) are terms which are used to refer to Cultures of European origin

Today most social scientists reject the monadic conception of culture, and the opposition of culture to nature. Nature is Innate behavior (behavior not learned or influenced by the environment character or essence especially of a human They recognize non-élites as just as cultured as élites (and non-Westerners as just as civilized) -- simply regarding them as just cultured in a different way. Elite (also spelled Élite) is taken originally from the Latin, eligere, "to elect"

Culture as worldview

During the Romantic era, scholars in Germany, especially those concerned with nationalist movements — such as the nationalist struggle to create a "Germany" out of diverse principalities, and the nationalist struggles by ethnic minorities against the Austro-Hungarian Empire — developed a more inclusive notion of culture as "worldview. Romanticism is a complex artistic literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Western Europe, and gained strength during the Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. The term nationalism can refer to an Ideology, a sentiment, a form of Culture, or a Social movement that focuses on the Nation A comprehensive world view (or worldview) is a term Calqued from the German word Weltanschauung ( Welt is the German " In this mode of thought, a distinct and incommensurable world view characterizes each ethnic group. Although more inclusive than earlier views, this approach to culture still allowed for distinctions between "civilized" and "primitive" or "tribal" cultures.

By the late 19th century, anthropologists had adopted and adapted the term culture to a broader definition that they could apply to a wider variety of societies. Anthropology (/ˌænθɹəˈpɒlədʒi/ from Greek grc ἄνθρωπος anthrōpos, "human" -λογία -logia) is the study of Attentive to the theory of evolution, they assumed that all human beings evolved equally, and that the fact that all humans have cultures must in some way result from human evolution. eVolution is the third Album by eLDee, it was due to be released in 2008 your mom. They also showed some reluctance to use biological evolution to explain differences between specific cultures — an approach that either exemplified a form of, or segment of society vis a vis other segments and the society as a whole, they often reveal processes of domination and resistance. A resistance movement is a group or collection of individual groups dedicated to fighting an Invader in an occupied country or the government of a sovereign nation

In the 1950s, subcultures — groups with distinctive characteristics within a larger culture — began to be the subject of study by sociologists. For the term in biology see Subculture (biology. For the song by New Order see Sub-culture (song. The 20th century also saw the popularization of the idea of corporate culture — distinct and malleable within the context of an employing organization or a workplace. Organizational culture is a concept in the field of Organizational studies and Management which describes the attitudes experiences beliefs and values An organization (or organisation &mdash see spelling differences) is a social arrangement which pursues collective goals which controls its own performance and An office is generally a room or other area in which people work, but may also denote a position within an Organization with specific duties attached

Culture as symbols

Flowers, a butterfly, and a twisted rock sculpture, an album leaf painting by Ming artist Chen Hongshou (1598–1652). The Ming Dynasty ( or Empire of the Great Ming ( was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol -led This is a Chinese name the family name is 陈 (Chen) Chen Hongshou (Chinese 陈洪绶 Pinyin: Chén Hóngshòu (1598 - 1652 was a Chinese painter The Chinese viewed painting as a key element of high culture. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Chinese painting is one of the oldest continuous artistic traditions in the world

The symbolic view of culture, the legacy of Clifford Geertz (1973) and Victor Turner (1967), holds symbols to be both the practices of social actors and the context that gives such practices meaning. Anthony P. Cohen (1985) writes of the "symbolic gloss" which allows social actors to use common symbols to communicate and understand each other while still imbuing these symbols with personal significance and meanings. ^[13] Symbols provide the limits of cultured thought. Members of a culture rely on these symbols to frame their thoughts and expressions in intelligible terms. In short, symbols make culture possible, reproducible and readable. They are the "webs of significance" in Weber's sense that, to quote Pierre Bourdieu (1977), "give regularity, unity and systematics to the practices of a group. "^[14] Thus, for example:

• "Stop, in the name of the law!"—Stock phrase uttered to the antagonists by the sheriff or marshal in 20th century American Old Western movies
• Law and order—stock phrase in the United States
• Peace and order—stock phrase in the Philippines

