Module 2

Community
Meaning and Definition
Meaning
- The word ‘community’ has been derived from the Latin words namely,
‘com’ meaning ‘together’ and ‘munis’ meaning ‘service’
- Thus ‘community’ means ‘to serve together’
- The community is an organization of human beings framed for the purpose
of serving together
- It is a social group of people living in a given area and having a degree of
‘we’ feeling
- Ferdinand Tonnies was the earliest sociologist to deal with the concept of
community Contd……..
Definition
Ferdinand Tonnies: A community is one in which human relationships
are intimate and durable.

Bogardus: Community is “a social group with some degree of “we

feeling” and “living in a given area”.

Kingsley Davis: Community is “the smallest territorial group that can

embrace all aspects of social life”.
Contd……
Characteristics of Community
• It is related to a definite locality-to establish relationship between
human beings-and to evolve ‘we feeling’
• It is a group of human beings living a common life
• Members of community use the same language, conform to the same
mores, possess the same sentiments and have the same attitudes and
have the community sentiments
• It is a group of people who live within a narrow territorial area and
share a common way of life and it commits similarity
• Community is permanent Contd……
• It serves general and common ends of the community
• Community may be big or small

Types of Communities
1. Tribal Community

2. Rural Community

3. Urban Community

Contd…….
Tribal Community
Concept:
- There is no exact definition or the criteria for considering a tribe as a
human group.
- However researchers defined it in various forms at different times.
Sometimes they called “Tribe” as “aboriginal” or “depressed classes” or
“Adivasis”.
- Normally, ‘tribe’ may be a group of individuals during a primitive or
barbarous stage of development acknowledging the authority of a chief
and typically regarding them as having a same ancestor.
Contd…..
Definition
# According to the Imperial Gazetteer of India, a tribe is a collection of
families bearing a common name, speaking a common dialect,
occupying or professing to occupy a common territory and is not
usually endogamous, though originally it might have been so.

# D.N. Majumdar defines tribe as “a social group with territorial

affiliation, endogamous with no specialization of functions ruled by
tribal officers hereditary or otherwise, united in language or dialect
recognizing social distance with other tribes or castes”.
Contd……
Characteristics
•They have a definite geographical and Social area.
• Lives on Hilly or Forest area.
• An integrated social organization on the basis of primarily on blood relationships.
• Cultural homogeneity is the main characteristic of tribal community.
• They have a common Dialect with a shared folk-lore.
• Hierarchy among men and groups is absent.
• Instrument of social bonds among tribes is Kinship.
• Absence or Lack of strong, complex, formal organization.
• Communitarian basis of land holding.
• Segmentary character.
• Little value on additional accumulation on the use of capital and on market trading.
• Lack of distinction between forms as well as substance of religion.
• A distinct psychological view towards enjoying life.
Contd…….
Rural Community
Meaning and Definition
- Rural society or the village community consists of people living in a
limited physical area who have common interests and common ways
of satisfying them.
- Psychological bonds play an important part in the rural community
- Physical locality contributes to the integration and stability of the
village community
- Such proximity had developed a sociability and had encouraged
solidarity and mutuality Contd…….
Definition
• As the rural sociologist Dwilight Sanderson has stated in his “The
Rural Community”, a rural community consists of people living “on
dispersed farmsteads and in a hamlet or village which forms the
centre of their common activities”.

• According to J. H. Kolb and Brunner, A rural community may be

defined as “a group of people permanently residing in a definite
geographic area who, having developed a certain community
consciousness and cultural, social and economic relations feel that they
are separate from other communities “. Contd……
Characteristics
• The Social Homogeneity: uniformity in social life ie; habits, morals,
values, religious beliefs etc
• Dominance of Primary Relations: informal-personal-small in size, face
to face relations
• Informal Social Control: customs, traditions, group standards and
morals are themselves effective as social pressures
• Occupations: Marked predominantly by agriculture-less division of
labour and specialization in rural community-associated with crafts like
pottery, weaving, carpentry etc
Contd……..
• Importance of Family: Joint family-large family size-agricultural operation-
meets the need for large labour force
• Role of Neighbourhood: Close relationships-togetherness- assist one
another-participate in common ceremonies, functions and festivals
• Faith in Religion: deep faith in religion-God-reverence and fear of God-
agricultural occupation-worship nature
• Conservatism and Dogmatism: highly conservative and traditional-social
attitudes and behaviour patterns are influenced by traditions
• Rural Community and Social Change: simple living-firmly associated with
their beliefs, traditions and age-old practices-reluctant to change-peaceful
living-sincere, hardworking and hospitable

Contd……
Urban Community
Meaning and Definition
- It means the city community
- It is considered as a civilized system
- It is the product of man and his own achievements

# James A. Quinn in his “Urban Sociology”, viewed the city as a

“phenomenon of specialization”, as a population aggregate whose
occupations are non-agricultural.
Contd…….
# Louis Wirth in his essay “Urbanism as a way of life“ writes: “ For
sociological purposes a city may be defined as a relatively large, dense and
permanent settlement of socially heterogeneous individuals……”

Characteristics:
# Social Heterogeneity: City life is complex-wide difference is found in the
ways of living of the people-uniformity and similarity are rarely found-
characterized by diversity
# Secondary Relations: by virtue of its size cannot be a primary group-
Private interests-no intimate relations-superficial-non interference in
others concerns
# The Anonymity of the City Life: Heavy concentration in a limited space
makes it impossible for people to know one another Contd……..
# Secondary Control: Regulation of social behaviour is largely done through the
specialized agencies like law, legislation, police, court etc
# Large-Scale Division of Labour and Specialization: Mechanical-Commercial-
specialization of activities
# Large-Scale Social Mobility: It refers to the movement of people from one
social status to another-determined by achievements-occupational and
geographic mobility-more emphasis on accomplishments
# Individualism: emphasis on individuality-secondary and voluntary character-
Individual interests are important over community interests
# Voluntary Association: The size of the urban population, it's close proximity,
diversity and easy contact make it the proper ground for voluntary associations-
secondary group to fulfill varied interests
# Social Tolerance: Diversity of population, impersonal contacts and
heterogeneity in living style make it almost inevitable for the city people to
develop the spirit of tolerance Contd……..
# Spatial Segregation: Due to it's very nature, the city is bound to be
overcrowded. It attracts a large number of people from the village areas. It
is found that various types of business tend to concentrate in different
spots of the city. Occupational groups of people also prefer to live
together in distinct zones of a city ie; functional segregation
# Unstable Family: Nuclear/small family exists here-traditional functions of
the family are transferred to the external agencies ie; education,
recreation, protection-family lost much of its control over its individual
members-individualism is important

Community and Individual

- Community plays an important role in the life of an individual. It is the
total organized social life of a locality. Contd……
- The mark of a community is that one’s life may be lived wholly within it.
- The basic criterion of community, then, is that all of one’s social relationships
may be found within it.
- The character of the community and the role of the individual in it depend
much on its territorial size, size of the population, nature of the local
government and the economic pursuits of the people

Relationship between community and individual

- Identification with the Community
- Role-Playing
- Dependence
Contd…..
Benefits of Community Life
- Protection and Security
- Provides for co-operation of the members
- Depends on some kind of communication system-language-medium of
interaction
- Provides the individual opportunities for the manifestation of his talents
and abilities
- Efficient system of social control

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