Anthropology 445 Seminar: Migration and Human Adaptation

Dr. Bruce D. Roberts
Department of Anthropology and Earth Science

Humans have been moving since leaving Africa perhaps 2 million years ago. But, the rate and scale of migration today is unparalleled in human history. In this course we will examine why people move, why they go where they go as well as the consequences of these movements. Our emphasis will be on contemporary migration in today’s “global village”. We’ll examine migration as an adaptive strategy that people use in adjusting to external conditions in their environment. Movement entails adjustment and numerous aspects of peoples’ lives change as a result: lifestyles, livelihoods, habitation modes, foodstuffs, clothing and dress, education, family life, etc. All of these things constitute what anthropologists call culture! Some movement is voluntary but much of it is not. We’ll look at both types – voluntary and involuntary – and consider how they differentially affect the people involved: women and men, children and adults, migrants and hosts. We will utilize a number of case studies based upon ethnographic research because this is the hallmark of cultural anthropology. To reiterate, we will be attempting to objectively understand the causes and consequences of human migration rather than perfunctorily viewing it as a problem per se. This is not going to be a course about “illegal immigration” nor will I permit it to be used as a forum for promoting anti-immigration rhetoric or prose. If that’s what you’re looking for then you’ve come to the wrong place, so as “the Governator” would say, hasta la vista baby!