Culture as a stabilizing mechanism

Modern cultural theory also considers the possibility that (a) culture itself is a product of stabilization tendencies inherent in evolutionary pressures toward self-similarity and self-cognition of societies as wholes, or tribalisms. An antagonist (from Greek ανταγωνιστής - antagonistes, "opponent competitor rival" is a character or SHERIFF is a telecom fraud detection and management system originally developed by BT and MCI. Marshal (also sometimes spelled marshall in American English, but not in British English) is a word used in several official titles of various branches A cliché (from French, klɪ'ʃe or cliche is a phrase expression or idea that has been overused to the point of losing its intended force The internal social structure of a tribe can vary greatly from case to case but due to the small size of tribes it is always a relatively simple structure with few (if any significant social See Stephen Wolfram's A new kind of science on iterated simple algorithms from genetic unfolding, from which the concept of culture as an operating mechanism in can be developed on Friday,^[15] and Richard Dawkins' The Extended Phenotype for discussion of genetic and memetic stability over time, through negative feedback mechanisms. Stephen Wolfram (born August 29, 1959 in London) is a British Physicist, Mathematician and Businessman known for his A New Kind of Science is a Controversial book by Stephen Wolfram, published in 2002 Clinton Richard Dawkins, FRS, FRSL (born 26 March 1941 is a British ethologist, evolutionary biologist, and Popular science The Extended Phenotype (subtitled "The Gene as the Unit of Selection" and later "The Long Reach of the Gene" is a 1982 book by Richard A meme (miːm consists of any idea or behavior that can pass from one person to another by learning or imitation Negative Feedback feeds part of a System 's output inverted into the system's input generally with the result that fluctuations are attenuated ^[16]

Culture and evolutionary psychology

Researchers in evolutionary psychology argue that the mind is a system of neurocognitive information processing modules designed by natural selection to solve the adaptive problems of our distant ancestors. Evolutionary psychology ( EP) attempts to explain mental and psychological traits ��such as Memory, Perception, According to evolutionary psychologists, the diversity of forms that human cultures take are constrained (indeed, made possible) by innate information processing mechanisms underlying our behavior, including:

• Language acquisition modules
• Incest avoidance mechanisms
• Cheater detection mechanisms
• Intelligence and sex-specific mating preferences
• Foraging mechanisms
• Alliance-tracking mechanisms
• Agent detection mechanisms
• Fear and protection mechanisms (survival mechanisms)

These mechanisms are theorized to be the psychological foundations of culture. In order to fully understand culture we must understand its biological conditions of possibility.

Cultures within a society

Large societies often have subcultures, or groups of people with distinct sets of behavior and beliefs that differentiate them from a larger culture of which they are a part. For the term in biology see Subculture (biology. For the song by New Order see Sub-culture (song. Belief is the psychological state in which an individual holds a Proposition or Premise to be true The subculture may be distinctive because of the age of its members, or by their race, ethnicity, class or gender. The term race or racial group usually refers to the concept of categorizing Humans into Populations or groups on the basis of various sets Social class refers to the hierarchical distinctions (or stratification) between individuals or groups in Societies or Cultures. Gender comprises a range of differences between men and women extending from the biological to the social The qualities that determine a subculture as distinct may be aesthetic, religious, occupational, political, sexual or a combination of these factors. Aesthetics or esthetics ( also spelled æsthetics) is commonly known as the study of sensory or sensori-emotional values sometimes called A religion is a set of Tenets and practices often centered upon specific Supernatural and moral claims about Reality, the Cosmos Politics Politics is the process by which groups of people make decisions Generally speaking human sexuality is how people experience and express themselves as sexual beings

In dealing with immigrant groups and their cultures, there are essentially four approaches:

• Monoculturalism: In some European states, culture is very closely linked to nationalism, thus government policy is to assimilate immigrants, although recent increases in migration have led many European states to experiment with forms of multiculturalism. The term multiculturalism generally refers to a state of racial, cultural and ethnic diversity within the Demographics of a specified The term nationalism can refer to an Ideology, a sentiment, a form of Culture, or a Social movement that focuses on the Nation
• Leitkultur (core culture): A model developed in Germany by Bassam Tibi. The German language term Leitkultur is a politically controversial concept first introduced in 1998 by the German-Arab sociologist Bassam Tibi. Bassam Tibi (بسام طيبي born 1944 in Damascus, lives in Germany since 1962 and since 1976 he is a German citizen The idea is that minorities can have an identity of their own, but they should at least support the core concepts of the culture on which the society is based.
• Melting Pot: In the United States, the traditional view has been one of a melting pot where all the immigrant cultures are mixed and amalgamated without state intervention. The melting pot is an analogy for the way in which homogeneous societies develop in which the ingredients in the pot (people of different cultures races and religions are The United States of America —commonly referred to as the
• Multiculturalism: A policy that immigrants and others should preserve their cultures with the different cultures interacting peacefully within one nation. The term multiculturalism generally refers to a state of racial, cultural and ethnic diversity within the Demographics of a specified

The way nation states treat immigrant cultures rarely falls neatly into one or another of the above approaches. The degree of difference with the host culture (i. e. , "foreignness"), the number of immigrants, attitudes of the resident population, the type of government policies that are enacted and the effectiveness of those policies all make it difficult to generalize about the effects. Similarly with other subcultures within a society, attitudes of the mainstream population and communications between various cultural groups play a major role in determining outcomes. The study of cultures within a society is complex and research must take into account a myriad of variables.

