Anthropology Selected Questions

1. Who amongst the following was called “Father of Indian Ethnology”?
(A) R. P. Chandra
(B) S. C. Roy
(C) D. N. Majumdar
(D) A. Aiyappan

2. Descent in which the individual may affiliate with either of the mother’s or father’s descent group is known as
(A) Multiple descent
(B) Double descent
(C) Ambilineal descent
(D) Matri-Patri descent

3. Encephalization can be explained as
(A) expansion of brain volume
(B) expansion of motor cortex
(C) relationship between body size and brain size
(D) expansion of cerebrum

4. Which of the following statements is correct? In terrace system
(A) the uppermost terrace represents the earliest period.
(B) the lowermost terrace represents the earliest period.
(C) the uppermost terrace represents the middle period.
(D) None of the above

5. People who share a common history, culture or ancestry is known as
(A) Ethnogenesis
(B) Hypodescent
(C) Ethnicity
(D) All of the above

6. Name the type of whorl where a loop is located inside a whorl.
(A) Central pocket loop whorl
(B) Double loop whorl
(C) Accidental loop whorl
(D) Plain whorl

7. The Middle Palaeolithic Europe is known as
(A) Aurignacian culture
(B) Larnian culture
(C) Azilian culture
(D) Mousterian culture

8. An example of ‘Stabilising Selection’ could be
(A) eruption of third molar
(B) age at menarche
(C) birth weight
(D) stature

9. Who amongst the following is the supporter of ‘Foreign Invasion Theory’ of the abrupt decline of Harappan Civilization?
(A) S. Piggot
(B) D. H. Gordon
(C) Mortimer Wheeler
(D) All of the above

10. The trading system that involves the exchange of scarce goods, competition for prestige and all the ceremonial exchange of Trobriand islanders is known as
(A) Silent Trade
(B) Potlatch
(C) Market Exchange
(D) Kula

11. Name the chromosome number in which genes of HLA system is located.
(A) Chromosome number – 6
(B) Chromosome number – 7
(C) Chromosome number – 11
(D) Chromosome number – 9

12. Given below are the two statements. One labelled as Assertion (A) and the other as Reason (R). Indicate your answer from the alternatives below:
Assertion (A): No human society that has formed to be without the rule of incest taboo.
Reason (R): The prohibition of sexual relation was not established to begin with.
Codes:
(A) (A) is correct, but (R) is incorrect
(B) (A) is incorrect, but (R) is correct.
(C) Both (A) and (R) are correct
(D) Both (A) and (R) are incorrect.

13. In Potassium-Argon dating, the half life is
(A) around 1·3 billion years
(B) around 3 billion years
(C) around 10,000 years
(D) None of the above

14. Marriage custom according to which a widower marries his deceased wife’s sister is known as
(A) Polygyny
(B) Polyandry
(C) Sororate
(D) Levirate

15. The appropriate method which can be used to study seasonal effect on growth is
(A) Longitudinal
(B) Cross-sectional
(C) Short time longitudinal
(D) Mixed longitudinal

16. Neolithic revolution includes
(a) Domestication of plant and animal
(b) Pottery
(c) Grinding and polishing technique
(d) Megaliths
Codes:
(A) (a), (b), (c)
(B) (b), (c), (d)
(C) (a), (c), (d)
(D) (a), (b), (c), (d)

17. Who has undertaken research in the Hungsi Valley?
(A) Shanti Pappu
(B) K. Paddaiyya
(C) V. D. Krishnaswamy
(D) S. N. Rajguru

18. Indicate the correct code which is related to ‘Prohibitive Rules of Marriage’.
(A) Incest taboo
(B) Polygamy
(C) Monogamy
(D) Reproduction

19. The corporate descent group whose members claim descent from a common ancestor and can trace their genealogical link to that ancestor is known as
(A) Fission
(B) Clan
(C) Lineage
(D) Kindred

20. Given below are two statements. One labelled as Assertion (A) and other as Reason (R). Indicate your answer from the codes given below: Assertion (A): In course of human evolution, the posture of human became erect. Reason (R): The foramen magnum shifted towards the posterior side.
(A) Both (A) and (R) are correct
(B) Both (A) and (R) are incorrect
(C) (A) is correct and (R) is the correct explanation of (A)
(D) (A) is correct and (R) is not the correct explanation of (A)

More Question Papers on Anthropology

21. Which one of the following measurements is not used to determine the Heath Carter Somatotype?
(A) Biceps skinfold
(B) Triceps skinfold
(C) Subscapular skinfold
(D) Supra spinale skinfold

22. Arrange the following tools in their correct sequence of appearance.
(a) Chopper
(b) Adze
(c) Lunate
(d) Scraper
Codes:
(A) (d), (a), (b), (c)
(B) (a), (d), (c), (b)
(C) (d), (c), (a), (b)
(D) (b), (c), (a), (d)

23. The method used by Anthropologists to understand another society through their own cultural values, beliefs, norms and behaviour is known as
(A) Ethnocentric View
(B) Ethnographic Approach
(C) Historical Particularism
(D) Cultural Relativism

24. Which of the conditions are true for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy? Use the codes below:
(a) It is a genetic disease.
(b) Males are more affected than females.
(c) Lack of dystrophin, a protein found in the muscle fibre which leads to the weakness in muscle.
(d) Lack of myoglobin, a protein found in the muscle fibre which leads to the weakness in muscle.
Codes:
(A) (a), (b) and (c) are correct
(B) (a), (b) and (d) are correct
(C) Only (a) and (d) are correct
(D) Only (a) and (c) are correct

