ETYMOLOGY AND MEANING OF THE CONCEPT OF ACCULTURATION
Abstract
Abstract. Any system of interpersonal and intercultural relationships poses topical questions for the researcher and stimulates the process of identifying relevant answers. Our attention is focused on the influence of one culture on the other, i.e. on the phenomenon of acculturation. The purpose of the article is to provide a brief excursus into the history of the concept discussed. In general, acculturation (Latin acculturare from ad — towards, at, for and cultura — education, development, culture) presupposes the partial adoption of an alien culture by an individual, a group, or society. The concept applies primarily to knowledge, values, norms, skills, habits, techniques, beliefs, and language. Acculturation may lead either to the enrichment or to the disappearance of a culture, i.e. to its assimilation. The term acculturation originated from British and American cultural anthropology. It was used to describe the effects of cultural interaction with a new alien culture during the process of colonization in the late 19th century (Powell, J. W. 1880, Boas, F. 1896, Thurnwald, R. 1932, Redfield, R. 1935, Herskovits, M. 1938, Linton, R. 1940). In the early 20th century, the term began to appear in American dictionaries and encyclopedias. The second half of the 1930s is characterized by a heightened interest in the systematic study of acculturation processes, reflected in the works of many scientists, namely Herskovits, M., Redfield, R., and Linton, R. Memorandum for Acculturation (1936); Herskovits, M. Acculturation: The Study of Culture Contact (1938), Man and his Works: The Science of Cultural Anthropology (1948); Linton, R. Acculturation in Seven American Indian Tribes (1940), etc. Until the 1950s, the research in the field of acculturation was limited to the studies of changes in cultural traditions under the influence of Western civilization. However, since the ’50s and ’60s, the research has significantly expanded its horizons. Franz Boas claimed that alien culture influenced everyone’s development. In the context of globalization and mass migration, the scientific concept of acculturation remains rather significant.
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