Cultures by region

Main article: Culture by region

Many regional cultures have been influenced by contact with others, such as by colonization, trade, migration, mass media and religion. Cultures of the world is the aggregate of regional variations in culture both by Nation and Ethnic group and more broadly by larger regional variations Colonisation (also known as Colonization) occurs whenever any one or more species populates a new area Trade is the willing exchange of goods, services, or both Trade is also called Commerce. Human migration denotes any movement by Humans from one locality to another sometimes over long distances or "Popular press" redirects here note that the University of Wisconsin Press publishes under the imprint "The Popular Press" A religion is a set of Tenets and practices often centered upon specific Supernatural and moral claims about Reality, the Cosmos

Africa

Though of many varied origins, African culture, especially Sub-Saharan African culture has been shaped by Egyptian/Kemetic colonialism, and, especially in North Africa, by Arab and Islamic culture. The araB gene Promoter is a bacterial promoter activated by e L-arabinose binding For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation.

Hopi man weaving on traditional loom in the USA. The Hopi are Native American people who primarily live on the 12635 km² (2531

Americas

The culture of the Americas has been strongly influenced by peoples that inhabitated the continents before Europeans arrived; people from Africa (Brazil and the United States have a large number of descendants from African migrants), and the immigration of Europeans, especially Spanish, English, French, Portuguese, German, Irish, Italian and Dutch. The Americas are the lands of the Western hemisphere or New World, consisting of the Continents of North America and South America For indigenous peoples in the United States other than Hawaii and Alaska see also Native Americans in the United States. North America is a kind of "mixed culture" as it takes in different things from different cultures and races.

Asia

Despite the great cultural diversity of Asian nations, there are, nevertheless, several transnational cultural influences. Though Korea, Japan, and Vietnam are not Chinese-speaking countries, their languages have been influenced by Chinese and Chinese writing. Korea is a geographic area composed of two sovereign countries a civilization and a former state situated on the Korean Peninsula in East Asia. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. Vietnam (ˌviːɛtˈnɑːm Việt Nam) officially Thus, in East Asia, Chinese writing is generally agreed to exert a unifying influence. A Chinese character, also known as a Han character ( is a Logogram used in writing Chinese (hanzi Japanese ( Religions, especially Buddhism and Taoism have had an impact on the cultural traditions of East Asian countries (see section on Eastern religion and philosophy, below). Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices Taoism (pronounced /ˈdaʊɪzəm/ or /ˈtaʊɪzəm/ also spelled '''Daoism''') refers to a variety of related Philosophical and Religious traditions Culture (from the Latin cultura stemming from colere, meaning "to cultivate" generally refers to patterns of human activity and the symbolic There is also a shared social and moral philosophy that derives from Confucianism. Confucianism ( is a Chinese ethical and philosophical system originally developed from the teachings of the fifth century B

Hinduism and Islam have for hundreds of years exerted cultural influence on various peoples of South Asia. Hinduism is a religious tradition that originated in the Indian subcontinent. For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. Similarly, Buddhism is pervasive in Southeast Asia. Another monotheistic religion is Sikhism. Sikhism ( IPA: or; ਸਿੱਖੀ sikkhī, IPA:) founded on the teachings of Nanak and nine successive gurus in fifteenth century Sikhism is found in South Asia.

Pacific

Most of the countries of the Pacific Ocean continue to be dominated by their indigenous cultures, although these have generally been affected by contact with European culture, in particular that of the Philippines. The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth 's Oceanic divisions In Ecology, an indigenous Species is an Organism which is native to a given region or Ecosystem. The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP In any case, most of Polynesia is now strongly Christian. Polynesia (from Greek: πολύς many, νῆσος island) is a Subregion of Oceania, comprising a large grouping of over A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth Other countries, such as Australia and New Zealand have been dominated by European settlers and their descendants, whose culture now predominates. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island However Indigenous Australian and Māori (New Zealand) cultures are still present. Indigenous Australians are descendants of the first known human inhabitants of the Australian continent and its nearby islands. This article discusses the Māori people of New Zealand For their language see Māori language, and for other meanings see Māori (disambiguation.

