Final answer:
The anthropologist among the !Kung San is engaging in fieldwork, which is a method in cultural anthropology used to create an ethnography. By living with the community, the anthropologist gains an in-depth understanding of their culture, including language, social practices, and subsistence strategies, much like other famous anthropologists have done with indigenous groups.
Step-by-step explanation:
The anthropologist living among the !Kung San people and engaging deeply with their customs, such as learning the local language, accompanying women in their daily foraging activities, and participating in local rituals, is practicing fieldwork. This is a core method in cultural anthropology where the researcher immerses themselves in the society they are studying to conduct an ethnography. Such deep engagement allows for a comprehensive understanding of the community's way of life, which might include analysis of social practices, language use, gender roles, subsistence strategies, and religious beliefs.
Similar to the work of Bronislaw Malinowski and Christopher Ball, who lived with the Trobriand people and the Wauja, respectively, such anthropologists collect invaluable insights into cultural intricacies. For instance, Malinowski's study of the Trobriand’s kula ring illustrated the critical social functions of ceremonial exchanges. Likewise, linguistic anthropologists like Ball may study how language shapes societal organization and action within indigenous communities.
The San people themselves, a subject of such anthropological studies, lead mostly a traditional hunter-gatherer lifestyle despite the harsh conditions of the Kalahari Desert. Their society is characterized by its egalitarian structure, sex-based divisions of labor, and nomadic tendencies, all of which make them a significant interest to cultural anthropologists aiming to understand human cultures across various environments.