Definition of Cultural Ecology
(noun) The study of how groups of people interact with and adapt to their environment.
Example of Cultural Ecology
- A cultural ecologist would study how societies adopt subsistence strategies depending on their environment and social factors.
Etymology of Cultural Ecology
- Coined by Julian Steward (1902–1972) and discussed in his work Theory of Culture Change: The Methodology of Multilinear Evolution (1955).
Cultural Ecology Scholars
- Gregory Bateson (1904–1980)
- Marvin Harris (1927–2001)
- Julian Steward (1902–1972)
- Leslie White (1900–1975)
Cultural Ecology Pronunciation
Syllabification: cul·tur·al e·col·o·gy
Audio Pronunciation
Phonetic Spelling
- American English – /kUHl-chuhr-ruhl i-kAHl-uh-jee/
- British English – /kUHl-chuh-ruhl i-kOl-uh-jee/
International Phonetic Alphabet
- American English – /ˈkʌlʧərəl iˈkɑləʤi/
- British English – /ˈkʌlʧərəl ɪˈkɒləʤi/
Usage Notes
- Plural: cultural ecologies
- Cultural ecology contends that culture is the primary mechanism by which societies understand and give meaning to their environment.
- Not to be confused with human ecology.
- Also called ecological anthropology.
Additional Information
- Ecological and Environmental Resources – Books, Journals, and Helpful Links
- Word origin of “cultural” and “ecology” – Online Etymology Dictionary: etymonline.com
Related Terms
- agriculture
- cultural environment
- ecology
- horticulture
- hunting and gathering
- industrialism
- pastoralism
- physical environment
- slash and burn
- subsistence strategy
Works Consulted
Ferris, Kerry, and Jill Stein. 2010. The Real World: An Introduction to Sociology. 2nd ed. New York: Norton.
Henslin, James M. 2012. Sociology: A Down-to-Earth Approach. 10th ed. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Jary, David, and Julia Jary. 2000. Collins Dictionary of Sociology. 3rd ed. Glasgow, Scotland: HarperCollins.
Macionis, John, and Kenneth Plummer. 2012. Sociology: A Global Introduction. 4th ed. Harlow, England: Pearson Education.
Oxford University Press. (N.d.) Oxford Dictionaries. (https://www.oxforddictionaries.com/).
Wikipedia contributors. (N.d.) Wiktionary, The Free Dictionary. Wikimedia Foundation. (http://en.wiktionary.org).
Cite the Definition of Cultural Ecology
ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “cultural ecology.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved May 29, 2023 (https://sociologydictionary.org/cultural-ecology/).
APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)
cultural ecology. (2014). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/cultural-ecology/
Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “cultural ecology.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed May 29, 2023. https://sociologydictionary.org/cultural-ecology/.
MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)
“cultural ecology.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2014. Web. 29 May. 2023. <https://sociologydictionary.org/cultural-ecology/>.