人類學區域研究在人類學發展過程中具有重要意義。區域研究為人類學提供了從特殊的民族志個案走向整體的途徑。西方人類學界自大航海時代起就關注多個非西方地區的研究,美國人類學尤以規模化、體系化的區域研究見長。區域研究也是超越中國傳統村落及認識整體中國文明的重要方式,產生了包括施堅雅模式在內的幾種區域研究范式,費孝通一生的學術發展都與區域研究有關。如今,全球化對于區域研究既是挑戰也是機遇,中國人類學區域研究出現了新的前景。

The regional study in anthropology had taken great significance in the development process of anthropology,as it provided the approach for anthropological study with the perspective of the regional culture as a whole based on the individual cases of ethnography.Western scholars had paid close attention on researches on non-western regions since the Age of Sail,especially for American anthropologists who distinguished with extensive and systematic studies on regions.Regional study was not only the key to go beyond the scale of traditional rural clusters but also to understand Chinese culture as a whole.Regional study promoted the development of Skinner’s model as well as other frameworks for researches on regions;Fei Xiaotong’s academic thought through his whole life was also closely related to regional studies.Nowadays,globalization provided challenges and opportunities for regional studies,which brought a new prospective for the regional study in China.