25. Retouching means
(A) primary flaking
(B) tertiary flaking
(C) secondary working
(D) no flaking

26. Religious rituals that mark the important stages in the lives of individuals, such as birth, marriage and death is known as
(A) Life cycle ceremonies
(B) Functionalism
(C) Festivals
(D) Rites of passage

27. The most significant change during the evolutionary history of Homo sapiens can be traced in
(A) loss of body hair
(B) bipedal locomotion
(C) reduction of jaw
(D) remarkable increase in the ratio of brain volume to body weight

28. Remains of huts and hearths have been found from the palaeolithic site of
(A) Zhoukoudian
(B) Terra Amata
(C) Olduvai Gorge
(D) None of the above

29. A severe psychological reaction that results from adjusting to the realities of a society radically different from one’s own during fieldwork is known as
(A) Culture shock
(B) Ethnocentric
(C) Psychic unity of mankind
(D) Cultural psychosis

30. In which one of the following cultural traditions Levallois technique appeared for the first time?
(A) Azillo-Tardinoisean
(B) Acheulian
(C) Aurignacian
(D) None of the above

31. Apollonian and Dionysian are characterizations of cultures formulated by
(A) Margaret Mead
(B) A. L. Kroeber
(C) Ruth Benedict
(D) Francis L.K. Hsu

32. Which one of the following is not a characteristic feature of the skull of Homo erectus?
(A) Thick supra orbital ridge
(B) Cranium is wider at base
(C) Long and narrow skull vault
(D) Thin cranial bones

33. Big game hunting by Homo erectus is known from the site of
(A) Olorgesailie
(B) St. Acheul
(C) Hoabinh
(D) Zhoukoudian

34. Henry Maive’s famous book is named
(A) Primitive Culture
(B) Ancient Society
(C) Ancient Law
(D) Primitive Marriage

35. The portion of home range containing the highest concentration and most reliable supplies of food and water is called
(A) Biome
(B) Niche
(C) Territory
(D) Core area

36. Which of the following statements is correct with regard to upper Palaeolithic Rock Art in Western Europe?
(A) Most common are visually accurate portrayals of ice-age mammals while human portrayals are rare.
(B) Most common are human portrayals while those of ice age mammals are rare.
(C) Both portrayals of ice age mammals and humans are common.
(D) None of the above

37. Verrier Elwin Committee’s Report is called
(A) Report of the Committee on Special Multipurpose Tribal Blocks
(B) Report of the Expert Committee on Tribal Development
(C) Report of the Committee on Forest and Tribals in India
(D) Report of the Study Group on Land Holding Systems in Tribal Area

38. Given below are the two statements. One is labelled as Assertion (A) and the other as Reason (R). Indicate your answer from the codes given below:
Assertion (A): Social and political interactions within the same society of people with different ways of living and thinking is known as Cultural Pluralism.
Reason (R): Although it is the most expected future condition of humanity, yet in reality it has rarely worked out.
(A) (A) is correct, but (R) is incorrect
(B) (A) is incorrect, but (R) is correct
(C) Both (A) and (R) are incorrect
(D) Both (A) and (R) are correct

39. Characters that are modified from the ancestral conditions and are diagnostic of particular evolutionary lineages are termed as
(A) primitive characters
(B) derived characters
(C) homologous characters
(D) analogous characters

40. The largest government institute of Anthropological Research is
(A) Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya
(B) Ministry of Tribal Affair
(C) Anthropological Survey of India
(D) Cultural Research Institute

41. Which of the following statements is correct about Bagor?
(A) Phase I exclusively microliths; Phase II presence of copper with microliths, phase III presence of iron with mocroliths
(B) All phases are exclusively microliths from non-geometric to geometric
(C) Phase I and II exclusively microlith
(D) Phase III microliths along with copper

42. The book ‘Mysore Tribes and Caste’ was written by
(A) M. N. Srinivas
(B) S. C. Roy
(C) D. N. Majumdar
(D) L. K. Anantha Krishna Iyer

43. A study of a disorder reveals that monozygotic twins are concordant 40% of the time, where as full siblings are concordant 10% of the time. Which of the following is the best interpretation of this finding?
(A) The trait has no genetic component
(B) The trait is completely determined by genetics
(C) Genes contribute to the trait, but are not deterministic
(D) The trait must be due to biology of twining

44. The well known rock art site of Bhimbetka was discovered by
(A) H. D. Sankalia
(B) V. N. Misra
(C) Y. Mathpal
(D) V. S. Wakankar

45. The relationship between body mass or volume to surface area can be explained by
(A) Allen’s Rule
(B) Bergmann’s Rule
(C) Gloger’s Rule
(D) Cope’s Rule

46. Massive walls of stones for protection against flood, mud brick houses, a stone tower and mud brick storage facilities have found from site of
(A) Hoabinh
(B) Jericho
(C) Lascaux
(D) Olduvai Gorge

47. An anthropologist who focuses on the cross cultural aspect of various ethnographic studies is known as
(A) Applied Anthropologist
(B) Ethnographer
(C) Ethnologist
(D) Participant observant

48. A period of time during which a child who has experienced delayed growth because of under nutrition, can increase in height to the point of his/her genetic potential is called
(A) Secular trend
(B) Growth spurt
(C) Catch-up growth
(D) None of the above

49. Identify the correct sequence in ascending order.
(A) Chattelperronean, Solutrean, Aurignacian
(B) Aurignacian, Solutrean, Chattelperronean
(C) Solutrean, Aurignacian, Chattelperronean
(D) Chattelperronean, Aurignacian, Solutrean

50. Which one of the following is not considered to be a geographical race by S. Garn (1961)?
(A) Polynesian
(B) Bantu
(C) Indian
(D) African