Cultural diffusion is the process by which cultural traits spread from one society to another. This penetration is taking place all over the world, from food restaurants to new technologies.
Crossing social and geographic boundaries leads to interaction with each other, and these relationships contribute to cultural diffusion. At the same time, they can use new ideas from foreign countries in accordance with the needs of the people of this state and vice versa.
Mixing cultures
Cultural diffusion, examples of which are quite common in our world, is important for the development of civilizations, as it allows cultural heritages to improve depending on what they learn from others.
For example, a woman living in Moscow can not only buy prayer beads used by Buddhist monks, but also learn how to use them. At the same time, she does not have to go to Asian regions where Buddhist monasteries are located.
Mixing world cultures through different ethnic groups, religions and nationalities onlyincreased thanks to advanced communications, transport and technology. People living in Australia can communicate daily via Twitter, Facebook or Instagram with someone living in Russia. This enrichment allows us to discover new knowledge and learn new technologies.
Common cultural differences
Let's expand our horizons beyond daily tweets with some examples of cultural diffusion in today's society:
- In New York's Chinatown, you'll find the largest concentration of Chinese in the Western Hemisphere. Here you will find restaurants with some of the most delicious Chinese food in America.
- The spread of music around the world also illustrates the interplay of cultures. For example, jazz began in the US as a mixture of African and European musical traditions. Now it is spreading all over the world, taking on many different variations and genres.
- In Russia, due to the mixing of multiple cultural values, the influence of small nationalities on the general culture of the country is noticeable.
- Many people in European cities and former colonies speak their own language and English.
- Japanese culture has often fascinated foreigners. The worldwide popularity of sushi, a traditional Japanese dish, illustrates the spread of Japanese culture and cuisine.
- Roughly 300 years after its founding, New Orleans' French Quarter still showcases plenty of French culture through its architecture and cuisine.
- Because of the bigMexicans in the United States celebrate a holiday that marks the victory of Mexico over the French Empire. In fact, this day is a more important holiday in the US than in Mexico itself.
Religion and culture
For many nations, religion has always been an integral part of life. And this is the true beauty of cultural expansion, this is the expansion of mental and spiritual horizons. Through a friend or acquaintance from another faith, we acquire knowledge about a foreign culture and even use some that we consider interesting for ourselves.
Let's see what cultural diffusion and acculturation in religious circles are:
- Christianity began in Israel but is now practiced throughout the world, originally spread in the Roman Empire.
- During the Han Dynasty, Buddhism spread from India to China through Emperor Wu when new trade routes were opened.
- Like Christianity, Islam is no longer contained in one region of the world.
- An example of forced diffusion is the Spanish, French, English and Portuguese expansion, during which representatives of a religion alien to the indigenous population of America forced the natives to become Christians.
Technological diffusion
They say knowledge is power. And when one group of people develops an important piece of technology that can benefit people all over the world, it's good to see information sharing taking place. Of course, today it canhappen at lightning speed thanks to the internet.
Let's look at technological diffusion over the years:
- Paper was first made in China, eventually spread to the Middle East and Europe.
- Gunpowder also originated in China. Later it spread throughout the world and became well known.
- The fax machine was invented by Scottish inventor Alexander Bain, but certainly didn't stay in the UK.
- Anti-lock braking system was developed in the United States.
Economic diffusion
Even before the Middle Ages, when merchants traded goods as they traveled from region to region, the benefits of knowledge borrowing and cultural diffusion were evident. If in one region it was not possible to produce the necessary goods, then another was produced and exchanged for the desired one.
Let's look at the economics behind the spread of culture.
- Trade has been a means of cultural dissemination for centuries, from the Silk Road onwards, when caravans traveled and exchanged goods between Europe and Asia.
- Today we can use the opportunity to participate in various study abroad programs. Students can spend semesters anywhere from Ireland, Greece to Japan. When you immerse yourself in another culture, be sure to bring with you the ingredients of that lifestyle and perhaps inspire someone else.
- People in other countries will knowabout new products such as personal computers or mobile phones, the demand increases, the product becomes more affordable, and then distributed around the world.
Sharing ideas, increasing knowledge
After all, diffusion can be life changing. As a person living in Russia follows YouTube videos on how to make their own sushi, they are reaping the benefits of the he althy lifestyle offered by Japanese culture. One post in the comments could introduce him to a Japanese chef. New friendships are formed and knowledge is shared.
They say that travel expands our horizons and takes us into undiscovered worlds. Today, cultural diffusion in sociology is not only a constant exchange of knowledge and ideas, but also the continuous interaction of representatives of different peoples. Learning opportunities continue as entire communities of people interact with each other, sharing goods and knowledge.
Culture Impact
Cultural diffusion can result in one country being able to influence the culture of others through trade, travel or immigration.
The first influence on culture is trade. Various countries of the world sell their goods to many countries, while they can become attributes of their culture and be adopted into everyday life.
The second cultural influence is travel or immigration. When people want to travel or migrate to another country, they often bring their customs with them.
Impactthrough food
Many do not understand what cultural diffusion is. It is not difficult to give examples for perception. Well, one of them is the cultural spread of Chinese cuisine into American society. As the Asian population grows across the United States, more Chinese restaurants are opening across the country.
One of the reasons Chinese food has become so popular is because Americans love the taste of it. Another reason is that they like how quickly food is prepared in Chinese restaurants. In addition, many Americans believe that it is he althier to eat in them than in American fast food.
As Chinese cuisine expands in America, American food is also spreading to other parts of the world. For example, McDonald's is in Vietnam, China and other major cities around the world.
Negative Consequences
The penetration of civilizations can have both positive and negative consequences for both cultures. Many peoples have benefited from cultural exchange, but there are also those that have simply disappeared from the face of the Earth. For example, the destruction of the Inca or Maya civilization. The main thing that hinders cultural diffusion is religious differences.
Knowing and understanding other beliefs and traditions helps people recognize that there are other religions in the world that are different from their ideas about God. It is important that representatives of different cultures and beliefs interact with each other withmore tactics and respect.
The undoubted advantage of cultural diffusion is new technologies around the world, such as computers, the Internet, transportation and scientific discoveries, which have a great impact on how people live in all corners of the world, how they develop.
Now more than ever, people are using technologies such as laptops, iPads, smartphones and BluTooth as communication devices, which has forever changed the idea of socialization. However, cultural diffusion can also have disadvantages, such as loss of identity, departure from traditions and lack of knowledge of the mother tongue.
Diseases such as smallpox, bubonic plague and AIDS have killed millions of people as they spread from one country to another. Cultural diffusion is happening every day and will continue as new technologies have caused our world to become interconnected and dependent on the integration of the economies, knowledge and traditions of different countries into each other.
