Celebrating the Vernal Equinox
Francine Barone The vernal equinox marks the beginning of Spring, representing the moment when the sun passes directly over the equator. This time of year is known for its many cultural and religious celebrations. For…
Author Archives: Francine Barone
HRAF 2024 in Review & 2025 Preview
Francine Barone It’s time for our annual Year in Review. This article will summarize HRAF’s activities from the previous year as well as describe what you can expect to see from us over the next…
HRAF Academic Quarterly, Vol 2024-01
Francine Barone This summary features some of the exciting research accomplished using HRAF data from the eHRAF World Cultures and eHRAF Archaeology databases as well as Explaining Human Culture (EHC), Teaching eHRAF, and other open…
Winter Solstice Celebrations Around the World
The Winter Solstice is upon us in the Northern Hemisphere. Marking the longest night and shortest day of the year, the hibernal solstice is an astronomical event that takes place when the Earth reaches its…
New and Forthcoming Cultures and Traditions in eHRAF World Cultures & Archaeology (2024-2025)
Culture collections in the eHRAF databases are updated up to several times a year. Below is a brief summary of what cultures and traditions we have added or updated in eHRAF World Cultures and eHRAF…
Understanding Love: Attending the 2024 Love Studies Conference, Canary Islands, Spain
HRAF Research Anthropologist, Ian Skoggard, reflects on his experience attending the 2024 Love Studies Conference in Gran Canaria last month. What’s not to love about a love studies conference? This January, the International Institute of…
HRAF 2023 in Review & 2024 Preview
By Francine Barone It’s time for our annual Year in Review! This article will summarize HRAF’s activities from the previous year as well as describe what you can expect to see from us over the…
Craving comfort: bonding with food across cultures
By Francine Barone Food is a universal human experience. People everywhere must eat to survive, yet what foods are eaten and how they are enjoyed can vary widely across cultures and time. “Comfort foods” made…
HRAF Academic Quarterly, Vol 2023-04
HRAF Academic Quarterly Vol 2023-04 By Francine Barone This summary features some of the exciting research accomplished using HRAF data from the eHRAF World Cultures and eHRAF Archaeology databases as well as Explaining Human Culture…
Nascent Worlds: a journey of cultural discovery
Nascent Worlds, a teaching exercise by digital anthropologist Dr. Francine Barone, is a build-your-own-culture learning activity. Designed with introductory socio-cultural anthropology classes in mind, it incorporates all four fields of anthropology (physical anthropology, linguistic anthropology,…