Environmental Adaptations: The Zulu People and The Andean Indians

 1.) For each population, give a brief description of the environment in which the population lives.

As said in the assignment, The Andean Indians live in a high altitude environment within the Andes Mountains. Their population would live at an altitude between 8,000-13,000 ft. The weather in their environment varies within the time of day instead of the season. When it's morning, it has a nice tropical sunshine that can be hot, but when it's dark, the temperature becomes freezing with the coldest coming to as low as between -20 C° to -40 C° in the winter season. Because the temperature changes within the day, they learn to live with the harsh environment through their small rectangular homes, woven clothing, and their farming styles. The Zulu Population lives within the South African province, KwaZulu-Natal. The temperature of their environment is based on the seasons. For example, if it's summer, around October to April, it's warm and rainy, while the winter, between June and August, it's cold and dry. In their environment, it's rare for their temperatures to be extreme. 

2.) For each population, identify and describe one (1) physical adaption they demonstrate. 
The Andean Indians find a way to have a stable supply of necessities like food. Although the environmental weather is not best for the crops, they managed to save their crops and grow food like corn, potatoes, peppers, and more by using a variety of crops that'll suit the conditions of their weather. Another way they get their food is through their animals, llamas and alpacas. Because of their animals, they learned to use a freeze-drying method to preserve food like meat and make it last longer. The Zulu population usually eats vegetarian dishes, which is mostly vegetables and grains. In their dishes, you could find pumpkins and potatoes as common ingredients. The only time they would eat meat, specifically oxen, is during special occasions like weddings. The Zulu population also has animals like goats and cattle so they can have beverages like Amazi, fermented milk that is only to be shared within family members, and Beer, created with maize and a grain plant called sorghum.

 









3.) For each population, identify and describe one (1) cultural adaption they demonstrate.
The Andean Indians shows this through how their population is run. The Andean Indians live under an Inca rule which is a tradition within their community. You were able to join their empire as long as you provided them with land and labor, and in return, you would be given gifts and feasts. The Inca's way of gaining wealth would be through their people's empires in the land and labor. With the Zulu population, they rule under one king and have a history of 8 previous rulers. In their religion, their tradition is based on worshiping their ancestors and believing in creators like God and witches/sorcerers. Beacause of this, all eyes were on the king to be responsible for their traditions like in magic, they relied on the king for rain to fall. Although ruling was a part of the Zulu population's history, the power of their king has slowly declined, leaving many of their men to leave their community. 








4.) Race:
When it comes to the Andean Indians, their race can throw some people off, like me. At first, while I was assuming the Zulu population would be racially identified as Africans because they're located in Africa, I thought the Andean Indians were located somewhere in India through their population name. Before I learned where the Andes Mountain was truly located, you would consider the Andean Indians to be racially identified as Latin Americans. If not, then maybe Native Americans. 

5.) Summary – Adaptation vs. Race:
After researching both cultures, I would consider their cultures to be different, but similar in different ways. In my eyes, I see the Andean Indians having more explanatory power over the Zulu population. Why? To be honest, I'm not quite sure. I think, for me, it was harder to find information on the Zulu population rather than the Andean Indians, but then again, I honestly struggled with this assignment greatly. If I were to choose, which would be a more useful approach to anthropologists, I'd probably choose the Zulu population because it seems like their community has evolved over the years, not saying that the Andean Indians didn't evolve over the years, but I think both cultures would've been a useful approach for anthropologists. 

Comments

  1. L RodriguezApril 24, 2025 at 9:07 AM

    I'm going to divide my response into the two ethnic groups.

    Zulu:

    There is a lot more to an environment than temperature! Yes, heat and cold stress can definitely shape bodies, but we also need to take into consideration access to water, altitude and exposure to solar radiation. Which of those factors would impact the Zulu population and might require adaptations?

    Physical: Physical adaptations, as explained in the guidelines, are changes to the *body* and may include genetic changes. What you are describing are *cultural* adaptations. Examples of physical adaptations would include the long, lean body shapes of the Zulu (which helps release excess heat to address heat stress) and their darker skin tones (to help with solar radiation stress).

    Cultural adaptations: You raise a number of cultural traits of the Zulu, but you don't explain how they are *adaptations* to environmental stresses, which is what we are looking for here. For example, the Zulu wear lighter and more minimal clothing, which helps with heat stress (and is only possible because they have darker skin to address solar radiation stress) and they also build well-ventilated homes made of mud which helps with heat stress. So how do the traits you list help with any of the key stresses emphasized in the guidelines (heat, cold, solar radiation or high altitude)?

    Race: "African" is a geographical marker, not a racial one. Keep in mind that Africa is a *huge* continent and some ethnic groups do not have the same dark skin as the Zulu. Perhaps a more accurate choice of race would be "black".

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    Replies
    1. L RodriguezApril 24, 2025 at 9:08 AM

      Google limited the length of my comment, so I will finish it here:
      ______________________________________________________________
      Andean:

      Overall, good description here of the environment, but would their altitude be described as "high altitude"? You identify their altitude but don't comment further on it. Is this a stress they would need to adapt to?

      Physical: As with your Zulu discussion, you aren't describing *physical* traits but only cultural ones. Physical adaptations for the Andeans would include physical changes to their body to adapt to the cold, to solar radiation, and to the high altitude. Their compact body shapes are adaptations to the cold. Their darker skin tone is an adaptation to solar radiation. And finally, they have larger lung capacities and more red blood cells to help them with high altitude stress.

      Cultural: Again, many cultural traits listed here. You reference the choice of crops as those that will "suit the conditions of their weather", but that is true for all agriculturalists and horticulturalists. Can we come up with specific cultural adaptations for the environmental stresses they experience? Two good ones for high altitude stress is the use of alpacas (or llamas) for transporting goods over the mountainous terrain (which reduces their oxygen usage) and also terracing, a common high altitude agricultural practice.

      I will not that your reference to freeze-drying their food is accurate but I don't understand the reference to "Because of their animals"? Can you explain this?

      Race: "Native American" would be more accurate. "Latin American" is more of a geographical term instead of one of race. But I appreciate how difficult it was to choose a race here. That is part of the point! :-)

      Conclusion: "I see the Andean Indians having more explanatory power over the Zulu population."

      That wasn't the comparison you were asked to make. The issue is between using *race* vs. using a environmental adaptations to explain human variation. Which approach has more explanatory power?

      Race is not based in biology but is a social construct, based in beliefs and preconceptions, and used only to categorize humans into groups based upon external physical features, much like organizing a box of crayons by color. Race does not *cause* adaptations like environmental stress do, and without that causal relationship, you can't use race to explain adaptations. Race has no explanatory value over human variation.

      When you read through the guidelines, if you have any questions, make sure you email me for clarification. You wandered off track here a couple of times. Checking in with me might help prevent that. Remember that I hold office hours Wednesday evening from 7-9 pm. A good time to ask questions directly.

      Delete
  2. WJDApril 24, 2025 at 6:17 PM

    You explained the environments and adaptations really well. I liked how you showed specific differences between the Zulu and Andean Indians. It’s cool that you were honest about your struggles with the assignment, your points still came through clearly. I agree that adaptations matter more than race when it comes to survival in harsh environments.

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