definition of Culture

Culture refers to a set of learned and shared ideas about behavior characteristic of a society.

Culture is a learned system of beliefs, feelings, survival strategies, and rules for living. It is a way of life that can be taught explicitly as well as observed directly and indirectly. People learn their culture by:

• parental guidance

• education (formal or informal)

• peer influence

• observations of other people’s behavior

• media

Culture is also shared. Within cultures there is an understanding of norms, values and meanings of symbols that allows people to predict other human’s behavior and gives a feeling of security. Norms are ideas about the way things should be done. Values are ideas about what is right and true. A symbol is an object or an event that represents another object of event because of the agreement among people. 

Other examples of anthropological definitions of culture:

“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” (Tylor 1871)

“a mental map which guides us in our relations to our surroundings and to other people” (Downs 1971)

“the way of life of a people” (Hatch 1985)

“mankind’s extra somatic means of adaptation” (White 1949)

There are also different types of cultures:

• explicit
• tacit
• ideal
• real

Explicit culture is the knowledge that people can discuss, explain and talk about.

For example you can describe the directions to a new student the way to get to the classroom and to let them know that cell phone usages are not permitted in classrooms.

Tacit culture is cultural knowledge that people cannot talk about. It usually cannot be communicated easily with verbal symbols.

For example it is not easy to tell someone how to ride a bike, it is easier to show them. Another example is staying up late till midnight or woken up early to get a parking pass.

Ideal culture is the way people see their own customs and behaviors. It is a reflection of their feelings and ideals about what it should be.

Real culture is the actual observable behaviors of people.

Many cities are also multicultural, some cultures I have seen in Calgary are:

My African friend, Deonn and my asian friends, Niks, Kev Cindy, Steven and I
Picture belongs to me.

• African - Africa is surrounded by Mediterranean Sea. There are two major religions in Africa: Christianity or Islam. There are also close to 2000 languages spoken throughout Africa.  It can be categorized into four major categories: Afro-Asiatic languages, Nilo-Saharan languages, Niger-Congo languages and the Khoisan languages.

Picture belongs to me

• Asian - There are several types of languages in Asia like Khmer, Vietnamese, Japanese, Cantonese, Mandarin and Lao etc. Asians may be classified as Chinese, Vietnamese, Philippine and Cambodian etc.

My Indian+Asian friends
Picture belongs to me

 

• Indian – Geographically, India can be divided into four regions: The Northern Mountain, The Great Northern Plains, The Coastal Plains and the Deccan Plateau. India is known for its spicy curries and healing techniques of Yoga. The types of Indian religions that exist are Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Jainism, Islam and Christianity.

• French

• Italian

• Spanish

A little about me!
I am Asian and can speak Chinese. I was born in Vancouver and raised in Calgary. In the Chinese culture, there is a day once a year where we celebrate with our friends and family called Chinese New Year. In my culture, this celebrating is unique and special because it is where we all gather and pray, eat and socialize. Chinese New Year starts with the New Moon on the first day of the New Year and marks the end of winter. During the celebration, we get money in a red envelope for good fortune or happiness or wealth. Growing up Asian was probably different than growing up in another culture (Indian, French, and American etc). We eat different food (dogs, cats, goats, pig tongue, frogs), celebrate in different ways and talk in a different (sometimes multiple) language. I love that I am Asian and wouldn’t want to change my culture!