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Subfield · Social Sciences

Anthropology research

Anthropology is a subfield of Social Sciences. Science Explorer counts 351k research works in it since 1950. 17.1% of them reached the world's top 10% most cited for their field and year.

In short: scientific study of humans, human behavior, and societies.

Research works
351k
fractional, since 1950
In the world top 10%
60k
per year above
Top-10% rate
17.1%
share of its works in the world top 10%
Topics
25
Growth, 2013–17 → 2018–22
+20%
the tick is no change

What is Anthropology research about, and what is growing?

By the world's output in 2019–23, its most used keywords are Colonialism, Globalization, Nationalism, African Diaspora, Ancient Rome, Greek Literature. Gaining share since 2009–13: Development, Social Change, Migration, Eurasian Exchange, Silk Roads. Losing share: History, Philippines, Identity, Roman Economy.

▲ gaining share of this field◆ holding its share▼ losing share

Size is the world's fractional works in 2019–23 in the topics tagged with each word; colour compares the word's share of this field with 2009–13. Each links to the topic it comes from most.

All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Colonialism16k◆ 1.01×4 topics
  2. Globalization15k◆ 1.08×6 topics
  3. Nationalism11k◆ 0.89×2 topics
  4. African Diaspora10k◆ 1.09×4 topics
  5. Ancient Rome9,521◆ 0.90×1 topic
  6. Greek Literature9,521◆ 0.90×1 topic
  7. Archaeology9,319◆ 0.89×2 topics
  8. Cultural Exchange7,357◆ 1.08×3 topics
  9. Roman Economy7,118▼ 0.84×1 topic
  10. Urban Workshops7,118▼ 0.84×1 topic
  11. Racial Identity7,024◆ 1.02×2 topics
  12. Slavery6,957◆ 1.03×2 topics
  13. Imperialism6,826◆ 0.95×2 topics
  14. Migration6,675▲ 1.80×3 topics
  15. African History6,500◆ 0.95×1 topic
  16. Post-Colonial Africa6,500◆ 0.95×1 topic
  17. Hominin Genetics6,077▼ 0.86×1 topic
  18. Paleolithic Archaeology6,077▼ 0.86×1 topic
  19. Cultural Heritage5,837▲ 1.22×2 topics
  20. Neoliberalism5,778▲ 1.31×2 topics
  21. Cultural Identity5,762▲ 1.21×3 topics
  22. Ethnography5,453▲ 1.33×1 topic
  23. Governmentality5,453▲ 1.33×1 topic
  24. Anthropology5,234▲ 1.38×2 topics
  25. Eurasian Exchange5,078▲ 1.69×1 topic
  26. Silk Roads5,078▲ 1.69×1 topic
  27. Indian Ocean4,838◆ 1.07×1 topic
  28. prehistoric movement4,838◆ 1.07×1 topic
  29. Atlantic History4,756◆ 1.01×1 topic
  30. Transatlantic Slave Trade4,756◆ 1.01×1 topic
  31. Development4,421▲ 1.88×1 topic
  32. Social Change4,421▲ 1.88×1 topic
  33. Identity4,369▼ 0.82×2 topics
  34. History4,044▼ 0.81×1 topic
  35. Philippines4,044▼ 0.81×1 topic
  36. Ethnographic Research2,511◆ 1.06×2 topics
  37. Coloniality2,500◆ 1.08×2 topics
  38. Postcolonialism2,500◆ 1.08×2 topics
  39. Indigenous Peoples2,383◆ 1.13×1 topic
  40. State Policies2,383◆ 1.13×1 topic

Which countries lead Anthropology research?

On research quality in 2022–2025, the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany rank highest in Anthropology. By volume, the United States and France publish the most (10k and 7.6k works in 2022–2025).

By research quality, 2022–2025

  1. 1 United States · #1 all time 14.9% top 10% · 10k works
  2. 2 United Kingdom · #2 all time 18.6% top 10% · 4.7k works
  3. 3 Germany · #5 all time 18.9% top 10% · 2.1k works
  4. 4 France · #4 all time 7.8% top 10% · 7.6k works
  5. 5 Spain · #6 all time 21.6% top 10% · 1.8k works
  6. 6 Australia · #3 all time 23.5% top 10% · 1.3k works
  7. 7 China · #10 all time 23.3% top 10% · 1.3k works
  8. 8 Canada · #7 all time 15.0% top 10% · 1.6k works
  9. 9 Italy · #9 all time 15.3% top 10% · 1.8k works
  10. 10 South Africa · #8 all time 25.9% top 10% · 1k works

The track on each row is that row’s top-10% rate. The ranking itself is the composite score, which the rate is only one part of.

Of 44 countries ranked in Anthropology. Composite of field-normalised excellence (50%), output (30%) and citations (20%); the bracket is the all-time rank.