Europe

European culture also has a broad influence beyond the continent of Europe due to the legacy of colonialism. See Colony and Colonization for examples of colonialism which do not refer to Western colonialism In this broader sense it is sometimes referred to as Western culture. Western culture (sometimes equated with Western Civilization) are terms which are used to refer to Cultures of European origin This is most easily seen in the spread of the English language and to a lesser extent, a few other European languages. English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States Dominant influences include ancient Greece, ancient Rome, and Christianity, although religion has declined in Europe. The term ancient Greece refers to the period of Greek history lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings

Middle East and North Africa

The Middle East generally has three dominant and clear cultures, Arabic, Persian and Turkish, which have influenced each other with varying degrees during different times. The region is predominantly Muslim although significant minorities of Christians and smaller minorities of other religions exist.

Arabic culture has deeply influenced the Persian and Turkish cultures through Islam; influencing their languages, writing systems, art, architecture and literature as well as in other areas. For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. The proximity of Iran has influenced the regions closer to it such as Iraq and Turkey, traces of language can be found in the Iraqi and Kuwaiti dialects of Arabic as well as the Turkish language. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iran topics. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iraq topics. Turkey (Türkiye known officially as the Republic of Turkey ( is a Eurasian Country that stretches The State of Kuwait ( دولة الكويت IPA [dawlatt̪ alkuwajt̪]) is a sovereign Arab Emirate on the coast of the Persian Gulf, enclosed The 500 years of Ottoman rule over most of the Middle East has had a heavy influence over the Arabic culture, this may spread as far as Algeria but can be found to a heavier degree in Egypt, Iraq and the Levant. The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iraq topics. See also Names of the Levant The Levant (lə'vænt is a geographical term that denotes a large area in Western Asia, roughly bounded on the north by the

Belief systems

Main article: Religion

Religion and other belief systems are often integral to a culture. A religion is a set of Tenets and practices often centered upon specific Supernatural and moral claims about Reality, the Cosmos Religion, from the Latin religare, meaning "to bind fast", is a feature of cultures throughout human history. The Dictionary of Philosophy and Religion defines religion in the following way:

. . . an institution with a recognized body of communicants who gather together regularly for worship, and accept a set of doctrines offering some means of relating the individual to what is taken to be the ultimate nature of reality. ^[17]

Religion often codifies behavior, such as with the 10 Commandments of Christianity or the five precepts of Buddhism. Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices Sometimes it is involved with government, as in a theocracy. Theocracy is a form of government in which a god or deity is recognized as the supreme civil ruler It also influences arts.

Eurocentric custom to some extent divides humanity into Western and non-Western cultures, although this has some flaws. Eurocentrism is the practice of viewing the world from a European perspective with an implied belief either consciously or subconsciously in the preeminence of European (and

Western culture spread from Europe most strongly to Australia, Canada, and the United States. Western culture (sometimes equated with Western Civilization) are terms which are used to refer to Cultures of European origin It is influenced by ancient Greece, ancient Rome and Christianity. The term ancient Greece refers to the period of Greek history lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings

Western culture tends to be more individualistic than non-Western cultures. It also sees man, god, and nature or the universe more separately than non-Western cultures. It is marked by economic wealth, literacy, and technological advancement, although these traits are not exclusive to it.

Abrahamic religions

Judaism is one of the first, recorded monotheistic faiths and one of the oldest religious traditions still practiced today. For the Celtic Frost album see Monotheist (album In Theology, monotheism (from Greek grc [[wiktμόνος μόνος]] The word tradition comes from the Latin traditionem acc of traditio which means "a giving up delivering up surrendering" and is used in a number of The values and history of the Jewish people are a major part of the foundation of other Abrahamic religions such as Christianity, Islam, as well as the Bahá'í Faith. Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. The Bahá'í Faith is a Religion founded by Bahá'u'lláh in nineteenth-century Persia, emphasizing the spiritual unity of all humankind However, while sharing a heritage from Abraham each has distinct arts (visual and performance arts and the like. Abraham ( Ashkenazi   Avrohom or Avruhom; ابراهيم, {{Unicode|Ibrāhīm}}; Ge'ez: ) Of course some of these are regional influences among the nations the religions are present in, but there are some norms or forms of cultural expression distinctly emphasized by the religions.

