New publication from shows that anthropological work has taken inspiration from feminist and LGBTQI movements to create a transformative body of research

Bringing together contributions from an international team of authors, this new publication from shows that anthropological work has taken inspiration from feminist and LGBTQI movements to create a transformative body of research. 

A new publication The Cambridge Handbook for the Anthropology of Gender and Sexuality has been just published by the Cambridge University Press. It has been edited by Martin Fotta from the Department of Mobility and Migration of the Institute of Ethnology, Cecilia McCallum (Federal University of Bahia) and Silvia Posocco (Birkbeck College, University of London). The handbook provides an accessible, state-of-the-art overview of the anthropology of gender and sexuality. It is split into five parts, with each chapter introducing a contemporary anthropological theory through in-depth ethnographical discussion.

Chapter 8 ‘Gender(ed) Language and the Linguistics of Sexuality’ is written by Stephanie Rudwick, also from the Department of Mobility and Migration of the Institute of Ethnology. Based on Rudwick’s long-term fieldwork, the chapter focuses on Zulu speakers, South Africa’s largest ethnolinguistic group. It provides a nuanced discussion of how gendered and sexual Zulu identities are represented through three selected linguistic styles and how despite important differences in the Zulu ways of speaking and being, there are also remarkable commonalities that expose a matrix of oppression based on patriarchy, sexual and gender(ed) “otherness,” as well as pervasive heteronormativity and racism.

The Handbook can now be purchased with a discount using this flier