Political System - Anthropological Forms of Political Systems

Anthropological Forms of Political Systems

Anthropologists generally recognize four kinds of political systems, two of which are uncentralized and two of which are centralized.

  • Uncentralized systems
    • Band
      • Small kin group, no larger than an extended family or clan; it has been defined as consisting of no more than 30 to 50 individuals.
      • A band can cease to exist if only a small group walks out.
    • Tribe
      • Generally larger, consisting of many families. Tribes have more social institutions, such as a chief or elders.
      • More permanent than bands; a band can cease to exist if only a small group walks out. Many tribes are sub-divided into bands.
  • Centralized systems
    • Chiefdom
      • More complex than a tribe or a band society, and less complex than a state or a civilization
      • Characterized by pervasive inequality and centralization of authority.
      • A single lineage/family of the elite class becomes the ruling elite of the chiefdom
      • Complex chiefdoms have two or even three tiers of political hierarchy.
      • "An autonomous political unit comprising a number of villages or communities under the permanent control of a paramount chief"
    • State
      • A sovereign state is a state with a permanent population, a defined territory, a government and the capacity to enter into relations with other sovereign states.

Read more about this topic:  Political System

Famous quotes containing the words forms, political and/or systems:

    “The Dada object reflected an ironic posture before the consecrated forms of art. The surrealist object differs significantly in this respect. It stands for a mysterious relationship with the outer world established by man’s sensibility in a way that involves concrete forms in projecting the artist’s inner model.”
    —J.H. Matthews. “Object Lessons,” The Imagery of Surrealism, Syracuse University Press (1977)

    “I would like you to understand completely, also emotionally, that I’m a political detainee and will be a political prisoner, that I have nothing now or in the future to be ashamed of in this situation. That, at bottom, I myself have in a certain sense asked for this detention and this sentence, because I’ve always refused to change my opinion, for which I would be willing to give my life and not just remain in prison. That therefore I can only be tranquil and content with myself.”
    —Antonio Gramsci (1891–1937)

    “I am beginning to suspect all elaborate and special systems of education. They seem to me to be built up on the supposition that every child is a kind of idiot who must be taught to think.”
    —Anne Sullivan (1866–1936)