Tribalism

Tribalism refers to a social system where human society is divided into small, roughly independent subgroups, called 'tribes'. This phenomenon is named for tribes in particular due to the fact that tribal societies lacked any organizational level beyond that of the local tribe, with each tribe consisting only of a very small, local population. The internal social structure of a tribe can vary greatly from case to case, but, due to the small size of tribes, it is always a relatively simple structure, with few (if any) significant social distinctions between individuals. Some tribes are particularly egalitarian, and most tribes have only a vague notion of private property; many have none at all. As a result, tribalism has also been sometimes called "primitive communism" (though this term clearly does not apply to all tribes). One thing that is certain is that tribalism was the very first social system that human beings ever lived in, and it lasted much longer than any other kind of society to date.

Related Topics:
Social system - Society - Tribe - Egalitarian - Private property - Primitive communism

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