Paper Summary:

This paper begins with the purpose and study of anthropology. It then goes on to look at the purpose of such a social study and how it applies to international studies. It then turns to looking at Spain through the anthropological lens. It provides more of an explanation of how anthropology can help us understand Spain than a look at Spain using anthropology.

Outline:
1. The Concept of Anthropology
2. Anthropology in International Studies
3. Spain through Anthropological Lenses

From the Paper:

"The American Anthropological Association (2009) puts a different spin on the concept and presents its linguistic heritage. Derived from the Greek anthropos (human) and logia (study), anthropology represents the 'study of humankind, from its beginnings millions of years ago to the present day.' The concept covers wide areas of application, with anthropology being the sole field which strives to integrate human existence as a whole, in terms of both geographical delimitations and evolutionary time.
"Unlike Van Willigen, the experts at the American Anthropological Association state that the concept is easy to define, but it becomes exponentially difficult to explain. They argue that anthropology applies to all aspects of life, including the study of the aboriginal population in Australia, the anatomy of a foot, the music of the African tribes or the corporate culture of a contemporaneous multinational. Despite the complexity of its applications, the goals of the anthropologic studies are clear and indisputable - 'to advance knowledge of who we are, how we came to be that way -- and where we may go in the future' (American Anthropological Association). The generic concept of anthropology is divided into four sub-fields: socio-cultural, biological, archeological and fourth, linguistic anthropology."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Ishwaran, K., International Studies in Sociology and Social Anthropology, Bill Archive
• Van Willigen, J., 2002, Applied Anthropology: An Introduction, 3rd Edition, Greenwood Publishing Group
• 2009, What is Antropology? American Anthropological Association, http://www.aaanet.org/about/whatisanthropology.cfm last accessed on April 15, 2009
• History of Spain, World History, http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?groupid=1750&HistoryID=ab50 last accessed on April 15, 2009

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