All countries ranked in Anthropology

By volume, 2022–2025

  1. 1 United States 10k works
  2. 2 France 7.6k works
  3. 3 United Kingdom 4.7k works
  4. 4 Brazil 3.2k works
  5. 5 Poland 3.2k works
  6. 6 Germany 2.1k works
  7. 7 Spain 1.8k works
  8. 8 Italy 1.8k works
  9. 9 Canada 1.6k works
  10. 10 Russia 1.5k works

How concentrated that is

The same countries as shares of everything the list above accounts for. A node where two countries do two thirds of the work and one spread evenly across twelve read alike as a ranking and not at all alike here.

United States: 27.3%France: 20.2%United Kingdom: 12.5%Brazil: 8.5%6 others listed: 31.5%27%largest
United States10k · 27.3%France7,604 · 20.2%United Kingdom4,719 · 12.5%Brazil3,185 · 8.5%6 others listed12k · 31.5%

Shares of the rows listed above, not of the whole node.

Which institutions lead Anthropology research?

University of Oxford (United Kingdom) ranks first in Anthropology on research quality in 2022–2025, followed by University of Cambridge and Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique.

By research quality, 2022–2025

  1. 1 University of Oxford United Kingdom · Oxford · #2 all time 18.3% top 10% · 398 works
  2. 2 University of Cambridge United Kingdom · Cambridge · #1 all time 16.5% top 10% · 364 works
  3. 3 Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique France · Paris · #7 all time 17.7% top 10% · 331 works
  4. 4 University of Tübingen Germany · Tübingen · #24 all time 37.4% top 10% · 87 works
  5. 5 University of the Witwatersrand South Africa · Johannesburg · #4 all time 34.1% top 10% · 130 works
  6. 6 University of Toronto Canada · Toronto · #11 all time 19.4% top 10% · 185 works
  7. 7 University College London United Kingdom · London · #3 all time 24.3% top 10% · 150 works
  8. 8 University of Johannesburg South Africa · Johannesburg · #49 all time 25.2% top 10% · 127 works
  9. 9 Australian National University Australia · Canberra · #5 all time 28.2% top 10% · 139 works
  10. 10 Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas Argentina · Buenos Aires · #62 all time 22.5% top 10% · 250 works

The track on each row is that row’s top-10% rate. The ranking itself is the composite score, which the rate is only one part of.

Of 153 institutions above the floor of 40 fractional works in Anthropology.

Top 100 Anthropology institutions

By volume, 2022–2025

  1. 1 University of OxfordUnited Kingdom 398 works
  2. 2 University of CambridgeUnited Kingdom 364 works
  3. 3 Jagiellonian UniversityPoland 351 works
  4. 4 Centre National de la Recherche ScientifiqueFrance 331 works
  5. 5 University of WarsawPoland 324 works
  6. 6 Ca' Foscari University of VeniceItaly 303 works
  7. 7 Adam Mickiewicz University in PoznańPoland 288 works
  8. 8 Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y TécnicasArgentina 250 works
  9. 9 Universidade de São PauloBrazil 225 works
  10. 10 Department of ArchaeologySri Lanka 223 works

Who are the leading researchers in Anthropology?

Among the most productive authors in Anthropology, Pierre Bourdıeu, Charles Tilly and Immanuel Wallerstein rank highest on the composite score.

  1. 1 Pierre Bourdıeu France · #2 worldwide 10k citations · 235 works
  2. 2 Charles Tilly United States · #8 worldwide 3.7k citations · 238 works
  3. 3 Immanuel Wallerstein United States · #111 worldwide 1.7k citations · 232 works
  4. 4 Martha C. Nussbaum United States · #279 worldwide 1.6k citations · 260 works
  5. 5 Bryan S. Turner United States · #337 worldwide 1.9k citations · 273 works
  6. 6 Gail M. Gerhart United States · #627 worldwide 1.7k citations · 102 works
  7. 7 Franco Ferrari United States · #827 worldwide 661 citations · 139 works
  8. 8 Tzvetan Todorov France · #1,447 worldwide 666 citations · 98 works
  9. 9 George Gömöri United States · #1,514 worldwide 649 citations · 127 works
  10. 10 Jack Goody United Kingdom · #1,614 worldwide 708 citations · 137 works

Re-ranked on the composite score from the 4,733 highest-output authors in Anthropology. Identities come from OpenAlex author disambiguation, which occasionally merges or splits people.

Top 100 Anthropology researchers

Where is Anthropology research done?

The largest centres of Anthropology research in 2022–2025 are Paris (France), London (United Kingdom), Warsaw (Poland) and Moscow (Russia). Among places with at least 20 works in it, it is an unusually large share of all research in Frauenfeld, Ivry-sur-Seine and Mont-Saint-Aignan.

