Methode der Ethnologie

Fritz Graebner's Methode der Ethnologie (1911) is a foundational work in the culture-historical school of ethnology. This approach, also known as Kulturkreislehre, proposed that cultures spread through diffusion from a limited number of original centers of innovation, or Kulturkreise. Graebner sought to interpret the history of cultures, particularly in Oceania, by mapping and analyzing the distribution of cultural traits. His method involved identifying clusters of traits that indicated chronological sequences for the spread of distinct cultures. While later anthropologists critiqued the theory for overemphasizing diffusion and underestimating independent invention, Graebner's work significantly influenced the study of cultural affinities and stimulated ethnographic research.12