Introduction Migration in Anthropology

Abstract The introductory chapter sets up the theoretical tone of the volume. It argues that migration researchers often work from different disciplinary perspectives so that their migration studies are often incompatible with each other. Based on this premise, the volume's contributors developed a “minimal definition” of migration as one-way relocation to a different “environment” by at least one individual. This is meant to be a working definition that should be used as a common denominator that can be embellished or challenged. The chapter builds on the minimal definition through the discussion of certain key variables: structure and scale, motivation, impact, distance, and mode and technology.