Urban Anthropology: The Study of Future Cities

Urban Anthropology: The Study of Future Cities Dr. Hassan AssiEditor-in-Chief of Tafkik Magazine Academic discrimination and academic differences within scientific disciplines led early anthropologists to study tribal or rural communities, while ignoring the city as a field of research. Thus, urban research became established in some academic disciplines, particularly sociology, but it struggled to achieve such a status within anthropology.Over the years, historical events and geopolitical changes have motivated anthropologists to address urbanization processes in developing countries. However, urban research in Western industrialized societies has continued to be excluded from the mainstream disciplinary agenda. Today, a growing number of anthropologists are conducting research in cities. Although half of humanity already lives in towns and cities, and the number will grow to two-thirds in the next fifty years, it is undeniable that urban research is relevant and necessary as Western and non-Western societies rapidly become urbanized or mega-urbanized.