Christianity was the dominant feature in shaping European and the New World cultures for at least the last 500 to 1700 years. Modern philosophical thought has very much been influenced by Christian philosophers such as St. Thomas Aquinas and Erasmus and Christian Cathedrals have been noted as architectural wonders like Notre Dame de Paris, Wells Cathedral and Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral. This article is about the history and organisation of the cathedral NotreDameFlyingButtressjpg|right|thumb|250px|Notre Dame de Paris Flying Buttress]] Notre Dame de Paris is a Gothic Cathedral on the eastern half of the Wells Cathedral is a Church of England Cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England. Mexico Dic 06 044jpg|thumb|right|300px|The Cathedral as seen from Francisco I

Islam's influence has dominated much of the North African, Middle and Far East regions for almost 1500 years, sometimes mixed with other religions. For example Islam's influence can be seen in diverse philosophies such as Ibn Bajjah, Ibn Tufail, Ibn Khaldun and Averroes as well as poetic stories and literature like Hayy ibn Yaqdhan, The Madman of Layla, The Conference of the Birds and the Masnavi in addition to art and architecture such as the Umayyad Mosque, Dome of the Rock, Faisal Mosque, and the many styles of Arabesque. Abū-Bakr Muhammad ibn Yahya ibn al-Sāyigh ( Arabic أبو بكر محمد بن يحيى بن الصائغ known as Ibn Bājjah (ابن باجة was an Andalusian TemplateInfobox Muslim scholars --> Ibn Tufail (c 1105 Guadix Spain &ndash 1185 (full Arabic name Ibn Khaldūn or Ibn Khaldoun (full name أبو زيد عبد الرحمن بن محمد بن خلدون,, ( May 27, 1332 AD/732 AH &ndash March 19 Abū 'l-Walīd Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad ibn Rushd (Arabicأبو الوليد محمد بن احمد بن رشد better known just as Ibn Rushd (ابن رشد and in European Ḥayy ibn Yaqẓān ( حي بن يقظان " Alive son of Awake " Philosophus Autodidactus " The Self-Taught Philosopher For the film see Leyli o Majnun (1936 film. Layla and Majnun, also known as The Madman of Layla - in Arabic This article is about the Masnavi-i Ma'navi of Rumi for the masnavi poetic form see Masnavi (poetic form. The Grand Mosque of Damascus, also known as the Ummayad Mosque' ( Arabic: جامع بني أمية الكبير transl The Dome of the Rock ( Arabic: مسجد قبة الصخرة translit The Shah Faisal Masjid ( Urdu: شاه فيصل مسجد) in Islamabad, Pakistan, is among one of the largest mosques in The world The arabesque is an elaborative application of repeating geometric forms that often echo the forms of plants and animals Judaism and the Bahá'í faiths are usually minority religions among the nations but still have made distinctive contributions to the cultures of the nations and regions.

The mainstream anthropological view of ‘culture’ implies that most people experience a strong resistance when reminded that there is an animal as well as a spiritual aspect to human nature. Anthropology (/ˌænθɹəˈpɒlədʒi/ from Greek grc ἄνθρωπος anthrōpos, "human" -λογία -logia) is the study of ^[18]

Eastern religion and philosophy

Agni, Hindu fire god. Agni is a Hindu and Vedic deity. The word agni is Sanskrit for "fire" (noun cognate with Latin ignis A Hindu ( Devanagari: हिन्दू is an adherent of the philosophies and scriptures of Hinduism, a set of religious, Philosophical

Main articles: Eastern philosophy and Eastern religion

Philosophy and religion are often closely interwoven in Eastern thought. Eastern philosophy refers very broadly to the various philosophies of Asia, including Indian philosophy, Chinese philosophy, Persian Eastern religion is a group of Religions originating in India, China, Japan and Southeast Asia. Many Asian religious and philosophical traditions originated in India and China and spread across Asia through cultural diffusion and the migration of peoples. Cultural diffusion, as first conceptualized by Alfred L Kroeber in his influential 1940 paper Stimulus Diffusion, or trans-cultural diffusion in later reformulations Hinduism is the wellspring of Buddhism, the Mahāyāna branch of which spread north and eastwards from India into Tibet, China, Mongolia, Japan and Korea and south from China into Vietnam. Hinduism is a religious tradition that originated in the Indian subcontinent. Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices Mahayana ( Sanskrit: mahāyāna, Devanagari: महायान 'Great Vehicle' is one of the two main existing schools of Buddhism and a term for Theravāda Buddhism spread throughout Southeast Asia, including Sri Lanka, parts of southwest China, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand. History Origin of the school The Theravāda school is ultimately derived from the Vibhajjavāda (or 'doctrine of analysis' grouping which was a continuation

