ethnologist

IPA/eθˈnɒlədʒɪst/
IPA/eθˈnɑːlədʒɪst/

ethnologist — noun

  • ethnologistsingular
  • ethnologistsplural

1. someone whose job is to compare the customs, daily life, and social ties of diff

1.nounC2
Definition

someone whose job is to compare the customs, daily life, and social ties of different peoples

Example

Wren became an ethnologist after recording fishing customs in coastal villages.

become an ethnologist through field research

At the museum, Amelia worked as an ethnologist on island wedding traditions.

work as an ethnologist at a museum

Common collocations
  • field ethnologist
  • museum ethnologist
  • become an ethnologist
  • work as an ethnologist
Synonyms
  • anthropologist

    a broader term for a researcher of human life that can also include archaeology, language, or biology

  • ethnographer

    usually someone who describes one community in close detail rather than comparing several groups

  • researcher

    a very broad word that does not show this specialist field

Grammar Patterns

be an ethnologist

work as an ethnologist

an ethnologist studies customs

Usage Note

Usually names a research profession in universities, museums, or field projects. Use ethnology for the academic subject and ethnography for a close written study of one community.

Common Mistakes

She studies ethnologist at university.
She studies ethnology at university.
Ethnologist is a person; ethnology is the subject.
The museum hired an ethnology to interview village elders.
The museum hired an ethnologist to interview village elders.
Use ethnologist for the researcher, not ethnology.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Ethnologist is best when someone compares the customs, social life, and traditions of different groups of people. Anthropologist is broader and can also include human biology, language, or archaeology. Ethnographer often suggests a researcher who spends time with one community and then writes a detailed account of that group, while an ethnologist usually compares several communities. Sociologist often studies social systems such as class, education, or work, especially in modern society. Researcher is the safest broad word, but it hides the cultural-comparison focus. If someone compares marriage customs in several coastal villages, ethnologist is the clearest choice.

anthropologist ↗ethnographer ↗sociologistresearcher ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • field ethnologist
  • museum ethnologist
  • cultural ethnologist

Phrases

  • become an ethnologist
  • work as an ethnologist
  • interview an ethnologist

Prepositions

  • ethnologist at a museum
  • ethnologist in the field

Etymology

GreekFrenchEnglish

Ethnologist comes from ethnology and the suffix -ist. The older scholarly word ethnology was built from Greek ethnos, meaning a people or nation, and logos, meaning study or account. In English, ethnologist names a person who studies and compares cultures and communities.