The term ethnotaxonomy refers either to that subdiscipline within
ethnology
Ethnology (from the grc-gre, ἔθνος, meaning 'nation') is an academic field that compares and analyzes the characteristics of different peoples and the relationships between them (compare cultural, social, or sociocultural anthropology). ...
which studies the taxonomic systems defined and used by individual
ethnic groups, or to the operative individual
taxonomy
Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification.
A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...
itself, which is the object of the ethnologist's immediate study.
For example, in many
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, M ...
n languages, the
perceptual world of
color
Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are assoc ...
is
classified into the principal categories "Red," "White," and "Black" (finer gradations being secondary). The range of
wavelengths
In physics, the wavelength is the spatial period of a periodic wave—the distance over which the wave's shape repeats.
It is the distance between consecutive corresponding points of the same phase on the wave, such as two adjacent crests, tr ...
that an English-speaker calls ''blue'' would be a subcategory of "Black." (See also
Blue–green distinction in language
In many languages, the colors described in English as "blue" and "green" are colexified, i.e. expressed using a single cover term. To describe this English lexical gap, linguists use the portmanteau word ''grue'', from ''green'' and ''blue'' ...
)
The set of categories of familial relationships evinced by the ethnic group's
kinship system is another ethnotaxonomy. An example of this might be the
Hawaiian kinship
Hawaiian kinship, also referred to as the generational system, is a kinship terminology system used to define family within languages. Identified by Lewis H. Morgan in his 1871 work ''Systems of Consanguinity and Affinity of the Human Family'', th ...
system, where all members of a generation of the same sex are referred to by a single term. Both the relationships termed ''mother'' and ''aunt'' in English fall into the same
taxon
In biology, a taxon ( back-formation from '' taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular n ...
"Mother-Aunt". This does not mean that the users of this taxonomy are confused about the concept "Birth-Mother," only that it is a subcategory.
Conversely, an ethnotaxonomy such as the
Sudanese kinship system or that used in
ancient Rome
In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC ...
, where no two relationships have the same denotation, may show much more granularity than the English system. Thus the relationship called ''aunt'' in English is not fundamental in Latin, but either ''amita'' "Father's Sister" or ''matertera'' "Mother's Sister" must be chosen. Latin and Sudanese are called a "descriptive systems," and Hawaiian is called a "classificatory" system, but this terminology is English-centered (see
Lewis H. Morgan), the difference being one of degree, rather than kind.
Categories of plants, "Useful" and "Harmful," etc., are yet another well-known example. Indeed, in recent years there has been a vogue usage of the term ethnotaxonomy limiting it to
ethnobotany and
ethnopharmacology, because of the "rediscovery" of the medicinal and commercial value of plants disclosed by examining the botanical ethnotaxonomies of lesser-known cultures.
Animal folk taxonomy in the
Kalam language
Kalam is a Kalam language of Papua New Guinea. It is closely related to Kobon, and shares many of the features of that language. Kalam is spoken in Middle Ramu District of Madang Province and in Mount Hagen District of Western Highlands Provin ...
of
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...
has been extensively studied by Ralph Bulmer and others.
[Bulmer, RNH (1975)]
Kalam Classification Of Reptiles And Fishes
See also
*
Folk taxonomy
A folk taxonomy is a vernacular naming system, as distinct from scientific taxonomy. Folk biological classification is the way people traditionally describe and organize their natural surroundings/the world around them, typically making generou ...
References
Further reading
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Ethnology
Taxonomy
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