Indian philosophy includes Hindu philosophy. The term Indian philosophy (Sanskrit Darshanas) may refer to any of several traditions of philosophical thought that originated in the Indian subcontinent Hindu philosophy is divided into six Sanskrit ''{{IAST|āstika}}'') schools of thought or darshanas (literally "views" Sankhya Both contain elements of nonmaterial pursuits, whereas another school of thought from India, Cārvāka, preached the enjoyment of material world. Cārvāka is a system of Indian philosophy that assumed various forms of philosophical skepticism and religious indifference Confucianism and Taoism, both of which originated in China have had pervasive influence on both religious and philosophical traditions, as well as statecraft and the arts throughout Asia. Confucianism ( is a Chinese ethical and philosophical system originally developed from the teachings of the fifth century B Taoism (pronounced /ˈdaʊɪzəm/ or /ˈtaʊɪzəm/ also spelled '''Daoism''') refers to a variety of related Philosophical and Religious traditions Public administration can be broadly described as the development implementation and study of branches of government Policy. Sikhism, founded in India during the 16th and 17th centuries, is a monotheistic religion with a belief in one, universal, non-anthropomorphic God. Sikhism ( IPA: or; ਸਿੱਖੀ sikkhī, IPA:) founded on the teachings of Nanak and nine successive gurus in fifteenth century For the Celtic Frost album see Monotheist (album In Theology, monotheism (from Greek grc [[wiktμόνος μόνος]] Anthropomorphism is the attribution of uniquely Human characteristics to non-human creatures and beings natural and supernatural phenomena material states and objects

During the 20th century, in the two most populous countries of Asia, two dramatically different political philosophies took shape. Gandhi gave a new meaning to Ahimsa, a core belief of both Hinduism and Jainism, and redefined the concepts of nonviolence and nonresistance far beyond the confines of India. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi ( Gujarati: મોહનદાસ કરમચંદ ગાંધી moɦən̪d̪äs kəɾəmʧən̪d̪ gän̪d̪ʱi (2 October 1869 – 30 January Ahimsa ( Devanagari: sa अहिंसा IAST ahiṃsā is a Sanskrit term meaning Non-violence (literally the avoidance of violence - Jainism, traditionally known as Jain Dharma / Shraman Dharma (जैन धर्म is an ancient religion of India. Nonviolence is a philosophy and strategy for social change that rejects the use of physical Violence. Nonresistance (or non-resistance) discourages physical resistance to an enemy and is a subdivision of Nonviolence. During the same period, Mao Zedong’s communist philosophy became a powerful secular belief system in China. Mao Zedong ( 26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976) was a Chinese Military and political leader who led Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based Maoism, variably and officially known as Mao Zedong Thought ( is a variant of Marxism derived from the teachings of the late Chinese leader Increasingly Christianity is gaining a foothold in Chinese culture, developing heretofore unforeseen changes in both Christianity and Chinese culture.

Folk religions

Main article: Folk religion

Folk religions practiced by tribal groups are common in Asia, Africa and the Americas. Folk religion consists of Beliefs Superstitions and Rituals transmitted from generation to generation in a specific Culture. Their influence can be considerable; may pervade the culture and even become the state religion, as with Shintō. is the native religion of Japan and was once its State religion. Like the other major religions, folk religion answers human needs for reassurance in times of trouble, healing, averting misfortune and providing rituals that address the major passages and transitions in human life. A ritual is a set of actions often thought to have Symbolic value the performance of which is usually prescribed by a Religion or by the Traditions

The "American Dream"

The American Dream is a belief, held by many in the United States, that through hard work, courage, and self-determination, regardless of social class, a person can gain a better life. The American Dream is Belief in the Freedom that allows all citizens and residents of the United States to achieve their goals Social class refers to the hierarchical distinctions (or stratification) between individuals or groups in Societies or Cultures. See also Economic mobility Social mobility is the degree to which in a given society an individual's family's or group's social status ^[19] This notion is rooted in the belief that the United States is a "city upon a hill, a light unto the nations,"^[20] which were values held by many early European settlers and maintained by subsequent generations. City upon a hill is a phrase that is associated with John Winthrop 's Sermon "A Model of Christian Charity" given in 1630

This concept is mirrored in other cultures, such as in the case of the Great Australian Dream, although this refers more closely to home ownership by the same means. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. An owner-occupier is a person who lives in a House that he or she owns

Marriage

Religion often influences marriage and practices. A wedding is the Ceremony in which two people are united in Marriage.

Marriage occurs in most cultures, though specific customs vary widely. Marriage is difficult to define cross-culturally because cultures define family, love, parenthood, gender roles, etc. , differently. Cross-culturally, one's motivation to get married and expectations of it, therefore, vary widely. In some cultures, marriages are conducted very much like business transactions, in others they are deeply sentimental.

