1. Culture: A Learned Way of Life
Vocabulary

2. Culture
A learned way of life.

3. Acculturation
process of adopting traits or practices of another culture.

4. Assimilation
process of an immigrant group being absorbed into the mainstream of society.
                                                                                                              

5. Diffusion
spreading, scattering, or mixing together of cultures.

6. Ethnicity
a particular cultural group and its cultural traits.

7. Icon
a symbol that is so unique to a culture, or one that is so closely associated with a culture that it is immediately linked to that culture. (Statue of Liberty and USA, Eiffel Tower and France, Onion Domes and Russia)

8. Innovation
the act of introducing something new.

9. Migration
the act of moving from place-to-place.

10. Nationalism
a feeling of loyalty and pride to your country.

11. Population Density
the number of people living in an area, usually expressed in square miles or kilometers.

12. Race
a subdivision of the human species based on distinguishing physical characteristics that are passed on to succeeding generations. Note! The concept of separate “races” is seen as false by many cultural anthropologists. This is an ongoing debate among scholars.

13. Racism
the belief that the biological characteristics of one group of people make them superior.

14. Cultural Trait
a practice or habit that is so common in a culture that it has become closely associated with that culture. (Texas and football, Islam and praying toward Mecca)

15. Urbanization
changing from a rural to urban state.

16. Validity
the idea that each culture is equally right, and no culture is automatically wrong.

17. Xenophobia
fear of other cultures.

18. Command Economy
an economic system in which the government decides what to produce, how much to produce, and the pricing of products.

19. Gross Domestic Product “GDP”
GDP is defined as the total cost of all finished goods and services created within the country in a year.

20. Gross National Product “GNP”
The total market value of all the goods and services produced by a nation during a specified period.

21. Market Economy
an economic system where people choose freely what to buy and sell. Also called the free enterprise system or capitalism.

22. Commercial Agriculture
farming with the intention of selling the crop.

23. Subsistence Agriculture
Farming just enough to raise crops for an individual family or to trade for basic necessities.

24. Demographics
the study of human populations and the characteristics of segments within a population.

25. Developed Nation
a country that meets the need of all or most of its people.

26. Developing Nation
a country that lacks the resources and technology to meet the needs of its people.

27. Globalization
the trend of “connectedness” between people, peoples, and nations. Seen in four main areas:
trade/commerce
communication
cultural behaviors
governmental policies

28. Infrastructure
the system of roads, pipelines, buildings, and other facilities necessary for a modern society.

29. Quality of Life
the level of satisfaction a person or group of people feel about their life (lives).

30. Standard of Living
a mathematical ranking of countries based on economic facts and statistics.