folkways
Inherited social habits
Folkways are the traditional customs, habits, and practices of a particular group or society—the unwritten rules governing everyday behavior.
Unlike laws, folkways aren't formally enforced, but violating them may bring social disapproval: Table manners are folkways that vary across cultures.
The term comes from sociology, distinguishing informal norms from more serious moral codes (mores).
Binding social standards
- etiquetteRules of polite conduct
- taboosSocially proscribed practices
- ritualsCeremonial repeated practices
- ceremoniesFormal observances with ritual
conventions · practices · habits · manners · observances · rites · conduct · greetings
Group unity and belonging
- collective identityShared sense of us
- shared valuesPrinciples held in common
- village lifeExistence in small settlements
- neighborsThose dwelling nearby
local customs · regional traditions · group norms · belonging · solidarity · mutual aid · town traditions
Recorded interviews about the past
- storytellingRecounting events aloud
- mythsTraditional untrue narratives
- legendsTraditional stories or icons
- proverbsTraditional wisdom capsules
superstitions · folk music · folk dance · handicrafts · costumes · festivals · celebrations · folk beliefs
Systematic study of peoples
- kinshipState of being related
- totemismBelief linking clans to symbols
- shamanismMediation between worlds
- cultural relativismUnderstanding norms within their context
fieldwork · ethnologist · lifeways · social organization · acculturation · enculturation
Family line of descent
- lineageDescent from progenitors
- rootsUnderground nutrient absorbers
- genealogyStudy of family descent
- inheritanceProperty received from ancestors
legacy · heirlooms · birthright · patrimony · forebears · ethnicity · clan · cultural preservation
mores
Binding social standards
- etiquetteRules of polite conduct
- taboosSocially proscribed practices
- ritualsCeremonial repeated practices
ceremonies · conventions · practices · habits · manners · observances · rites · conduct · greetings · courtesies
social cohesion
Group unity and belonging
- collective identityShared sense of us
- shared valuesPrinciples held in common
- village lifeExistence in small settlements
neighbors · local customs · regional traditions · group norms · belonging · solidarity · mutual aid · town traditions
oral history
Recorded interviews about the past
- storytellingRecounting events aloud
- mythsTraditional untrue narratives
- legendsTraditional stories or icons
proverbs · superstitions · folk music · folk dance · handicrafts · costumes · festivals · celebrations · folk beliefs · folk remedies
ethnography
Systematic study of peoples
- kinshipState of being related
- totemismBelief linking clans to symbols
- shamanismMediation between worlds
cultural relativism · fieldwork · ethnologist · lifeways · social organization · acculturation · enculturation
ancestry
Family line of descent
inheritance · legacy · heirlooms · birthright · patrimony · forebears · ethnicity · clan · cultural preservation · ancestral practices
- customscustoms, customs clearance, wedding custom, customs declaration, burial custom
- farm lifefarm, farmer, farmers, farming, barn
- etiquettemanners, politeness, etiquette, table manners, courtesy
- conventionsconvention, conventions, delegates, conference, attendee
- agrarian rootsfarming, harvest, plowing, seeds, crops
- farming historypeasant farming, crop rotation, enclosures, manorialism, threshing machine
folkwayslegislation
Official enactment of statutes
statutes · legal codes · regulations · ordinances · edicts