Cultural studies

Cultural studies developed in the late 20th century, in part through the re-introduction of Marxist thought into sociology, and in part through the articulation of sociology and other academic disciplines such as literary criticism. Cultural studies is an academic discipline which combines Political economy, Communication, Sociology, Social theory, Literary theory Marxism is the political philosophy and practice derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. Sociology (from Latin: socius "companion" and the suffix -ology "the study of" from Greek λόγος lógos "knowledge" In Sociology, articulation labels the process by which particular classes appropriate Cultural Forms and practices for their Sociology (from Latin: socius "companion" and the suffix -ology "the study of" from Greek λόγος lógos "knowledge" Literary criticism is the study discussion evaluation and interpretation of Literature. This movement aimed to focus on the analysis of subcultures in capitalist societies. Capitalism is the Economic system in which the Means of production are owned by private Persons and operated for Profit and where Following the non-anthropological tradition, cultural studies generally focus on the study of consumption goods (such as fashion, art, and literature). Cultural studies is an academic discipline which combines Political economy, Communication, Sociology, Social theory, Literary theory Fashion refers to styles of dress (but can also include cuisine literature art architecture and general comportment that are popular in a culture at any given time Art refers to a diverse range of Human activities creations and expressions that are appealing to the Senses or Emotions of a human individual Literature is the Art of written works Literally translated the word means "acquaintance with letters" (from Latin littera letter Because the 18th- and 19th-century distinction between "high" and "low" culture seems inappropriate to apply to the mass-produced and mass-marketed consumption goods which cultural studies analyses, these scholars refer instead to "popular culture".

Today, some anthropologists have joined the project of cultural studies. Anthropology (/ˌænθɹəˈpɒlədʒi/ from Greek grc ἄνθρωπος anthrōpos, "human" -λογία -logia) is the study of Most, however, reject the identification of culture with consumption goods. Furthermore, many now reject the notion of culture as bounded, and consequently reject the notion of subculture. For the term in biology see Subculture (biology. For the song by New Order see Sub-culture (song. Instead, they see culture as a complex web of shifting patterns that link people in different locales and that link social formations of different scales. According to this view, any group can construct its own cultural identity. Cultural identity is the (feeling of identity of a group or Culture, or of an Individual as far as he or she is influenced by her belonging to a group

Currently, a debate is underway regarding whether or not culture can actually change fundamental human cognition. Human cognition is the study of how the Human brain thinks As a subject of study human cognition tends to be more than only theoretical in that its theories lead to working Researchers are divided on the question.

Cultural change

A 19th century engraving showing Australian "natives" opposing the arrival of Captain James Cook in 1770. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Indigenous Australians are descendants of the first known human inhabitants of the Australian continent and its nearby islands. Captain James Cook FRS RN ( – 14 February 1779) was an English Explorer, Navigator and

Cultures, by predisposition, both embrace and resist change, depending on culture traits. A genetic predisposition is a genetic effect which influences the Phenotype of an organism but which can be modified by the environmental conditions For example, men and women have complementary roles in many cultures. One gender might desire changes that affect the other, as happened in the second half of the 20th century in western cultures. Western culture (sometimes equated with Western Civilization) are terms which are used to refer to Cultures of European origin Thus there are both dynamic influences that encourage acceptance of new things, and conservative forces that resist change.

Three kinds of influence cause both change and resistance to it:

1. forces at work within a society
2. contact between societies
3. changes in the natural environment. ^[21]

Social conflict and the development of technologies can produce changes within a society by altering social dynamics and promoting new cultural models. A schema (pl schemata) in Psychology and Cognitive science, is a mental structure that represents some aspect of the world Environmental conditions and contact with other societies may enter as factors, spurring or enabling generative action. A generative actor is an instigator of Social change. He or she promotes cultural change by defying cultural normatives Noted examples include Galileo These social shifts may accompany ideological shifts and other types of cultural change. An ideology is a set of beliefs aims and Ideas especially in politics For example, the end of the last ice age helped lead to the invention of agriculture, which in its turn brought about many cultural innovations and shifts in social dynamics. An ice age is a period of long-term reduction in the Temperature of the Earth 's surface and atmosphere resulting in an expansion of continental Ice sheets Agriculture refers to the production of goods through the growing of plants and fungi and the raising of domesticated Animals The study of agriculture

