Short notes
Homo erectus
Homo Erectus
Definition
Homo sapiens → “Homo” is the genus, “sapiens” is the species.
Example / case study
- 1️⃣ Delayed eruption or loss of wisdom teeth.
- 2️⃣ Decline in the average age of menstruation.
- 3️⃣ Rise of antibiotic/drug resistance in bacteria.
- 4️⃣ Peppered moth (industrial melanism).
Africa
Definition
Indigenous people → Original inhabitants before colonisation; politically weak, in reservations.
Example / case study
- Naga identity – multiple tribes unified by colonial rule + Christianity.
- Indian caste system vs African lineage system
- Studies human evolution from early hominins to modern humans.
Thinkers
- Scholar: Clifford Geertz (Old Societies and New States, 1963).
Europe
Definition
Scholars: Dipankar Gupta, Ranajit Guha
Asia
Definition
Homo sapiens → “Homo” is the genus, “sapiens” is the species.
Example / case study
- Herbert Risley: Racial theory of caste; The People of India.
- Thurston: Castes & Tribes of Southern India.
- Beginning: Institutionalisation of anthropology (Dept. of Anthropology, Calcutta University – 1920).
- Nature: Empirical fieldwork, study of social institutions.