ethnographic present

noun

The present tense formerly used in ethnographies, even for cultures that no longer existed by the time they were written.

“When he said they hunt buffalo, he was using the ethnographic present- there are no buffalo on the reservation.”

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Meanings

nounethnographic present (countable and uncountable, plural ethnographic presents)

plural ethnographic presents

  1. countableuncountableanthropologyThe present tense formerly used in ethnographies, even for cultures that no longer existed by the time they were written.

    When he said they hunt buffalo, he was using the ethnographic present- there are no buffalo on the reservation.

Cite this entry
APA

ethnographic present. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ethnographic%20present

MLA

“ethnographic present.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ethnographic%20present. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ethnographic present,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ethnographic%20present.

Source: ethnographic present on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.