Contact between societies produce different types of changes in those societies. War or competition over resources may impact technological development or social dynamics. Additionally, cultural ideas may transfer from one society to another, through diffusion or acculturation. In diffusion, the form of something (though not necessarily its meaning) moves from one culture to another. Cultural diffusion, as first conceptualized by Alfred L Kroeber in his influential 1940 paper Stimulus Diffusion, or trans-cultural diffusion in later reformulations For example, hamburgers, mundane in the United States, seemed exotic when introduced into China. A hamburger (or burger) is a Sandwich consisting of a cooked ground Meat Patty, usually Beef, placed in a sliced bun or between "Stimulus diffusion" (the sharing of ideas) refers to an element of one culture leading to an invention or propagation in another. "Direct Borrowing" on the other hand tends to refer to technological or tangible diffusion from one culture to another. Diffusion of innovations theory presents a research-based model of why and when individuals and cultures adopt new ideas, practices, and products. According to Rogers(2003 "Diffusion is the process by which an innovation is communicated through certain channels over time among the members of a social System

Acculturation has different meanings, but in this context refers to replacement of the traits of one culture with those of another, such has happened to certain Native American tribes and to many indigenous peoples across the globe during the process of colonization. Acculturation is the exchange of cultural features that results when groups come into continuous firsthand contact the original cultural patterns of either or both groups may be altered For indigenous peoples in the United States other than Hawaii and Alaska see also Native Americans in the United States. Colonisation (also known as Colonization) occurs whenever any one or more species populates a new area Related processes on an individual level include assimilation (adoption of a different culture by an individual) and transculturation. A region or society where several different groups are spontaneously assimilated is sometimes referred to as a Melting pot. Transculturation is a term coined by Cuban anthropologist Fernando Ortiz in 1947 to describe the phenomenon of merging and converging cultures

Cultural invention has come to mean any innovation that is new and found to be useful to a group of people and expressed in their behavior but which does not exist as a physical object. Cultural invention describes any innovation that is new and found to be useful to a group of people but which does not exist as a physical object Humanity is in a global "accelerating culture change period", driven by the expansion of international commerce, the mass media, and above all, the human population explosion, among other factors. The world population is the total number of living Humans on Earth at a given time

Culture change is complex and has far-ranging effects. Sociologists and anthropologists believe that a holistic approach to the study of cultures and their environments is needed to understand all of the various aspects of change. Distinguish from the suffix -holism, which describes addictions Human existence may best be looked at as a "multifaceted whole. " Only from this vantage can one grasp the realities of culture change.

Notes

References

See also

• List of basic culture topics
• Cultural bias - Cultural imperialism - Ethnocentrism
• Counterculture
• Cross-cultural communication - Intercultural competence
• Cultural evolution
• Culture theory
• Cultural dissonance
• Cultural Institutions Studies
• Cultural universals
• Culture war
• Emotions and Culture
• Urban culture

External links

• Detailed article on defining culture
• Dictionary of the History of Ideas: "culture" and "civilization" in modern times
• Global Culture Essays on global issues and their impact on culture
• Centre for Intercultural Learning
• What is Culture? - Washington State University
• Reflections on the Politics of Culture by Michael Parenti
• Define Culture A compilation of over 100+ user submitted definitions of culture from around the globe. Cultural bias is when someone is biased due to his or her culture Cultural imperialism is the practice of promoting distinguishing separating or artificially injecting the Culture or language of one nation into another Ethnocentrism is the tendency to look at the world primarily from the perspective of one's own Culture. Counterculture (also " counter-culture " is a sociological term used to describe the values and norms of behavior of a Cultural group, or Cross-cultural communication (also frequently referred to as intercultural communication) is a field of study that looks at how people from differing cultural backgrounds Intercultural competence is the ability of successful Communication with people of other Cultures This ability can exist in someone at a young age or may be developed Sociocultural evolution(ism is an umbrella term for theories of cultural evolution and Social evolution, describing how Cultures and societies Culture theory is the branch of Anthropology, Semiotics, and other related social science disciplines (e Cultural dissonance (education Sociology, Anthropology and cultural studies is an uncomfortable sense of discord disharmony confusion or conflict experienced Cultural institutions studies (a translation of the German term "Kulturbetriebslehre" is an academic approach "which investigates activities in the cultural sector A cultural universal (see George Murdock, Claude Levi-Strauss, Donald Brown) is an element pattern trait or institution that is common to all Human The culture war (or culture wars) in American usage is a metaphor used to claim that political conflict is based on sets of conflicting values Emotions are universal phenomena however they are affected by Culture. Urban culture is the Culture of cities. Cities all over the world past and present have behaviors and cultural elements that separate them from otherwise comparable Michael Parenti (born 1933) is an American Political scientist, Historian, and media critic.