近一、二十年來，人類學者對中國家族及其儀式行爲的硏究甚爲積極，祖先崇拜的探討更引人注目。以往學者，諸如Freedman(1958，1966)、Kulp(1925)等，特別注重宗族的祭祖儀式；近年來，李亦園（1972，1976，1982，1984，1985)、王崧興（1971，1974，1976)、陳祥水(1975)、Ahern(1973)、Jordan(1971、1972)、Wolf(1974)等，則從理想型轉到實際型，注意到變異類型，如冥婚、招贅婚、異姓祖先祭祀。硏究的重點，大多集中於討論⑴，祖靈是保佑子孫或也作祟致禍子孫？（2)，祖先牌位與財產繼承的關係如何？⑶，墳墓風水儀式是否有“操弄”祖先骨骸之嫌？
事實上，中國祖先崇拜的儀式極富彈性而有多樣性的表現。以往學者的討論，往往只根據某一社區的田野資料，欠缺廣泛的比較分析。本文的目的即透過台灣新竹地區兩個閩客社區的田野資料，來比較宗祠、公廳與家戶的牌位崇拜，以及集體與個別祖墳的崇拜，探討兩個方言群之間的異同及其影響因素，以深入了解台灣漢人祖先崇拜的特質及其變貌。
主要的內容，㈠前言，㈡兩個閩客社區的生態與社會文化背景，㈢祖先牌位的祭祀，(四)墳墓的祭祀，㈤結語。

Anthropological research into Chinese lineages and their ritual behavior has been quite active in the past several years. Ancestor worship has been even more attractive as a topic of discourse. Older generations of scholars, such as Freedman (1958，1966) and Kulp (1925)，paid special attention to the rituals of ancestor worship in lineages. More recently, however, scholars such an Li Yih-yuan (1972, 1976, 1982，1984，1985)，Wang Sung-hsing (1971，1974，1976)，Ch，en Hsiang-shui (1975)，Ahern (1973)，Jordan (1971，1972) and Wolf (1974) have turned from the idealistic to the realistic and have paid attention to variant forms such as multiple surname ancestor worship resulting from uxorilocal marriage. The stress in such research is centered on a discussion of (1) Do the spirits of the ancestors only protect the descendants or do they also haunt or even harm descendants? (2) What is the nature of the relationship between ancestor tablets and transmission of property? (3) Is there a suspicion that geomantic rituals at graves are used to "manipulate’ the mortal remains of the ancestors?
Chinese ancestor worship ritual does, in fact, display great resilience and multiple variations. The work of scholars in the past has been based on field data from a single community or district and lacked a broad scale analysis.
The purpose of this article is to make use of field data from two Taiwanese communities in Hsin-chu County, one Hokkien and one Hakka, to compare the worship of ancestor tablets in lineage temples and in domestic halls as well as worship held at collective and individual burials. The data will be used to investigate the similarities and differences between the two dialect groups (or ethnic groups) and the factors which have influenced them. This will be done in order to more fully understand the characteristics and different forms of Chinese ancestor worship on Taiwan.
The principal contents will include: (1) Introduction; (2) The ecological and socio-cultural background of the two communities; (3) Ancestor tablet worship; (4) Worship at tombs; (5) Conclusion.