I. Religious Studies
Characterization of a place as “sacred” or “holy” lends it a special status vis-à-vis its environment. Usually specific regulations govern how it is entered and used. Traditionally this status has been grounded in the belief that the site is proper to a deity or another spiritual being, or that a special power emanates from it.
Sacred sites are particularly common at the center and on the fringes of group territories: the “men’s house” or festi…