 People have a tendency to judge or

evaluate other cultures in the context of

their own culture. Language, behavior,
customs, or religion, which are
understandably unique for every culture
are the common subjects of these
judgments. Sociologically speaking, this
ideology or tendency is known as
ethnocentrism.
 Ethnocentrism is the idea that one’s
own culture is above or superior than
others'. It is also the belief that one's
own culture is the main standard by
which other cultures may be measured
or understood. Ethnocentrism is failing
or refusing to see the world and its
aspects in a wider or encompassing
perspective. It may cause people to
practice bias and intolerance.
 Seeing the belief and behavior of
others which are different from yours
as brutish, confusing, or unbecoming is
an ethnocentric thought or behavior.
The tendency to be avoidant, doubting,
or questioning towards members of
another culture is also a manifestation
of ethnocentrism.
 Not all people are ethnocentric. There are those
who use wider perspectives in associating their
culture from another’s. There are people who
accept and respect the evident differences of
members of the society. When people recognize
that each culture is naturally different from others,
that is cultural relativism. Cultural relativism does
not mean that we should immediately accept and
tolerate cultural differences. Instead, it requires
understanding the culture of other people in their
own cultural context that is free from another’s
biases..
 Cultural relativism is the idea that all
norms, beliefs, and values are
dependent on their cultural context,
and should be treated as such.
According to Franz Boas (1887),
"...civilization is not something
absolute, but ... is relative, and ... our
ideas and conceptions are true only so
far as our civilization goes."
 With cultural relativism, it is
suggested that the way people live
should be evaluated not based on
their own cultural context but on
the social community the people
themselves inhabit. Cultural
relativism means respect and
tolerance.
 In conducting their sociological studies,
social scientists are recommended to practice
or show cultural relativism. There should be
no reservations and blind opinions while
they are immersed in the community of their
subjects. One may also practice this concept
by learning and recognizing that there are
reasons or cultural significance of why
people of a certain community act and talk
the way they do.
 It is believed that each person, in one
way or another, possesses an
ethnocentric attitude or behavior. There
is nothing wrong with having such
because, unlike social scientists or
anthropologists, not all people are
equipped with sufficient knowledge
and exposure to cultures across the
globe, thus, the hardship in
understanding and tolerating others'
 However, we also have to
recognize that ethnocentric
behavior, if not controlled, may
cause trouble to oneself,
especially in this modern time
when everyone calls for social
or cultural inclusion.
 Historically, colonialism was
justified by ethnocentrism. When
Europeans reached the areas
populated by the natives whom
they considered as uncivilized and
savage, they saw the promise to
civilize and tame them through
religion (Christianity) and
colonialism
 Despiteits advantages,
we can say that the Age of
Exploration changed the
course of world history in
a way which deprived the
conquered.
 It is widely believed in the field of
sociology that ethnocentric behavior may
be mitigated through the recognition and
application of cultural relativism. A
person can practice cultural relativism by
recognizing that culture shapes what is
considered to be beautiful, ugly,
appealing, disgusting, virtuous, funny,
and abhorrent, and that these should not
be the basis for evaluating other cultures.
 Cultural relativism shapes our
understanding of different issues in
the societyas to why certain religions
believe in this and others do not, or
how come this group eats this type of
dish, wears this weird clothing, sings
and dances along to music while
others prefer not to.
 What we need is an open heart and an
unbiased and critical mind, exposure,
education, and involvement in
activities, and programs supporting
and recognizing the uniqueness and
beauty of every culture for us to truly
grasp what cultural relativism means.
 What actions can social
institutions present to promote
cultural relativism and mitigate
ethnocentrism?
 Givethree personal stories
wherein you have shown or
practiced ethnocentrism or
cultural relativism.
 Is
it possible for a society to
have individuals who do not
practice ethnocentrism?
 Ethnocentrism is the belief that one's own
culture is the main standard by which other
cultures may be measured. It is also the
tendency to think of one’s culture as
superior to other cultures.
 Cultural relativism is the idea that all norms,
beliefs, and values are dependent on their
cultural context, and should be treated as such.
It calls for an unbiased evaluation and
understanding
 Ethnocentrism is the belief that one's own
culture is the main standard by which other
cultures may be measured. It is also the
tendency to think of one’s culture as
superior to other cultures.
 Cultural relativism is the idea that all norms,
beliefs, and values are dependent on their
cultural context, and should be treated as such.
It calls for an unbiased evaluation and
understanding
 Legacy is what remains after one’s time.
Handed down from one generation to another,
legacy magnifies one’s life and living. It is
said that legacy is what cultural heritage is.


 According to John Feather, cultural heritage is

a human creation intended to inform.
 architectures such as buildings, houses, and
structures
 artifacts like books, documents, objects, images,
clothing, accessories, and jars
 things that make people who they are, like oral
stories, values, laws, norms, rituals, and traditions
 Cultural heritage helps historians and archaeologists
understand and decipher the way of living people of
yesterday had. Through these objects, we are
presented with facts and figures which help us draw
the landscape of the world as it once was.
 architectures such as buildings, houses, and
structures
 artifacts like books, documents, objects, images,
clothing, accessories, and jars
 things that make people who they are, like oral
stories, values, laws, norms, rituals, and traditions
 Cultural heritage helps historians and archaeologists
understand and decipher the way of living people of
yesterday had. Through these objects, we are
presented with facts and figures which help us draw
the landscape of the world as it once was.
 Cultural heritage is a representation
of the ways of living established by a
society or a group that is passed on
from generation to generation.
Cultural heritage can be categorized
as either tangible or intangible.
 Tangible
 Tangible means perceptible,
touchable, concrete, or physical. A
tangible heritage is a physical artifact
or object significant to the
archaeology, architecture, science, or
technology of a specific culture.
 Objects that can be stored are included in this
category, such as:
 traditional clothing,
 utensils (e.g. beadwork, water vessels),
 vehicles (e.g. the ox wagon),
 documents (e.g. codes, laws, land titles, literature),
and
 public works and architecture built and constructed
by a cultural group (e.g. buildings, historical places,
monuments, temples, graves, roads, bridges).
 Intangible Heritage
 Intangible is the opposite of tangible. Unlike tangible
heritage, an intangible heritage is not a physical or concrete
item. Intangible heritage is that which exists intellectually in
the culture.
 Intangible heritage includes:
 songs,
 myths,
 beliefs,
 superstitions,
 oral poetry,
 stories, and
 various forms of traditional knowledge such as
ethnobotanical knowledge.
 Intangible is the opposite of tangible. Unlike tangible
heritage, an intangible heritage is not a physical or concrete
item. Intangible heritage is that which exists intellectually in
the culture.
 Intangible heritage includes:
 songs,
 myths,
 beliefs,
 superstitions,
 oral poetry,
 stories, and
 various forms of traditional knowledge such as
ethnobotanical knowledge.