Department of Anthropology

Anthropology is about us – all the people of the world.  Where we came from, where we’ve been, and in some cases, where we are going.  We are interested in the first primates to walk on their hind legs, to the emperors of China, the people that built the pyramids, the first families to make America their home, and people that work in factories today.  We search for information about modern diseases we’ve inherited from our ancestors, how governments are run, and why families are more diverse than we see on television, and the causes of domestic violence or addiction.  Anthropologists explore how languages affect the way we think and identify ourselves to others, and even the beginnings of language, symbolic thought, and music.  Who we are is what Anthropologists study.