Largest cities, 2022–2025

  1. 1 Paris France 2.7k works
  2. 2 London United Kingdom 1.1k works
  3. 3 Warsaw Poland 772 works
  4. 4 Moscow Russia 621 works
  5. 5 New York United States 599 works
  6. 6 Buenos Aires Argentina 591 works
  7. 7 São Paulo Brazil 578 works
  8. 8 Madrid Spain 570 works
  9. 9 Krakow Poland 570 works
  10. 10 Oxford United Kingdom 538 works

Where it is the local speciality

  1. FrauenfeldCH · 66.8 works38×
  2. Ivry-sur-SeineFR · 66.9 works23×
  3. Mont-Saint-Aignan22.0 works22×
  4. Grenoble28.8 works21×
← less than its size predicts1×more →

Location quotient: how much more of its research is in Anthropology than the world average.

See Anthropology on the map

Anthropology research by country

The best places for Anthropology research inside each country, with that country's researchers and world standing.

Where is the best place to study Anthropology?

Among universities, judged by research, University of Dar es Salaam, Ca' Foscari University of Venice and Ateneo de Manila University score highest, combining excellence, specialisation, size, growth and international reach. Research strength is one signal when choosing where to study; it does not measure teaching.

0%20%40%mean 19.1%fractional works in this node (log) →share in the world top 10% →University of Dar es Salaam: 76, 30.3%Ca' Foscari University of Venice: 303, 13.4%Ateneo de Manila University: 55, 17.9%Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań: 288, 8.7%University of Warsaw: 324, 7.4%University of the Witwatersrand: 130, 34.1%University of Wrocław: 134, 11.9%University of Tübingen: 87, 37.4%Jagiellonian University: 351, 7.9%Leiden University: 155, 22.0%University of Dar es…Ateneo de Manila Uni…Ca' Foscari Universi…Adam Mickiewicz Univ…
above the meannear itbelow it

One dot per university in the table below. The upper left is the interesting corner: small places doing unusually strong work.

#UniversityScoreTop 10%SpecialisationWorksGrowth
1 University of Dar es SalaamTanzania 73.730.3%10.4×76 +226.3%
2 Ca' Foscari University of VeniceItaly 70.413.4%21.8×303 +292.2%
3 Ateneo de Manila UniversityPhilippines 61.417.9%19.1×55 +199.0%
4 Adam Mickiewicz University in PoznańPoland 61.18.7%12.3×288 +123.7%
5 University of WarsawPoland 61.07.4%10.9×324 +116.1%
6 University of the WitwatersrandSouth Africa 60.734.1%5.5×130 +44.2%
7 University of WrocławPoland 60.311.9%11.3×134 +158.9%
8 University of TübingenGermany 59.737.4%4.0×87 +95.3%
9 Jagiellonian UniversityPoland 59.07.9%9.1×351 +105.5%
10 Leiden UniversityNetherlands 58.522.0%8.0×155 +26.2%

Universities only. Score blends excellence (30%), specialisation (25%), size (20%), growth (15%) and international reach (10%), 2015–2022; growth compares 2010–14 with 2015–19.

Is Anthropology research growing?

Output in 2018–2022 was 20% higher than in 2013–2017, peaking in 2020. The fastest-growing topics are Central European Literary Studies, History of Colonial Brazil and Latin American Cultural Politics.

19801990200020102020
grewheldshrank

The same series as a ribbon — one cell per year, darker for more. The line above answers how much; this answers when.

Which topics inside it are moving

Growth and decline on one axis around a shared zero. Two lists side by side hide the thing that matters: whether the growth dwarfs the decline, or the other way round.

  1. Central European Literary Studies+660%
  2. History of Colonial Brazil+231%
  3. Latin American Cultural Politics+222%
  4. European Linguistics and Anthropology+221%
  5. China's Global Influence and Migration+220%
  6. Legal and cultural studies analysis+203%
← shrinkingno changegrowing →

Growth in output from 2005–09 to 2015–19. Every topic is a page of its own.

What does Anthropology include?

Classical Antiquity Studies: 49k fractional worksHistorical and Literary Studies: 33k fractional worksAfrican history and cult…32kAfrican history and culture studies: 32k fractional worksPleistocene-Era Hominins…30kPleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology: 30k fractional worksGlobal Maritime and Colonial Histories: 22k fractional worksColonialism, slavery, and trade: 21k fractional worksPhilippine History and Culture: 20k fractional worksAnthropological Studies and Insights: 20k fractional worksEurasian Exchange Networks: 18k fractional worksArchaeology and Natural History: 14k fractional worksCentral European Literary Studies: 12k fractional worksHistorical and Cultural Archaeology Studies: 9,596 fractional works

Area is fractional works in that topic. Every name below is a page of its own.