The term cult stems from the Latin cultus, to worship. The term is difficult to define, as it is used to denote various actions and situations. In common parlance, cult brings to mind specific groups or sects who hold unorthodox religious beliefs. In anthropology and archaeology, the term cult tends to be conflated with ritual
It is interesting to note, especially for the consequences within the fields of the social sciences in general and of sociology in particular, that the term cult shares the same Latin root as the term culture: the recognition of man’s dependence upon the divine, which he expresses in acts of adoration, supplication, and thanksgiving, forms