Folk and Popular Culture: Key Issue 1
Where Do Folk and Popular Cultures Originate and Diffuse?
Rubenstein, pp. 107-111
Complete the sentence: “Each social custom has a unique ___________ _______________, but in general, distribution is
more extensive for _________________ culture than for __________ culture. Two basic factors help to explain the
spatial differences between popular and folk cultures – the ____________ of ____________ and the _______________
of _____________.”
This section looks at the origin and diffusion of specific examples of both folk and popular culture.
Specifically examined examples of folk culture are FOLK MUSIC and AMISH CULTURE. Examples used to
illustrate popular culture are POPULAR MUSIC and SOCCER.
● ORIGIN OF FOK AND POPULAR CULTURE
1. List elements of the origin and
characteristics of FOLK MUSIC.
2. List elements of the origin and diffusion
of POPULAR MUSIC.
3. Draw and label some kind of graphic to illustrate how hip-hop music illustrates elements of both folk and
popular culture.
● DIFFUSION OF FOLK AND POPULAR CULTURE
4. Describe the major differences in and type of diffusion of popular and folk cultures. Make
sure to note specific examples of American popular culture hearths.
POPULAR CULTURE
FOLK CULTURE
THE AMISH
5. Amish customs illustrate which type of
diffusion?
6. Where did Amish culture originate and how did
it diffuse to the United States?
7. Describe the physical landscape of Amish
settlements.
8. In what ways is Amish culture distinct from the
popular culture of the United States?
9. What is happening to the Amish in the United
States today?
10. Use dots to identify the Amish core area. Label
each of the states which have large numbers of
Amish.
SPORTS: ______________________ Diffusion of _________________ Culture
7. Regarding soccer or football describe:
a) Its hearth and origin
b) How it was a folk custom
c) Its transformation and globalization
8. Despite their anonymous folk origins, what characteristics of organized spectator sports
today characterize them as popular culture?
9. On the map below to link popular sports with the countries in which they are most popular
and with which they are best associated.