Rhyme & Reason: Poetry as a Cultural and Communal Bridge

In this Q&A, SAPIENS 2022 Poet-in-Residence Jason Vasser-Elong celebrated the end of his residency with a discussion of poetry as…

A Major Museum’s Attempt to Center Native American Voices

Chicago’s Field Museum recently unveiled their new Native North America Hall, redesigned with input from Native collaborators. But does it…

How a Song Bridged Diné and Ndebele Worlds

An anthropologist recounts a magical moment of songwriting collaboration between Diné (Navajo) and Ndebele artists gathered for the WOMAD Festival…

What Is Linguistic Anthropology?

Linguistic anthropologists study language in context, revealing how people’s ways of communicating and expressing themselves interact with human culture, history,…

Confronting Xenophobia Through Food—and Comics

An anthropologist who migrated from India to the U.K. uses his research to illustrate how fellow migrants from India maintain…

What Is Freedom in a Brazilian Favela?

In a new book, Minoritarian Liberalism, an anthropologist explores how favela residents of Rio de Janeiro create their own versions…

What Is Anthropological Poetry?

SAPIENS’ poetry editor and inaugural poet-in-residence break down what makes certain poems anthropological and explore how poetry has the potential…

Peeling Back the Myth of a “White” Midwest

The popular image of the U.S. heartland as only a place of rural, hardworking white farmers has always been a…

Why Do (Some) Humans Love Chili Peppers?

An anthropologist traces the origins and world travels of one of his favorite kinds of plants. ✽ As someone who…

The Amazing Archive of First Nations Stories Written on Stone

Rock art created by First Nation peoples over the millennia are more than decorative. Non-Indigenous archaeologists are beginning to appreciate how they constitute an Indigenous archive of memories, histories, and relationships to the land and Ancestors.