LEGENDS OF PEOPLE, MYTHS OF STATE

Violence, Intolerance, and Political Culture in Sri Lanka and Australia

“The problems addressed in this book are those of modern nationalism, a political development of European origin that now has a worldwide effect…Kapferer’s writing is fluid and powerful…[His work] is an excellent example of what comparative anthropology can be.”  •  Journal of the Anthropological Society of Oxford

more

POLICY WORLDS

Anthropology and the Analysis of Contemporary Power

“The volume represents an emergent subfield of anthropology coming of age in some ways; it will teach very well indeed and will certainly prove an invaluable book to think with and through… I was consistently impressed by the quality, coherence, and interest of the articles in themselves. Each was substantively fascinating, methodologically thought-provoking, and clearly linked to the others.”  •  Don Brenneis, University of California, Santa Cruz

more

CRUDE DOMINATION

An Anthropology of Oil

"Here is anthropology at its critical and relevant best. Nothing could be more topical than the role of oil in contemporary global turmoil and “the crazy curse” that it casts over all manner of human endeavour and hope... This is a must read for anthropologists and those in other disciplines who are concerned with the dynamics of global power as this is exposed in the struggle over the control of scarce resources and its tragic human effects."  •  Bruce Kapferer, University of Bergen

more

WAR, TECHNOLOGY, ANTHROPOLOGY

Technologies of the allied warfare in Iraq and Afghanistan, such as remote-controlled drones and night vision goggles, allow the user to “virtualize” human targets. This concise volume of research and reflections from different regions across Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, and Africa, observes how anthropology operates as a technology of war.

more

TOURISM, MAGIC AND MODERNITY

Cultivating the Human Garden

"Picard re-thinks basic tourism theory through the lens of the garden as a metaphor and of magic as a guiding concept. Original, innovative, scholarly, often unsettling, and deeply ethnographic."  •  Edward M. Bruner, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

more

THE ANTHROPOLOGY OF EMPATHY

Experiencing the Lives of Others in Pacific Societies

We are pleased to announce the first volume in the Association for Social Anthropology in Oceania (ASAO) series.

“[This volume] sets out to provide ethnographic data on a neglected topic and does much more than just that by exploring different ways to study such a slippery cultural expression/human capacity and to create empathy by representing fieldwork data.”  •  Susanne Kuehling, University of Regina 

more

RECONSTRUCTING THE HOUSE OF CULTURE

Community, Self, and the Makings of Culture in Russia and Beyond

“This book has a clear immediate aim that has not been covered in the anthropology of Russia—to describe and analyse the ‘House of Culture,’ a prominent institution in every Soviet town and village… is a very interesting, ambitious, worthwhile and readable book.” •  Caroline Humphrey, University of Cambridge

more

ANTHROPOLOGIES OF EDUCATION

A Global Guide to Ethnographic Studies of Learning and Schooling

“This is an important book, one might almost say a ‘landmark’ which will fill a big gap in the literature. This volume brings together a rather impressive range of countries, and of authors who are among the very most distinguished ethnographers of education in their countries …There is no truly comparative study of national ethnographic traditions like this.”  •  Bradley A.U. Levinson, University of Indiana, Bloomington

more

CLASSIFYING TO KILL

An Ethnography of the Death Penalty System in the United States

“This is a scintillating read that goes to the heart of some central and quite shocking dimensions of United States society. The study presents a sustained ethnographic account of the moral and micro-political contests that make and remake classifications that define a crime and a perpetrator as deserving death. The book is a searing critique of the death penalty.”  •  Diane Austin-Broos, University of Sydney

more

THE ALLURE OF CAPITALISM

An Ethnography of Management and the Global Economy in Crisis

“This is an extraordinary book, huge in every way, one man’s personal synthesis of the world we live in, as seen through his own experience of Norway’s largest business corporation and much much more... There are few in-depth anthropological studies of global corporations. Scandinavian anthropology is enjoying a boom and this is reflected in the present study…”  •  Keith Hart, Goldsmiths College, London

more

HEADLINES OF NATION, SUBTEXTS OF CLASS

Working Class Populism and the Return of the Repressed in Neoliberal Europe

“This is an excellent volume… offers major theoretical and ethnographic insights not just with reference to neoliberal processes but also to the general understanding of state transformations…. The book will be a major contribution towards reasserting the importance of an attention to class-based discussion.”  Bruce Kapferer, University of Bergen

more

FUNERALS IN AFRICA

Explorations of a Social Phenomenon

“This collection is of great benefit to scholars and students across a wide range of disciplines, including anthropology, sociology, development studies, economics, history, religious studies.”  •  Rebekah Lee, Goldsmiths, University of London

more

ENCOUNTERS OF BODY AND SOUL IN CONTEMPORARY RELIGIOUS PRACTICES

Anthropological Reflections

“There is a welcome international feel about the venture—indeed the contributors could hardly represent a broader range of European nationalities. Furthermore, I am impressed with both the relevance and diversity of the papers listed.”  •  Peter Collins, Durham University

more

EXTREME HERITAGE MANAGEMENT

The Practices and Policies of Densely Populated Islands

Published in association with Island Studies Press, Institute of Island Studies, University of Prince Edward Island, Canada

“The book is highly topical. It brings into sharp focus one of the pressing problems of our times: the growing tension between finite land/space, especially on islands, and the mounting pressure generated by increasing population growth, tourism, and global warming.”  •  Jeremy Boissevain, University of Amsterdam

more

BERGHAHN ANTHROPOLOGY JOURNALS 2012

For a full selection of our list in anthropology journals please view our 2012 anthropology journals catalog.

download PDF

CAMBRIDGE ANTHROPOLOGY

Cambridge Anthropology is an international, peer-reviewed journal committed to publishing leading scholarship in contemporary anthropology. Geographically diverse articles provide a range of theoretical or ethical perspectives, from the traditional to the mischievous or subversive, and aim to offer new insights into the worlds in which we live.

more

CONFLICT AND SOCIETY

Advances in Research

Publishing peer-reviewed articles by international scholars, Conflict and Society expands the field of conflict studies by using ethnographic inquiry to establish new fields of research and interdisciplinary collaboration. With special attention paid to ongoing debates on the politics and ethics of conflict studies research, including military-academic cooperation, Conflict and Society will be an essential forum for scholars, researchers, and policy makers in the fields of anthropology, sociology, political science, and development studies.

more