Anthropology

About Our Department

Anthropology asks some of the most fundamental and urgent questions of our time: How and where did humankind originate? How have environment, culture, and biology shaped who we are? How are human societies adapting to the rapid changes of the modern world? The Department of Anthropology at Bryn Mawr College is one of only a handful of departments at small, liberal arts colleges in the US that offers a four-field Anthropology curriculum, which connects the past to the present through Anthropological Archaeology, Biological Anthropology, Cultural Anthropology, and Linguistic Anthropology. This rare breadth and depth means that our students explore what it means to be human from the deep past of human evolution and prehistoric societies, to the diversity of present-day cultures, social systems, and modes of expression. Our department is committed to bringing anthropology to life beyond the classroom. We actively support our students in pursuing hands-on research, fieldwork, praxis, internships, and other experiential learning opportunities.