In Vodou, the term lwa refers to:
a. places of worship that are sacred to particular spirits
b. animals that are sacrifices to particular spirits
c. spirit beings
d. drums and musical idioms
A prescriptive ritual that one that is:
a. performed because of the will or desire of a deity
b. associated with critical events in the life of an individual
c. involved with an altered state of consciousness
d. celebrated on a ritual calendar
After cremating their dead, the Yanomam grind the ashes and later add the ashes to a
banana stew to be consumed. Most Americans might feel that drinking the ashes of the
dead to be disgusting. On the other hand, anthropology tells us that we should not judge
the customs of others by our own standards. This latter attitude towards other cultures is
called:
a. holism
b. ethnocentrism
c. cultural relativism
d. participant observation
Which of the following is true about Navaho witchcraft?
a. witches use materials taken from corpses such as corpse powder
b. witches can turn themselves in animals at will
c. witches will kill a close relative as part of the process of becoming a witch
d. all of the above are true statements
A specialist who uses techniques to obtain information about things that are not
normally knowable is a:
a. herbalist
b. diviner
c. healer
d. priest
Vodou resembles in many ways traditional West African religions in that Vodou is
characterized by:
a. pantheon of intermediary deities
b. spirit possession
c. offerings placed on altars
d. all of the above
In the Navaho Creation Story, First Man and First Woman were created by the:
a. Holy People
b. Air-Spirit People
c. People Who Live in Upright Houses
d. sacred twins
In every society there are particular ways in which people perceive and interpret their
reality. This is what is meant by the concept of:
a. supernatural
b. worldview
c. culture
d. sacred
The belief that an immortal, eternal soul is born again and again in different bodies is
found in:
a. Catholicism
b. Islam
c. Hinduism
d. Judaism
The Book of Revelations in the New Testament is an example of a(n):
a. trickster story
b. hero myth
c. apocalyptic myth
d. origin story
Late nineteenth century anthropologists who saw “primitive” societies as presenting an
early stage in the development of religion were using the:
a. functional approach
b. essentialist approach
c. evolutionary approach
d. psychoanalytic approach
Which of the following features characterizes a shaman?
a. shamans are usually full-time specialists
b. shamans are usually associated with permanent shrines and temples
c. the power of a shaman is determined by his or her personal ability to contact the
supernatural
d. shamanistic rituals are usually prescriptive and periodic
All Hallows Eve or Halloween takes place on the evening before:
a. Memorial Day
b. dama
c. All Saint’s Day
d. Hollows Day
The orisha are the gods of the:
a. Yoruba
b. Ifugao
c. Dani
d. Shoshoni
In some societies guilt and innocence are determined by having a red-hot knife pressed
against some part of the accused person’s body. This is an example of a(n):
a. presentiment
b. ordeal
c. omen
d. none of the above
Ethnographic fieldwork among the Trobriand Islanders was carried out by:
a. E. Evans-Pritchard
b. Bronislaw Malinowski
c. Karen McCarthy Brown
d. Alfred R. Radcliffe-Brown
The purpose of Aztec human sacrifice was based on the worldview that:
a. only human flesh could adequately feed the royal family
b. to avoid the end of the life of the Sun, it had to fed blood
c. sacrificed humans buried in the fields would ensure a good harvest
d. all of the above
Which of the following event occurred in the case of the Zande co-wives?
a. The younger wife was identified as the witch by an ordeal.
b. The younger wife was beaten until she confessed.
c. The younger wife cooled her witchcraft by spitting water.
d. The husband was forced to divorce his younger wife because of witchcraft.
All of the following are true about mangu, the cause of witchcraft among the Azande,
except:
a. it is a physical substance found within the body of a witch
b. it can be manipulated by shamans in healing rituals
c. it can be seen when autopsies are performed
d. it is inherited from the parent of the same sex
Lord Pakal ruled what is now called the site of Palenque. Palenque was built by the
ancient:
a. Egyptians
b. Incas
c. Mayas
d. Aztecs
Religious specialists who are usually responsible for the performance of prescribed,
periodic rituals are:
a. shamans
b. diviners
c. priests
d. healers
Shamans are able to cure illness by:
a. sending their souls to recapture the lost soul of the patient
b. removing spirits and objects from within the body of the patient
c. allowing a deity to possess their body
d. all of the above
Pain brought about by piercing the body, a practice found in many Native American
groups, characterized the:
a. Yanomam
b. Blessing Way
c. Sun Dance
d. San healing ritual
A drug that causes visions and hallucinations is classed as a(n):
a. euphoria
b. phantastica
c. hypnotica
d. excitania
Aspects of Australian totemic beliefs include:
a. a prohibition against eating one’s totem
b. a time called “The Dream Time” during which totemic creatures roamed the earth
c. a kinship between people and their totem
d. all of the above
All of the following statements about the African Burial Ground are correct except:
a. most of the remains are those of adults
b. the cemetery dates to the 1700s
c. individuals were buried in coffins
d. the bodies were buried with their heads oriented to the west so that on the Judgment
Day they will sit up and face the rising sun
The study of witchcraft among the Azande of southern Sudan was conducted in the
1920s by:
a. Bronislaw Malinowski
b. Edward Tylor
c. James Frazer
d. E. E. Evans-Pritchard
In the Qur”an jinn are conscious beings made of:
a. clay
b. bread
c. fire without smoke
d. light
The term shaman comes from the Tungus language of:
a. Siberia
b. the American Southwest
c. West Africa
d. Australia
Jung believed that humans share inborn elements of the unconscious that are manifested
in myths. He called this the:
a. collective unconscious
b. innate symbolism
c. unconscious unified
d. symbolic ancestry
Examples of prescribed, periodic rituals include all of the following except:
a. Diwali
b. Quinceaeras
c. Passover
d. Ramadan
In Roman Catholicism, souls travel to one of two places: Heaven or Hell.
Religious texts often change through time because they are often transmitted orally or
subject to new translations.
In most societies, the fate of the soul after death depends upon the behavior of the
individual when living.
An analytic definition focuses on the way that religion manifests itself or is expressed
in a culture.
In benge or the poison oracle of the Azande poison is fed to pigs.
Both very loud rhythmic noise and the absence of sound are capable of creating an
altered state of consciousness.
Among the Azande, witchcraft accusations are most likely to occur between people
with strong social ties.
One can ask spirits for assistance and protection since they live in the human world and
interact with humans.
Zuni society recognizes many different priesthoods.
In the village of Hofriyat, anxiety in women surrounding marriage and children is
mediated by possession by incubi and succubae.
Robert Edgerton believes that all cultural practices are valid and must be accepted in
the context of the society’s culture.
The essentialist definition of religion emphasizes that region is the domain of the
extraordinary.
A person who judges another society in terms of his or her own culture is said to be
ethnocentric.
The Witchcraze was a Neo-Pagan movement in 19th century Europe that attempted to
rehabilitate healers and midwives.
Problems such as drug addiction frequently accompany religious drug use.
Calendars are important in many religious for the scheduling of periodic rituals.
Examples of ideological rituals include therapy and salvation rituals.
The majority of Americans believe there is a Heaven.