ethnology

American  

[eth-nol-uh-jee] / ɛθˈnɒl ə dʒi /

noun

1. a branch of anthropology that analyzes cultures, especially in regard to their historical development and the similarities and dissimilarities between them.

2. (formerly) a branch of cultural anthropology dealing with the origin, distribution, and distinguishing characteristics of human societies.

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ethnology British  

/ ɛθˈnɒlədʒɪ, ˌɛθnəˈlɒdʒɪk /

noun

1. the branch of anthropology that deals with races and peoples, their relations to one another, their origins, and their distinctive characteristics

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ethnology Cultural  

1. The study of contemporary cultures, in order to develop a theoretical framework for analyzing human society. Cultural anthropologists generally study societies by living among the people, observing, interviewing, and participating in their activities. More than simply describing the customs of these societies, anthropologists attempt to uncover underlying patterns and structures of cultural characteristics, such as language, mythology, gender roles, symbols (see also symbol), and rituals.

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Other Word Forms

• ethnologic
  adjective
• ethnological
  adjective
• ethnologically
  adverb
• ethnologist
  noun

Etymology

Origin of ethnology

First recorded in 1835–45; ethno- + -logy

Compare meaning

How does ethnology compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• ethnography vs. ethnology

Explanation

Ethnology is a science that deals with the study of humans, looking at everything from the question of where we all come from to analyzing data about how we choose to live our lives now. With roots in the Greek ethnos meaning "people, nation, race" and logia referring to "the study of," ethnology takes into consideration culture, language, religion, race, and social structure. Unlike ethnography, which focuses on a single group, ethnology compares and contrasts more than one culture with the goal of better understand humanity as a whole.

Example Sentences

The photos were rediscovered in storage at Harvard's Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology in 1976.

From BBC • May 30, 2025

Harvard University’s Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology has said it would remove all Native American funerary items from its exhibits.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 26, 2024

Their findings were published on 13 September 2023 in the Journal of Ethnology.

From Science Daily • Oct. 2, 2023

To gain permission from the Bureau of Indian Affairs agents to enter the reservations, she secured research sponsorship from the Peabody Museum and the federal Bureau of Ethnology.

From Slate • Oct. 25, 2021

More puzzling, at least to present-day eyes, were the equally vehement objections voiced by professional archaeologists and anthropologists, especially those at the Smithsonian Institution, which had established a Bureau of American Ethnology in 1879.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

Related Words

• civilization
• development
• folklore
• habit
• knowledge
• lifestyle
• society
• way of life